Bighorns host High Sierra Lacrosse League Jamboree

On Saturday, the Oasis Academy College Prep Bighorns hosted the High Sierra Lacrosse League High School Jamboree in Fallon. This event kicks off the high school lacrosse season in Northern Nevada.

The event featured four varsity girls teams, seven varsity boys teams, and eight JV boys teams from the league. At the varsity level, perennial powerhouse Galena had a successful day going undefeated. At the JV level, the Oasis Academy Bighorns dominated.

The Bighorns return to action on Saturday by hosting Damonte Ranch at 10 a.m. in their first regular season game.

The Bighorns started the day with the first game against Reno High School JV. The Bighorns showed some jitters, missing several shots on goal. The Huskies opened the scoring on the day off a rare defensive breakdown for the Bighorns.

Coming off the goal, the Bighorns veterans, all of whom were members of last season’s undefeated champion U15 team, settled the team down, and they began to play their game.

The Bighorns started throwing some crushing body checks to back down the Reno players, then the goal scorers went to work.

Oasis poured in four unanswered goals to take a 4-1 lead in the second half. One late broken play led to a Huskies goal with three minutes left, but the Bighorns maintained their pressure and never allowed Reno another good look at the goal.

Midfielders Josh Carter and Tristan Rodarte scored, as did attackmen Trey Rooks and Koda Biggs. Faceoff specialist Patrick Morrow won 100 percent of his faceoffs on the game.

The defense of David Springfield, Mason Wagner, Fearghus Keitz, and newcomer Wyatt Hampton kept the Reno offense from getting set up, while goaltenders Kaden Stone and Brendan Leary were right back at last season’s championship form with key saves through the game.

There were many events going on through the day, including the National Anthem performed by the Navy Color Guard, and a fastest shot competition. Tristan Rodarte won the JV competition with a 91 mph shot.

In the late game, the Bighorns JV faced a major challenge, pitted against the varsity squad from Reed High School. From the first faceoff, the Bighorns again dominated the game. Patrick Morrow again dominated faceoffs, as the Bighorns turned loose their uptempo offense.

Reunited this season, the Lombardo Brothers provided numerous scoring opportunities, but it was Josh Carter who opened the scoring with a highlight reel goal, starting right handed, then dropping to his left with a split dodge that left the Reed defender stumbling behind him, Carter ripped a left handed goal that brought the crowd out of their seats.

Reed made the choice to contain the dynamic Bighorns attackmen, so they opened up opportunities for the midfielders. Utilizing the speed of rookie midfielders Trevor Wuth and Christian Cedeno, to set him up, Tristan Rodarte fired a rocket of a shot to put the Bighorns up by two. Josh Carter again put on a show with his second goal, third on the day, from a nearly impossible angle, 15 yards out to the right of the net, he found the goalie sliding off the post and slipped a shot by him into the few inches of net left open.

Stone and Leary shared the shutout, and the Bighorns capped a dominant day at the Jamboree.