West Is the Best: Finals Are Set
ROUND ROCK, Texas – The top two West seeds hammered the East’s top two outfits in the semifinals of the 2021 MCLA Invitational, setting up a final between West No. 1 Chapman and West No. Brigham Young on Friday morning at the Round Rock Multipurpose Complex.
In the early start, No. 2 East Clemson (5-5) jumped out to an early 4-2 lead to start the game, but Chapman (7-1) managed to tie the game heading into the second stanza.
The game was still tight at the half, with the Panthers leading, 7-6, thanks in large part to the play of goalie Anderson Marks, who finished with 16 saves on the day.
Sparked by the play of attackman George McGuirk, Chapman outscored the Tigers, 4-1, in the third quarter to build an 11-7 lead heading into the final stanza, where the Panthers put the game away, taking the 17-10 victory.
McGuirk finished with a staggering seven goals along with two assist – factoring in over half of the Chapman scoring. Jack Morrissette chipped in with four goals in the winning effort.
Devon McIntyre scored a pair of goals for Clemson to lead the Tigers offense while Lad Howell turned away six shots in the loss.
Brigham Young came out hot against East No. 1 Georgia Tech (7-1), potting the first four goals of the contest. The Yellow Jackets would respond with the next three to trim the margin to one, 4-3, at the end of the first frame.
The game was still tight at halftime, with the Cougars holding a 10-7 margin, but BYU would go on a 9-4 run over the first 25 minutes of the second half to build a 19-11 lead before holding on for the 19-15 victory.
Jake Halversen scored five goals in the winning effort while setting up a sixth and Seth Garff chipped in with a hat trick and three dimes. Faceoff man Tyler Clancy won 17 faceoffs, scored two goals, dished out an assist and gobbled up 10 ground balls.
Clancy and McGuirk won the PEARL Player of the Game award for their respective contests.
Robert Kruszeski made nine saves for Georgia Tech while Devin Raun and Sam Eck scored four goals apiece in the loss.
Friday’s finals will begin at 10 a.m.