In Chicago, Illinois, at St. Rita of Cascia High School, the two top teams of the Heartland Collegiate Lacrosse conference squared off, the Southwestern University Pirates (11-4) and the Colorado College Tigers (6-8). Both teams dominated their HCLC semi-final matchups, with the Tigers defeating Anderson University 22-2, and the Pirates defeating Hanover College 18-3. With the Tigers beating the Pirates earlier in the season by a margin of 19-14, the Pirates were guaranteed a battle heading into the championship game.
Colorado College jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first quarter. The Pirate defense looked solid at the start, with the first three goals being spread over twelve minutes of game time. Offensive Player-of-the-Year Cody Foster scored the game's first goal for the Pirates to cut the Tiger lead to 3-1. However, the defense for the Pirates started to falter with three goals given up in the last three minutes of the quarter, giving the Tigers a 6-2 lead going into the second. quarter.
In the second quarter, the Tiger shooting efficiency was off the charts, scoring four goals on only eight shots. Meanwhile, the Pirates went the opposite route, shooting for volume and variety with four goals on sixteen shots. Long-Stick Midfielder Tyler Santos had a goal from long-range, while midfielder Tommy Dyson added a slick backhand goal coming around the crease. Although the teams were evenly matched in the second, the first quarter hurt the Pirates and the Tigers led 10-6 going into halftime.
The momentum was entirely in the Tigers' favor coming out of halftime, scoring five goals in the third quarter thanks to the pair of Makay Hansen and Anders Erickson. Hansen scored three goals in the third quarter alone, all assisted by his teammate Erickson. Hansen went for a season high in goals, scoring six throughout the match up, while Erickson had a season high of seven assists. This combination helped the Tigers extend their lead to 15-9, heading into the fourth.
The Pirates were able to battle back in the final quarter of play. Three straight goals by the Pirates brought the game to within three goals at 12-15 with eight minutes left in the game. But that would be all the Pirates could do to try and catch Colorado College. Regardless of the Pirates' effort, the ball seemed to bounce the way of Colorado College throughout the contest. The Tigers put up two more goals following Southwestern's run, holding off the Pirates to win the Heartland Conference Championship by a final score of 17-12.
Matt Caldwell put on an excellent performance for his team, scoring three goals, often when the Pirates needed to keep the game close. Foster finished the final game of his career with the most points for the Pirates on the day, totaling two goals and two assists. Long-stick midfielder Aidan Gildea showed great effort throughout the day defensively for the Pirates, causing two turnovers and scooping up one ground ball. Fellow LSM Tyler Santos also secured three ground balls and forced one turnover.
The Pirates end their season with a record of 11-5, a historic season for Southwestern, finishing with the most wins in program history throughout the regular and postseason.
