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Sports |
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HISTORIC: ELAX wins first lacrosse match in county TERRANCE THOMAS, LTN Sports Writer March 25, 2002 - DENVER — History was made on Lincoln County soil Saturday. What is believed to be Lincoln’s first ever lacrosse match was played on East Middle School fields. A team primarily made up of East Lincoln students called ELAX (East Lacrosse) played Charlotte area Butler High School. ELAX, possibly the first Lincoln lacrosse team, gave up three goals in the first quarter before rallying back to tie it in the fourth quarter. Then ELAX pulled the game out in triple overtime, 4-3. Brian Barker drove to an opening and fired the ball past the Butler goalie for the win. “I got the ball in the box on the left side and just broke past one defender and shot the ball between two others. It feels great to finally win one.” It was ELAX’s first win after losing to North Mecklenburg and Concord’s Cannon School. “It’s great,” said a jubilant Jay Thompson who scored two goals in the game. “It’s awesome to get the first win. It’s awesome to win on home turf too.” East had problems in the first game, defending and picking up loose balls. But after that first quarter, East’s defense clamped down on Butler’s offense for the next 31 minutes of play. East goalie Alex Martin four big overtime saves. “The (shots) were easier to see,” he said. “But we were attacking a lot. Coach (Gene Thompson) told me to use my body more than my stick and keep my stick close to my body.” After Butler jumped out 3-0, Jay Thompson scored early in the second period while Donald Smith scored with a minute left before halftime. In the fourth period, Thompson again put one in the net to tie it up in the first minute of the fourth. East had plenty of other chances while Butler was playing with one man in the penalty box but couldn’t get anything close. In the game, East outshot Butler, making big strides since its first game. “Since the first game, we’ve improved a lot more,” said Donald “Don-Don” Smith. “We have more shots on goal. We’re keeping the ball moving, We’ve won more the of the loose balls. We’ll keep improving.” The team has a few members who practiced last year but more players joined ELAX this year so they could play other squads. There are also a lot of first-timers. ELAX has mainly sophomores so they play other team’s junior varsities. Gene Thompson organized the team with help of assistant Butch Barker. “This is the first win in Lincoln County history and the first game played in the county,” he said. “I’m proud. We’re pleased we were down 3-0 and we won 4-3. We shut them down. Pride is what we needed. I’m happy.” Thompson is trying to schedule anther home match. The next game for ELAX is at Butler on April 15.
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© 2001 Lincoln Times-News |
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