Cal Poly Lacrosse

This section of the site is dedicated to all Cal Poly Mustang Lacrosse Alumni. Find the latest news and information specifically geared to our alumni supporters. Marc has set up an email list-serve to keep the alumni informed and connected; make sure you are registered to receive all the latest news, whether it be game reports or team gatherings.

Also, be sure to check out the Archives and History pages! Do you have team pictures or action shots from the bucket-helmet era games? Pass them along to make sure our team history pages are as detailed as possible. If any alumni would like to post a notice here, such as lacrosse alumni parties/gatherings, etc. feel free to send an email with your info!

November 20, 2010 - It looked like this was the year the rain would finally fall. For the past twenty-two seasons, Cal Poly’s annual alumni game has been played on the weekend before Thanksgiving without a raindrop in sight.

This year, the forecast called for a cold front to spin through the Central Coast and a grey, rainy Saturday for the 23^rd Annual Cal Poly Lacrosse Alumni Game. The rain came late Friday night, but by game time on Saturday the clouds had cleared and the current Mustang squad squared off against a talented Alumni team under clear, blue November skies.

Despite a line-up filled with former WCLL All-Conference players on both ends of the field, the Cal Poly Alumni team was trounced by the current Mustangs 21-3 in the 22^nd Annual Alumni game.

The game started as a tense back and forth battle with both teams creating excellent offensive opportunities. Current keeper Nick Czapla and alumni keeper Ryan Parr shut the door on numerous point blank shots, and midway through the first quarter the game was deadlocked in a scoreless tie. It was beginning to look like a repeat of the 2008 Alumni Game – a seesaw affair that the current squad decided in the game’s final seconds.

But the current Mustang squad had other plans. Matt Graupmann snapped the scoreless spell on a nifty no-look feed from Colin Mason, and the floodgates opened wide as the current Mustangs rattled off eleven unanswered goals. The Mustangs dominated the game from that point forward, holding the alumni scoreless until defenseman Ari Elden finally cracked the net midway through the 3^rd quarter.

November 22, 2008 - Coming into the 2008 Cal Poly Lacrosse Alumni Game with a two-year winning streak and a roster filled with All-Americans, the Alumni team was confident they would roll right over the young Mustang squad. But the current team had the final say on the matter, pulling off a 10-9 upset on Andrew Haviland's goal in the game's waning moments to get the current squad back on the winning track.

The two teams squared off on an unseasonably warm November afternoon, as the weather continued to cooperate for the annual Alumni Game grudge match. The current team won the early face-off battles, a trend that would continue for much of the afternoon, and allowed them to control the ball and keep the powerful alumni offense in check.

Freshman attackman Olivier Schmied connected on the first two goals of the game to stake the Mustangs to a 2-0 first quarter lead. The Alumni battled back to tie the game at 4 – 4 heading into the halftime break, stealing the momentum on Andy Parr's outside laser shot just as the second quarter expired.

The Alumni gained the lead early in the second half and appeared to take control of the game, but they could not manage to pull away from the hard working Mustangs. When the Alumni opened up a two-goal lead with just under seven minutes left, it looked like the current squad had finally run out of steam.

As it turns out, things were just getting interesting. With five minutes remaining in the contest, sophomore midfielder Alex Hare scored on an unassisted drive to close the gap to a single goal, and senior attackman Colin Mason tied the game at 9 goals apiece a few minutes later.

Both teams had their opportunities to break the tie in the final minutes, but as the clock ticked down overtime looked all but inevitable. With just seconds to go, the Alumni managed one last charge at the goal but failed to clear the ball cleanly.

The Mustangs picked up the loose ball and rushed upfield. The Alumni defensemen were lost in the confusion of the broken clear, and goalie Ryan Parr was forced to make the final stand alone. Mason pinged the potential game winner off the pipe, but fellow attackman Andrew Haviland scooped up the ricochet and dumped it over Parr's shoulder for the 10-9 victory.

Cal Poly Lacrosse would like to thank all of our alumni for joining us in San Luis Obispo this year for one of the best Alumni games in recent memory. In addition to all of the action on the field, the weekend was a successful fundraiser and we appreciate the generosity of all of our former Mustang players.