Lax Regional Finals on MHSAA.tv
May 22, 2015
By John Johnson
MHSAA communications director
Plans have been finalized for broadcasting live streaming video of Lacrosse Regional Semifinals at two sites next week on MHSAA.tv.
On Tuesday (May 26), the Division 2-Region 6 Boys Lacrosse Semifinal games at Okemos High School will be streamed live, with DeWitt (11-6) facing Haslett/Williamston (9-9) in the opening game at 5:30 p.m. followed by the host Okemos Chiefs (14-2) taking on Portage Northern (13-7) in the nightcap at 7.
Then Wednesday (May 27), the Division 1-Region 4 Girls Lacrosse Semifinal games at Lake Orion High School will be televised, with Midland Dow (12-0) vs. Hartland (11-5) in the first game at 5:30 p.m. and the second game featuring Lake Orion (11-4) against Waterford Kettering (2-10-1) at 7 p.m.
The games at Okemos feature the top three seeded teams in the region. Top-ranked Okemos will be facing fifth-seeded Northern for the first time this season, while second-seeded Haslett/Williamston and third-seeded DeWitt will be playing for the third time. DeWitt won each of the first two games by a single goal.
Hartland and Midland Dow are the fifth and seventh-ranked teams, respectively, in Division 2 Laxpower.com rankings. None of the four girls semifinalists have squared off against each other this season.
The games are being produced by MHSAA members participating in the School Broadcast Program. The games at Okemos will be produced by Haslett High School, and the games at Lake Orion will be covered by Davison High School.
The games are available live and for the following 72 hours on a subscription basis on MHSAA.tv, and are part of a promotion allowing subscribers to follow three weekends of MHSAA spring tournament action with a special all-access pass being offered by the NFHS Network.
Between now and June 15, the NFHS Network is offering its Month Pass for just $9.95, 33 percent off the normal retail price. The pass will provide access to more than 100 hours of live programming of spring Finals. Click here to take advantage of this offer.
Finals coverage begins on May 30, with live coverage of the running events at the MHSAA Track & Field Finals. Here’s the complete spring Finals live streaming schedule:
- May 30 – Track Finals – Running events – Rockford (L.P. Div. 1), Zeeland (L.P. Div. 2), Comstock Park (L.P. Div. 3, Hudsonville (L.P. Div. 4), Kingsford (U.P.) – Coverage begins at 10 a.m.
- June 6 – Lacrosse Finals – Rockford (Girls), TBA (Boys – Games will be at Troy Athens, Howell or East Grand Rapids – Site announced after Semifinals) – Two games at each site, coverage begins at 2 p.m.
- June 11-13 – Baseball-Softball Semifinals & Finals – Michigan State University – Four games in each sport-each day, coverage begins at 9 a.m. each day
- June 12-13 – L.P. Girls Soccer Finals – Michigan State University – Two games each day, beginning at 1 p.m.
Plans for other pre-Finals event coverage by SBP schools is pending. Coverage will be announced as arrangements are confirmed.
The School Broadcast Program, powered by PlayOn! Sports, is a platform which schools can utilize to reach members of their community about activities taking place in their buildings, providing recognition for students while at the same time giving them hands-on opportunities to gain broadcasting experience and providing schools an opportunity to realize additional revenues for their programs. Schools interested in becoming a part of the School Broadcast Program should contact John Johnson at the MHSAA Office.
Brother Rice Returns to Division 1 Final, Earns Familiar Title with OT Win
By
Drew Ellis
Special for MHSAA.com
June 6, 2025
ANN ARBOR – Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice won its 17th MHSAA Division 1 boys lacrosse championship Friday, but the 17th may be the sweetest one yet for the Warriors.
Facing off with its Catholic League rival Detroit Catholic Central for the 11th time in a MHSAA Finals game, Rice overcame an early 3-0 deficit to defeat the Shamrocks 9-8 in overtime.
“Somebody asked me this morning what I could write a TED Talk about – how about the heart of a team?” Brother Rice coach Ajay Chawla said. “We had it (Friday). They went down early, fought back. They never stopped fighting, and that’s been this team all year. … They wanted it really bad.”
Friday’s championship will stand out from the Warriors’ prestigious history after they missed appearing in the Division 1 Final in 2024, the first time they didn’t reach an MHSAA championship game in program history. During this regular season, Catholic Central also handed Brother Rice a pair of one-goal losses. All of that just motivated the Warriors more to pull out the victory at University of Michigan.
“Let me make this clear: The expectation is still there at Brother Rice,” Chawla said of winning Finals championships. “These guys felt it and when they came here, they had that expectation. They shouldered that just as heavy as any other team that has shouldered it. They had to shoulder it a little more because we didn’t even get here last year. We’re back where we want to be, where we should be, which is on top.”
The Warriors (19-5) won the opening faceoff of overtime and moved toward the Catholic Central goal. Sophomore defenseman Ben Waechter fired off a shot for the game-winner just 12 seconds into the additional period.
Upon scoring the championship goal, Waechter ran all around the field as his teammates attempted to swarm him to celebrate. It was the lone goal for the sophomore in the contest.
“It’s so surreal. It’s an unreal moment,” Waechter said of netting the game-winner in overtime. “I was cold all game, but I saw my opportunity, and I let it rip. No hesitation.”
After trailing 3-0 during the first half, Brother Rice wouldn’t trail in the second, but the game would be tied on three occasions over the final two periods.
The final tie came with 8:41 to play when Catholic Central senior Luke Zajdel intercepted a save attempt at the net and scored on a putback to make it 8-8.
Both teams would have scoring opportunities over the final stretch, but Catholic Central goalie Matthew Cranston and Brother Rice goalie Payton Fortino kept the ball out of the net. Both would finish the game with 12 saves.
The Shamrocks (23-1) got out to a strong start with that 3-0 lead after one quarter of play. Catholic Central’s defense set the tone, creating a lot of ground balls to allow the offense to control possession for most of the period.
Senior Lachlan Moffatt netted the first goal for CC, while Zajdel and Ben Papke followed for the three-goal advantage.
Needing to respond, Brother Rice adjusted its offensive approach and started peppering the right side of the net during the second quarter.
That strategy succeeded, as the Warriors posted three goals over a 1:20 stretch of play. Junior Frank Baiardi got the first two goals, while senior Hansen Polonkey followed with a low runner that found the net to tie the score at 3-3.
Catholic Central didn’t surrender the lead until the closing seconds of the first half. Trailing 5-4, the Warriors got a two-man advantage during the closing minute. That led to a Jayden Fortino goal to tie the game at 5-5 with 40 seconds left before the break.
Polonkey then gave the Warriors their first lead of the game with just two seconds on the clock as he scored on a wrap-around shot to put Brother Rice ahead 6-5 at halftime.
“Everyone just dug deep and showed a lot of heart,” Polonkey said of the second-quarter comeback. “We were all playing for the seniors and everything they have given to get back to a state championship. Deep down, we knew we just wanted it.”
Frank Baiardi led Brother Rice with three goals, Polonkey had two, and Joe Lee had a goal and an assist. Zajdel had three goals and an assist to lead Catholic Central, while Moffatt and Papke each finished with two.
PHOTOS (Top) Brother Rice’s Ben Waechter (30) winds up for what will be the game-winning shot of Friday’s Division 1 Final. (Middle) Waechter and a Detroit Catholic Central player contend for a loose ball.