It was not a great night for the Red Deer Chiefs.
On May 15, the Lacoka Bantam Locos defeated the Red Deer Chiefs in a 24-1 blowout game.
Locos Coach Cam Green said that he is proud of his team and added his players have been improving every game.
“They come out here and they give it all they’ve got,” said Green. “These kids are amazing.”
Lacoka wasted no time in putting the pressure on the Chiefs, opening the scoring in the first minute of play. After that, the Locos continued to build momentum and rack up points while the Chiefs struggled to gain a foothold.
Lacoka did not let up at all as the game progressed. Continuing to pressure Red Deer into making turnovers, they capitalized on the Chiefs’ mistakes by turning them into goal-scoring plays.
Exploiting opponents’ mistakes is something the Locos are particularly good at, said Green. “They seem to be able to see what the other team’s weaknesses are,” said Green.
“To me, it’s their ability to read the other team that allows them to capitalize on our strengths and their weaknesses.”
Speed was another deciding factor in the game. Lacoka utilized a fast breakout to make it into Red Deer territory before there was any defense to oppose them, allowing the Locos to take their time setting up plays.
In the second period, Lacoka really turned up the heat, scoring nine times.
The onslaught of goals left Red Deer goaltender Cade Joslin shaken and as the score gap increased, Joslin’s net-minding was affected inversely.
By the third, the game was all but decided but the Chiefs weren’t about to stop playing. Instead, Red Deer kicked their game up a gear, began fighting harder for the ball and played a more physical game.
However, Lacoka still had too much of a foothold on the game with a strong lead.
The Locos also continued to dictate the style of pay, still managing to score eight goals.
Thursday’s blowout game could be attributed to the Locos’ consistency, something Green said the coaching staff has stressed all season.
“It’s not about running up the score like that. We just played our same game all the way through.”
Teamwork, said Green, is Lacoka’s biggest strength. Every other year, this group of players forms a team together and Green said it is clear they have played together quite a bit. He added that speed and passing are also assets the Locos possess.
“To me, that’s the way lacrosse is meant to be played, the way they are doing it.”
On the other hand, no team is ever perfect. Green said that defense, particularly in high-scoring games, is something Lacoka has to work on.
“They get excited and kind of forget that we have a goalie and defense,” said Green.
Now halfway through the season, Green said that Lacoka has been dominant in the league so far. He added that blowout games such as this one have not been uncommon for the team.
“We’ve had a lot of higher scoring games,” said Green. “They blow me away each game. I’m so proud of that whole team. Everyone on there contributes and each game we keep getting better and better and it’s exciting.”