CSB lacrosse named MWLC champions

This past weekend, the CSB lacrosse team defeated Augsburg to win the Midwest Women’s Lacrosse Conference (MWLC) championship title. Winning the conference title secured the No. 1 spot going into the MWLC postseason tournament. The opening game on the tournament was on May 3. The Bennies won 13-3 and will now play for the MWLC tournament championship on May 6. Going back to the regular season, the win against Augsburg was a fantastic way to end the first ever lacrosse season in program history. The inaugural season was a success with the team achieving an overall record of 10-2.

The Bennies started the conference game strong with a 30-7 edge in shots in the first half. According to head coach Patrick Crandall, first-year midfielder Ella Steinke started the game off with a lot of opportunities and kept the pressure on Augsburg. First-year midfielder Grace Fitzgibbons had three straight goals late in the second period to extend the halftime lead to 11-2. In total, Fitzgibbons had six goals which is a season-high number of goals scored in a game. One of the team’s special moments in the game was when they pulled away from Augsburg in the second quarter.

“They kept the ball in our attacking end for most of the quarter, and we were able to take over the game at that point,” Crandall said.

First-year goalie Chloe Lewis had eight saves to strengthen the defense, and CSB’s midfielders especially contributed to the win.

“Our midfield line of Emma Osland, Presley Kraemer and Grace Fitzgibbons played the entire game and were important players on the offensive and defensive sides of the field,” Crandall said.

The Bennies secured the win in the second half with eight goals, four in both the third and fourth quarter. This brought the final score of the game to 19-9. The team celebrated the win by pouring water over Crandall after the game. This was a special moment for the team as they were able to celebrate all they had accomplished this season.

“Winning this title gives me another reason to love this team and lacrosse even more,” said Steinke, who had a hat trick (three goals) during the conference game.

According to Crandall, the team showed a lot of grit and determination the whole season.

“The team had to forge its identity through a lot of obstacles; 6 a.m. practices, record snowfall, long bus trips/hotel stays and learning a new sport just added to how great it felt to win the championship,” Crandall said.

The next immediate focus for the team is the May 6 MWLC tournament championship game. Following the tournament, the players are looking to improve their individual skills to help them be successful in the MWLC Conference and beyond. The CSB lacrosse program is in the works of getting a summer team together during the offseason. According to sophomore Emma Schrepfer, the summer will allow the team to train, continue to grow the culture of the team and welcome new recruits in.

“The next season is about working on continuing to mesh well and figuring out each other’s playing styles so we can play together as a cohesive unit,” Schrepfer said.

Many players are excited to start off-season training to be prepared for next fall. The team is looking forward to adding more talent with a skilled recruiting class coming in for the 23-24 season.