Orange, Calif.– The St. Thomas club lacrosse team lost 10-5 to Grand Valley State University in the semifinals of the MCLA Division-II national tournament after being shutout in the second half Thursday in Orange, California.

The Lakers (14-2, 4-0 CCLA) held the Tommies (9-4, 2-2 UMLC) to their lowest point total of the season as St. Thomas looked to continue its run as defending national champions. The Tommies, who defeated the Lakers 12-8 earlier in the season, couldn’t muster a goal in the second half, and the winner of this game would move on to play St. John’s in the national championship game.

“I really didn’t think about (the championship game). Nice job, St. John’s. Congratulations, but we had work to do. We knew GVSU was going to be a good opponent,” coach Peter Moosbrugger said. “We knew they were kind of a peaking team … we knew we were kind of playing the hot-handed team, but at the same point I thought we were doing the same thing. I knew it was going to be a great game.”

St. Thomas had a 5-3 lead at one point in the first half, before going into halftime tied 5-5. The Tommies were riding a 10-game win streak into Thursday’s contest.

“That was kind of our mindset coming out of halftime. Concentrate on the little things, it’s a 0-0 game,” Moosbrugger said. “We didn’t think we’ve even played our best game yet, so we came (into the half) pretty confident. We knew it wasn’t that we needed to make any big changes, just an effort change.”

Both teams stymied the other’s offense to start the half, until the Lakers broke the door open. The turning point in the game occurred when GVSU defenseman Peter Treppa ran the length of the field to score and give Grand Valley State a 6-5 lead with 5:17 remaining in the third quarter. It was all Lakers from that point on. Senior captain Will Hersman scored one of the Tommies’ five goals.

“(We got) some good looks in the second half, and we weren’t finishing on our opportunities,” Hersman said. “I think it’s more a lack of execution on our part of the offensive than anything they did defensively.”

The California heat was also a major factor in the game, with temperatures reaching 130 degrees on the turf.

“I mean it was definitely hot, like I said the turf was reaching degrees up to 130 (degrees). Feet were on fire, sticks were a little bendy and melting a little bit. They were baking in the sun, so it was a little tough to get ground balls,” senior captain Joe Palermo said.

The Lakers extended their lead to 7-5 by the end of the third quarter. Grand Valley State controlled the second half, but the Tommies had a few good scoring chances. However, Grand Valley goalkeeper Kyrn Stoddard stopped everything that came his way.

“Their goalie was making big saves for them. We were battling the heat … had a bunch of turnovers, and I guess really couldn’t find that groove,” Palermo said. “That second half we couldn’t get into it and had a little bit of a struggle.”

Hersman highlighted the difficulty of wrapping up a season with teammates that he’s played with dating back to his high school days and stressed the importance of the relationships that the team developed.

“We’ve been together for four years. I actually go back a lot further with some of those guys from playing on different traveling teams in high school. … We’ve built up some great relationships,” Hersman said. “It’s really starting to come down on me that it’s come to an end here, but we’ve got a lot of great memories to look back on.”

Palermo, a transfer from Quinnipiac University, said his decision to transfer was a good one because of his teammates.

“I love each and everyone of them. Not only the seniors, but the underclassmen too. It’s a tough way to end it, especially coming off two very successful seasons,” Palermo said. “I couldn’t be happier meeting these guys and I know we’ll be lifelong friends. … Brothers, teammates, all of it. Fantastic.”

The Tommies graduate 14 seniors from this year’s roster, including Palermo and Hersman.

“They mean a ton to our program, we always ask our guys to leave the program better when you leave than when you showed up as a freshman, and they did that,” Moosbrugger said. “It’s always hard for me to say goodbye to these guys, especially when you have a special group that has sacrificed so much and accomplished so much … they are like my own children leaving the nest.”

Jordan Kruger can be reached at krug6172@stthomas.edu.