Vail Lacrosse Shootout - 2009 Tournament

Photo by Andy Sharp

The championship game started well for the USA Stars, who were tied with the Polar Statesmen for a portion of the first quarter at 1-1. Unfortunately for them, the Statesmen decided they wanted to get it going, scoring 10 goals in a row to make it 11-2 after the first half. The second half wasn’t much prettier as the Statesmen continued to pour it on to the finish, eventually winning 18-4.

One thing is for sure: out of every age group in Vail, the Grandmasters Division is the most-improved year after year. The Polar Statesmen would have been a good Masters team, let alone Supermasters. Scott Petosa pumped in five goals and two assists and the Statesmen used accurate shooting and good riding to get the victory. Tom Chancler, a 15-year Vail veteran patrolled the middle of the field with a long stick for the Statesmen, playing a large amount of offense on the day as well. John Hayes pitched in with four goals too.

While the Stars were formed back at the 2002 World Games and have been playing together ever since, the Polar Statesmen feature several players that won a national championship with Hobart back in the mid-1970’s. These guys weren’t part of the dynastic 13 year run by Hobart, but they were the group that sparked the run in approximately 1975. Congrats to the Polar Statesmen for a dominating performance in 2009 and we look forward to an even more improved Grandmasters division in 2010.

Championship: Polar Statesmen 18, USA Stars 4 - scoresheet - champions photo - runners-up photo
3rd Place: Nacho Mamas 13, Gravediggers 8 - scoresheet
5th Place: Middlebury 10, Colorado Lacrosse Club 4 - scoresheet
7th Place: Los Viejos de Adidas 12, Navy Grandgoats 2 - scoresheet

Final Rankings:
1. Polar Statesmen - champions photo
2. USA Stars - runners-up photo
3. Nacho Mamas
4. Gravediggers
5. Middlebury
6. Colorado Lacrosse Club
7. Los Viejos de Adidas
8. Navy Grandgoats

Mr. Boh/Nacho Mamas dynastic run of four wins in a row came to a decisive close on Day 2 of the Grandmasters division at the hands of the Polar Statesmen. The former Hobart stars pounded Nacho Mamas by 10 goals to move on to the championship game tomorrow. The USA Stars snuck past the Gravediggers by one in the other semifinal to set up a championship on Ford West tomorrow. It also sets up the coolest name match-up in the 3rd place game as the ‘Diggers take on the Mamas. On the consolation side, the Colorado Lacrosse Club and Middlebury both comfortably won and will play for 5th place tomorrow. The Navy Grandgoats and Los Viejos de Adidas will play for 7th.

Grandmasters Day 2:
Semifinal #1 – Polar Statesmen 16, Nacho Mamas 6 - scoresheet
Semifinal #2 – USA Stars 9, Gravediggers 8 - scoresheet

Consolation #1 – Colorado Lacrosse Club 10, Navy Grand Goats 1 - scoresheet
Consolation #2 – Middlebury 11, Los Viejos de Adidas 2 - scoresheet

Monday Games:
Grandmasters Championship – Polar Statesmen vs. USA Stars – 8:30 am – Ford West
3rd Place – Nacho Mamas vs. Gravediggers – 8:30 am – Athletic Field
5th Place – Colorado Lacrosse Club vs. Middlebury – 8:30 am – Ford East
7th Place – Navy Grand Goats vs. Los Viejos de Adidas – 8:30 am – Donovan Park

See Bracket/Schedule in the upper left for full schedule.

The Grandmasters Division is an 8 team tournament with all games taking place at 8:30 in the morning across the 4 active fields. It was evident in the first few minutes of play that this year’s tournament will be the most competitive bracket in the history of the division. With a goal in the last :30 seconds the USA Stars advanced to the semi-finals to face the Grave Diggers, and the Nacho Mamas will face Vail Shootout multi-division staple the Polar Statesmen. These semi-final matchups are identical to last year’s pairings which will make for an intense early morning of lacrosse.

8:30 AM - Ford Field West - Navy Grand Goats 0, Nacho Mamas Lacrosse Club 13 - scoresheet
8:30 AM - Ford Field East - USA Stars 9, Middlebury 8 - scoresheet
8:30 AM - Vail Athletic - Colorado Lacrosse Club 2, Polar Statesmen 13 - scoresheet
8:30 AM - Donovan - Los Viejos de Adidas 4, Gravediggers 7 - scoresheet

Schedule for Sunday Games:

Supermasters Round 1:
Semifinal #1 – Polar Statesmen vs. Nacho Mamas – 8:30 am – Ford West
Semifinal #2 – Grave Diggers vs. USA Stars – 8:30 am – Ford East

Consolation #1 – Navy Grand Goats vs. Colorado Lacrosse Club – 8:30 am – Athletic Field
Consolation #2 – Los Viejos de Adidas vs. Middlebury – 8:30 – Donovan Park

See Bracket/Schedule in the upper left for full schedule.

Web Design by the Creator of