LM Midwest Region Report: June 7, 2011
by Matt Forman | LaxMagazine.com
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Ohio playoff MVP Andrew Circelli's three goals sparked Hudson to a 14-8 victory over Worthington Kilbourne in the state championship game. |
Player of the Week
Andrew Circelli, Hudson, Ohio
It took 17 hours longer than expected, but Hudson earned Ohio's
Division-I state title on Sunday after the game was postponed due
to lightning twice Saturday evening. The Explorers made five
straight state final four appearances from 2005 to 2009, but this
season marks their first state title. Hudson got revenge from the
2009 semifinal contest, a game it lost to Worthington Kilbourne,
9-8. Five of Hudson's 15 losses in the last five seasons came at
the hands of the Wolves, but 2011 proved a different story, as the
Explorers rolled to a 14-8 win behind senior attacker Andrew
Circelli's three goals. Circelli was named the offensive MVP of the
postseason tournament, and he ended the season as Hudson's leading
scorer, with 56 goals.
Midwest Region Top 10
1. Culver Military Academy (Ind.) – (19-3) – The lone hiccup on Culver's resume was a late-April, 10-6 loss to Lyons Township (Ill.), and the Eagles beat Midwest No. 3 New Trier twice. After winning eight of the last 11 Indiana state titles, Culver did not participate in the IHSAA tournament this year.
2. Dublin Jerome (Ohio) – (19-1) – Make it back-to-back Ohio Division-II state titles for Jerome, which beat University School, 13-4, in the title game. The Celtics' only loss of the season came against Brother Rice in early May, and they registered six wins over top-10 teams.
3. New Trier (Ill.) – (18-6) – It looked like New Trier might lose its grasp on the title of Illinois' top team after it lost to rival Loyola Academy in May, but the Trevians erased any doubts by dominating in the postseason tournament. New Trier closed the season by exacting revenge against Loyola, 9-2, giving it seven straight Illinois championships.
4. Hudson (Ohio) – (21-1) – Hudson earns the distinction of being the highest-ranked team among teams not ranked in the preseason top 10, thanks to its almost-pristine season. After an overtime blemish against Solon in April, the Explorers reeled off 13 straight wins, which were capped off by a 14-8 defeat of Worthington Kilbourne in the Ohio Division-I championship contest.
5. Worthington Kilbourne (Ohio) – (17-6) – The Wolves peaked at the right time, learning from their three losses to top teams in Pennsylvania and playing their best lacrosse in the Ohio state playoffs. But Kilbourne's late-season surge came to a close in the Ohio Division-I title game for a second straight year, this time in a 14-8 loss to Hudson.
6. Upper Arlington (Ohio) – (16-2) – After 19 consecutive appearances in the Ohio Division-I state championship, the Golden Bears came up short in the semifinals against Worthington Kilbourne two weeks ago. Regardless, you still have to give credit to Upper Arlington's consistency over the years, and even in 2011, especially when you consider they beat Medina, Worthington Kilbourne, Cincinnati St. Xavier and Brother Rice in an eight-day span.
7. Archbishop Moeller (Ohio) – (15-7) – The Crusaders appeared on the top-10 radar later in the season, as they lost four of their first eight games — all to top-10 opponents — before winning eight of nine in May. Moeller nearly marched its way into the state title game, but it lost a one-goal game to Worthington Kilbourne in the semis.
8. Cincinnati St. Xavier (Ohio) – (15-6) – Six losses by a combined 11 goals summarizes the Bombers' season somewhat accurately, as they were on the cusp of being the region's top team, but they clearly are among the elite. St. X lost to Archbishop Moeller, 11-7, in the Division-I quarterfinals.
9. Brother Rice (Mich.) – (16-4) – Since starting as the Midwest's preseason No. 1, Brother Rice has put together another solid season, though losing five All-Americans from last year's team was too much to overcome. Still, the Warriors are the favorites to win another Michigan state championship this week, and they'll meet Troy Athens in the semifinals on Wednesday.
10. Loyola Academy (Illinois) – (17-5) – The Ramblers end the season where they started it: the 10th-ranked team in the Midwest and the runner-up to New Trier in Illinois. Loyola beat New Trier earlier in the season but couldn't repeat the feat last week, which was the 22nd time in the last 24 years that the teams have met in the state championship game.
Game of the Week
Michigan Division-I State Championship Game –
Saturday
This game gets singled out for its historical implications, as
top-ranked Brother Rice could win its ninth consecutive state
championship to the title. The Warriors will first have to go
through Troy Athens, and then they would face the winner of
Novi-Ada Forest Hills.
News and Notes
Minnesota hasn't yet decided its state champions, but the state tournament brackets and final four teams were announced Saturday. Defending state champions Benilde-St. Margaret's earned the top seed, and it will face Burnsville on Tuesday. The winner will meet either No. 2 Eden Prairie or No. 3 White Bear Leake in the championship game on Thursday evening ... A state champion hasn't been named in Wisconsin yet either, though we're down to the final four: Wausau, Arrowhead, Marquette University and Verona, the last two of which met in last year's title game ... Kentucky awarded three state titles last weekend: Louisville St. Xavier (Division-I), Lexington Dunbar (Division-II) and Greenwood (Division-III).
