Colleyville lacrosse headed to playoffs, big game looms

The Colleyville lacrosse team picked up a big win recently, but it still has another looming as it prepares for the upcoming playoffs.

By picking up a 6-5 win over Frisco, Colleyville took over the top spot in its district and is considered the second-place team in Division II of the Texas High School Lacrosse League.

Colleyville canceled its scheduled game with Division I’s Keller on Saturday in order to heal from injury and now has its sites on competing with Greenhill on Monday. Greenhill will likely pose the toughest threat in the district to the Panthers.

“We beat Frisco, but it gets hairy now,” said Colleyville head coach Gary Dennington. “If we lose – and by more than two goals – we can get bumped down to third place.

Their spot in the playoffs isn’t in jeopardy, even in the event of a loss to Greenhill, but Dennington said momentum is a valued gift.

“It’s always good to win because you never know if we will have to play them again,” Dennington said. “I think we’re pretty evenly matched. They are extremely well-coached, and have very smart players. They know how to move the ball up and down the field.”

It will be somewhat of a benchmark game for Colleyville, due to the strong history of Greenhill’s program. The game will be played at Colleyville Middle School.

Now at 12-2, Colleyville has been able to win despite several injuries, including having two of the three starting poles out in the 18-4 win over Country Day last week.

There have been plenty of pleasant surprises for Colleyville, including the strong play of freshman Jacob Northcutt, who came on in the Frisco game due to one of those team injuries.

Also helping the Panthers is the strong face-off play of Trevor Brown, Hayden Parker and Ike Griffin.

Captain Michael Ferrer is regarded by Dennington as one of the strongest total-package players in the area, which has aided Colleyville.

“He’s steady on offense and defense and he never seems to run out of energy,” Dennington said of Ferrer.

Blake Greeves, a senior, has come on strong with his deceptive speed and seems to always find the open man, the coach said. “He has a knack for getting space and getting open.”

Another captain, Jake Moore, is the calming effect for the Colleyville team.

“When the team is getting amped up, Jake settles them down,” Dennington said, something which will be important when the playoffs begin April 27-28.

“He can get them going when needed and give a spark,” he said of Moore. “If we’re playing flat, he can make a play to turn the game around.”

Dennington said he realizes he’s fortunate to have a good, well-rounded group to work with.

“I’m very fortunate,” he said. “They’re good human beings and they have no ego. They’re not concerned about their own stats.”

The first round of the playoffs will be in Dallas, with the second round scheduled for May 2-3.

Winning their way to the third round would put Colleyville in the state finals, May 9-10 in Round Rock.

This story was originally published April 13, 2015 at 2:11 PM with the headline "Colleyville lacrosse headed to playoffs, big game looms."