Preview: Division II Final

(Photo by Lance Wendt)

by E.J. Freeman | MCLA.us

RICHMOND- Stop me if you have heard this before, but St. Thomas and Grand Valley State are meeting for the third time this season and the winner will take home the National Championship.

The situation sets up in a nearly identical fashion as the 2025 championship game.  St. Thomas won the regular season game in both years and Grand Valley State won the UMLC tournament final in both years.

The Lakers are hoping to flip the script of the MCLA National Championships Presented by New Balance final as the Tommies pulled away late in 2025 to win the title.  The field will be littered with All-America players and those who are soon to be named as such.

I do not think anyone would have been surprised if you told them in January that these teams would be meeting in Friday’s final; we took a bit of a circuitous route, but here we are. 

The Lakers scored seven goals in the first game against the Tommies and lost 12-7 and in the second game won 8-7 in overtime so it seems as though the Lakers will want a lower scoring game in this one.  The Lakers have also been using their defense as their primary weapon so far this tournament allowing a total of 10 goals in three games. 

St. Thomas has been lighting up the scoreboard a little more in their games this week. Layne Kology and Cam Gelling tend to draw most of the headlines for the Tommies’ offense, but Joseph Torborg has been their most consistent threat this week.  Torborg’s combination of size and athleticism makes him a difficult match up for opponents.  The Lakers so far have held him to one goal in each of their games, which probably goes a long way in explaining the Tommies’ relatively low goal output in those games.  I would expect Torborg to be matched up with Caden Adkins  from the Lakers.  The two were both First Team All-America honorees in 2025 and it would be shocking if they both were not honored as such again.  Ben Capone and Caden Ladd will likely be shadowing Kology and Gelling, which will two more heavyweight bouts. 

On the other end, the Lakers would certainly welcome a little more offensive production.  The known quantities of Bryce Gordon and Caleb Lowell have been productive all week, but against the Tommies so far have produced four and three combined points.  A player to watch in this game is Miles Grajewski who runs on the second line and has not been overly productive this week, but has looked explosive as a dodger and feels like he is close to breaking out with a few goals.  Grajewski will likely draw the short stick and if he can get his shot calibrated could be a surprise X factor for the Lakers.  It may be tough for the Lakers attack to operate against the Tommies’ defense so the midfielders could be key.  The Lakers were able to capitalize on Cal State San Marcos’ struggles clearing the ball and they cannot rely on that against the Tommies. 

These two teams know each other well and we should be in for a tightly contested game for all the marbles.