Boys Lacrosse: RB Nips Poway to Claim League Title

With the boys lacrosse teams at Rancho Bernardo and Poway so evenly matched all season, it's not surprising it took overtime in the regular-season finale to decide the outcome of the game and the league race.

The Broncos and Titans were separated by just one game in the standings, with RB a game in front at 5-0 in league after winning the first meeting between these two powerhouses, though LAXPower.com currently has Poway ranked fifth and the Broncos sixth.

With a win, RB would bring home its first league title in school history. Poway was looking to avenge its first loss ever at Rancho Bernardo (9-7 on April 15), and with a win they could even the score and share a piece of the league crown.

Wednesday night at Poway, it was only fitting that, in the end, regulation time was not enough. After a hard-nosed defensive battle, the Broncos came away with the overtime win, 7-6, to secure the league crown.

Shay Dooley was the hero of the day for Rancho Bernardo (15-3, 6-0), sealing the deal with the golden goal in OT.

“We wanted this real bad,” said the Broncos' Blake Hiedrick, who scored twice. “We made history tonight! We beat Poway twice for the first time ever, and we won our first league title. It’s a big deal for our school and it’s a big deal for our lacrosse program.”

The Broncos were the first to strike and held a 4-2 lead heading into halftime, but the Titans (12-3, 4-2) would battle back. 

In the fourth quarter, Poway’s Connor Sanit took over late, having a hand in the final three goals of regulation, putting in his final shot of the night with under a minute to play to even the score at 6-6.

After a hard-fought season, Broncos first-year head coach Travis Begay does not want to get over confident heading into the postseason despite the league title.

“We’re only worried about ourselves heading into the playoffs,” said Begay. “We’re our best friends and our worst enemies. We’re very humble but we feel real good right now.”

The CIF playoff brackets will be announced Thursday night, but the Broncos will most likely be awarded the second seed and host a first-round game on Saturday.

As for the Titans, don’t count them out yet because they’re still as confident as ever.

“We’re definitely eager to get back on the field,” said Connor Sanit, who had three goals and an assist for the Titans. “We have a game Saturday and we’re going to destroy whoever we play, then we will probably play RB again in the next round. We know we can beat them. We have the skill. We just have to do it.”

“The season might be over, but the playoffs have just begun,” said Poway coach Paul Sanit. “We've got to have a short memory and be ready to play. Our team goal is to win the last game of the year, and we still have that chance.”

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For playoff pairings and dates, visit the CIF website. 

To find out more information about Titans boys lacrosse, visit their website or check them out on Max Preps.

For more about the Broncos' lacrosse program, click on their website or see their  Max Preps page.