A quick break from our 18 Stripes football content to let you know our Notre Dame alumni pro lacrosse team, Redwoods LC, is in the Premier Lacrosse League finals!  The game will be broadcast live on NBC this Saturday at 2:30 pm while we are all getting ready for the Georgia game.  The boys are looking to win the championship that frustratingly eluded them while on campus.

Assembling all our Irish alums on one team has been fantastic to witness.  It has a clearly defined Notre Dame identity that the entire team wears proudly.

THE DEFENSE

The team is anchored by the superb defense of 2-time Schmeisser Award winning Matt Landis, 3-time All-American Garrett Epple, and the best communicator in the history of lacrosse, Eddy Glazener.  In front of them is the incredible Schmeisser Award-winning John “#46Trucking” Sexton at LSM, and 3-time All-American SSDM Jack Near.  Add to this historic lineup a reinvented Sergio Perkovic, who has found a new role as a legit 2-way midfielder.

Redwoods’ defense has battled injuries over the season, but when this unit is at full strength like they will be in the Championship, they are devastating.  As evidence of this, they have had three games where they have held their opponent to ONE second-half goal, including last weekend against the #1 seed Chaos to get into the final game.

Some highlights of this defense (sorry for the bleeps)

 

THE KID

Our Ryder Garnsey was a mid-season addition to the ‘Woods, and the rookie has taken the league by storm.  He is the league leader in points since the All-Star break, and he bring an electricity to the game like no other.  Everyone should love to do something in their lives as much as Ryder loves to play lacrosse.

As a bonus, NBC will have Ryder mic’d up for the game.

THE WHOLE PACKAGE

If having Ryder and a the entire ND defense wasn’t enough, let’s not forget “The King of Clutch” Matt Kavanagh is a Redwood, too. In his usual determined way, he came back from injury to drag the Redwoods into the playoffs. Nick Ossello, Brendan Gleason and Hugh Crance are on the roster as well.

What makes the Redwoods even more appealing is that not only do they have a rosterof Irish all-stars, they are led by a unique veteran presence in three of the most respected lacrosse players of all time in Kyle Harrison, Joe Walters, and Greg Gurenlian.  They elevate the core Notre Dame group to new heights.  Finally, they are coached by a great leader in Nat St. Laurent, who has embraced the Domer core of his team in a way that is both cool and affectionate.

TIDBITS

 

Irish Nation, we have a lot of time on Saturday before our boys take on Georgia.  Please take some time to watch our Irish Redwood boys in action during the afternoon. They are a treat to watch, and perhaps they’ll get their title!

#GoIrish

#Rollwoods