Petaluma wins historic battles

Petaluma’s boys scored three goals almost before a large gathering of lacrosse fans had settled into their seats, and went on to a historic 10-4 win over Casa Grande.

The Trojan triumph followed a thrilling 11-10 win over Casa by the Petaluma girls team. The games were the first official school lacrosse contests ever played between the two rivals after eight seasons of competing as club teams without California Interscholastic Federation or school sanction.

The boys contest was an intense physical game befitting the Casa-Petaluma sports rivalry. It was marked by a multitude of penalties that had each side playing much of the contest a man down.

The game was actually closer than the final score indicates, as Casa Grande battled back from its early deficit to trail just 5-3 at the half.

Petaluma continued to score in the second half, and the Gauchos couldn’t match the attack against a staunch Trojan defense that allowed the Gauchos few good looks at the goal over the final two periods.

“We had our chances to get the momentum back,” Casa Grande coach Ben Hewitt noted, “but we just couldn’t take advantages of our chances and regain the momentum.”

“It feels good to win a league game,” noted Petaluma coach Kevin Louchs. “We moved the ball well. We’re improving on both offense and defense.”

Each coach had praise for his opponent.

“Casa Grande has a very good team. They really challenged us,” Louchs said.

“Petaluma Grande has a great team. They are well coached,” Hewitt noted.

The crowd was still transitioning from the girls game to the boys contest when Brandon Blomgren, who was a force all evening on offense and defense, zipped in the game’s first goal for Petaluma. Minutes later, Garrett Teagarden, working off an assist from Blomgren, added a second Petaluma score and Brandon Ruzik quickly followed with the first of his three goals.

Casa Grande finally broke the Petaluma streak on a goal by Philippe Devarenne, working off an assist by Tommy Buickerood.

Blomgren continued his outstanding all-around game with his second goal as the first period drew to a close, giving Petaluma a 4-1 advantage.

Casa Grande, pretty much out-played in the first quarter, fought back hard in the second period, getting goals from Angelo Lagomarsino and Buickerood to pull to within a goal of the Trojans at 4-3. The Gauchos missed several other scoring opportunities with shots off the pipe and other misfortune. Still, despite a goal by Petaluma’s Ellis Scherer, the Gauchos were very much in the game, trailing just 5-3 at the half.

The second half belonged to Petaluma. Zak Zemel shot a bullet into the net early in the half and the Trojan assault was on. Petaluma’s defense clamped down on the Gauchos, and when a decent Casa shot was to be had, it was saved by Petaluma goalie John Lautner.

Petaluma’s patient offense continued to produce good scoring opportunities and, despite a valiant effort by Gaucho goalie Hank Wickley, the Petaluma victory margin grew.

Wild girls game

There was little to choose between the two emotional girls teams. Petaluma won because it made two late goals by Eda Grace Spaletta stand good, despite a final score from the Lady Gauchos. Until the last minutes, the game see-sawed back and forth with each rival taking turns leading.

The game was deadlocked at 7-7 at the half, and Casa held a 10-9 lead going into a frantic final period.

The win was especially satisfying for Petaluma coach Sarah Shada, who had never beaten Casa Grande as a player for Petaluma during the teams’ club days.

“This was a huge win for us coming in a league game,” Shada said. “We have a lot of new players, and we finally put all the pieces together.”

Like other spectators, Shada was in suspense from beginning to end.

“It was an awesome game,” she noted. “It was one of the most stressful games I’ve ever seen.”

Petaluma was led by Nichole Costa, who scored four goals. Spaletta added three, Taylor Forslind scored two and Whitney Royall, Jacquelyn McGee and Tiernan Settles added one apiece.

Makayla Chavez had an outstanding all-around game for Casa Grande, scoring five goals. Maya Dimaio added three, Alyssa Chavez scored two and Lindsey Graul added one.