Guest coach Lorne Smith offers advice to Tristan Rodarte during a preseason practice session.
Oasis Academy’s boys’ lacrosse team opened its season last week, falling to the Damonte Ranch Mustangs and the McQueen Lancers.
Coach John Keitz said Friday’s game against McQueen was tough. The Big Horns lost 21-2 in a blowout by the Sparks team. Joshua Carter and Tristan Rodarte scored the two goals for Oasis. Brenden Leary also had a good game, saving 54 percent on more than 50 shots. Rodarte was also named offensive Most Valuable Player with Conor Keitz being named defensive MVP.
The game against Damonte Ranch was better but ended in a 16-6 loss. Carter led the Big Horns with three goals; Rodarte was right behind him with two and Koda Biggs made one goal. Keitz said Leary had an even better game in the net, saving 66 percent of the shots made.
Keitz said the second game was good for his team. He recalled they had a 3-0 lead by the end of the first half. He said Nick Delgado had a good game and recalled a play where Delgado outpaced three Damonte players from the defensive zone to pass the ball to Biggs for a goal.
Keitz said the Mustangs had a bigger, better team — there are 14 players for Oasis to Damonte’s 30 — and eventually overtook Oasis in the fourth quarter.
The team is fairly young this year with only two seniors. However, Keitz said he is confident of his team’s skills. He said there are no easy games in varsity, but the Oasis team can usually hold its own against most of the competition. League leader Galena is expected to be a challenge, though.
“That’s the brick wall we have to go through,” Keitz said.
The coach said he also feels the program as a whole is looking good; two years ago they won the championship in U-15. Colleges have also been scouting several players. Keitz noted his own son, a freshman, was being looked at by recruiters. He said this is big since Fallon isn’t in the area where the big lacrosse schools usually look.
“A lot of these guys are going to get a good look,” Keitz said.
While it’s not sanctioned by the Nevada Interscholastic Athletics Association, lacrosse has the same season as NIAA baseball and softball. One difference, Keitz noted, is the lack of different classes. Unlike other sports that have 3A and 4A, lacrosse teams all play each other; the teams with tons of players still play the smallest teams.
“Everybody’s fair game … We just have the two leagues, north and south, and all that’s separating them is geography,” Keitz said.
The regular season extends until early April, then the teams will hold playoffs. The Oasis team will be practicing almost every day; Keitz said the plan is to go four days a week unless a mid-week game interfers.