Men’s Lacrosse opens fall season at Boise tourney
After finishing in second place in the Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Lacrosse League (RMILL) last spring, the Utah State University men’s lacrosse club is playing in its first fall tournament Saturday and Sunday in Boise, Idaho.
USU opens the tournament against Boise State University at 11 a.m. Saturday, followed by another match at 2 p.m., and two more matches Sunday at 9 a.m. and noon.
Although the opponents for the last three games are unknown, the Aggies will likely face the University of Utah and Gonzaga University.
While games played in the fall are only considered preseason, the Aggies have been preparing for the last five weeks, holding practices three times a week, Head Coach Eddie Vega.
“We’re definitely ready for the tournament,” he said. “It will be a good opportunity to get out there and see where our skills are at.”
Relying on his experience from last year as assistant coach, Vega is devoting a large part of practice time to the team’s offensive line. Last year, he said, the offense was the most undeveloped aspect of the team, but also one of the best resources of the team.
On the offensive side for USU, Vega said he is expecting a lot out of captain Thad Nichols and freshman Kyle Fiat. But Vega isn’t focused only on the offense, he said.
“I’m also expecting our whole defense to do well,” he said. “We haven’t really worked on defense the last five weeks, but I think they’ll do great.”
Along with holding practices for the last five weeks, the Aggies also have the advantage of having a large number of returning players on their team this season. With this in mind, Vega said he is expecting another solid year of Aggie lacrosse.
-csmo@cc.usu.edu