We had a mostly relaxing afternoon (I was able to squeeze in a Hotel Gym Workout), after practice on Friday, and then a nice dinner with some of the parents, who were able to make the trip, back at the hotel. Saturday morning, we had breakfast, checked out and hit the road, heading to West Palm Beach to take on the Sailfish of Palm Beach Atlantic, in the final game of our Spring Break Trip to South Florida. After the one hour Van Ride, we arrived at the lovely Rinker Athletic Complex, with plenty of time to warm up.

By noon, the temperature was in the mid to high eighties, though the occasional cloud cover did provide some protection for the visiting team from the north! Our first two games had been played later in the day, and the weather had been only a minor factor, if at all. That would not be the case, this time. The facility is located close to the airport, which is great for a visiting team who is scheduled to depart by plane, after the game. But, it is also directly under the path of planes coming in for a landing! This too, would be a factor.

The Lady Lions jumped out to a 2 – 0 lead before PBA answered with two goals of their own. Molloy would never trail in this game, and by halftime, held a 9 – 4 advantage. The third quarter saw the Sailfish outscore the Lions 4 – 1 and trail by 10 – 8! Perhaps, the home team was rallying for their Seniors on Senior Day! We appeared sluggish, perhaps showing the cumulative effects of a week that included a lot of “van time”, and practices in the heat. Whatever, the reason, the Lions dug deep and summoned the strength to outscore PBA 3 – 1 in the final quarter, for 13 – 9 Victory!

Our flight home went off smoothly, at least compared to our flight to Florida a week before. We took off, only about one hour later than scheduled. During the flight, I alternated between going over the game and in fact, our whole week, and finishing my book. On balance, I felt that the week had been a good team bonding experience and that we had played our best lacrosse, so far this season against strong competition. I am feeling good as we move on to the next portion of our schedule (we play at Bentley this Wednesday, another nationally ranked opponent).

GO LIONS!

By the way, I finished the book. “The Boys In The Boat” by Daniel James Brown, was one of the best books I have read in a long time. It is an extremely well written, true story, that is now also a Movie. I highly recommend it.