We headed up to Gainesville to watch the collision of Buchholz (11-1) and Oak Hall (9-3.)  Buchholz is putting together a great season but has never beaten Oak Hall… until now. We were sidelined for the first half by a busted radiator hose. By sidelined I mean on the side of I-75.  Thank God for Duct Tape and a case of water.  After  a short delay and a trip to the Auto Parts store we finally limped into the Buchholz parking lot at half time.  What we saw when we got there was not what I expected. The first thing I noticed was the carnival like atmosphere.  The place was nuts! People were everywhere, music was playing, and the energy level was through the roof.  The crowd was way more than the stands could possibly hold and kids were stretched out along the track from end to end.  “This is a rivalry game!” was all I could think. I was also surprised by the 8-3 halftime score.  I thought this one would be a one or two goal game.  Senior attackman Kyle Hunziker had scored a first half hat trick to push the Bobcats to a lead they would not relinquish.  Buchholz’s freshman FOGO Evan Vogel had a big day.  He took the opening face off of the second half straight to the pipes and Zach Jones was able to finish.  This play, only seconds into the half, really took the wind out of the sails of Oak Hall.  It was clear that any designs they had on a second half comeback would include a struggle. Buchholz looked bigger, faster, and just more determined for the half of lacrosse that I watched.  They get after the ball non-stop.  There are no easy clears.  Defensively they played solid basic defense.  Hips to hips, they forced the ball down the alleys and let their goalie take care of the long outside shots.  There were very few easy shots given up by Buchholz and they didn’t over play the ball. Offensively they played organized but fast and wanted to score every time they touched the ball.  Finn Swanson has got some great dodges.  The attack unit of Mckaig, Jones, and Hunziker would combine for 8 goals on the night.  Swanson and Kyle Horner would end up with Hat Tricks and a dominant performance by that first line midfield between the boxes, on the rides, and chasing down the GB’s. Oak Hall is a very skilled young team but tonight was not their night.  Buchholz was clearly ready emotionally for the biggest game in program history.  The student body was out in force and the place was alive.  But now they need to make history twice for it to mean something more than a regular season win. No doubt Oak Hall will go back to the drawing board, finish off an excellent regular season, and prepare to see the Bobcats again in the playoffs. Buchholz Head Coach Wayne Macuirzynski was nice enough to give us some time after the game.  “We came out strong like we always do.  We don’t play to anyone else’s level other than what we practice for.  Whether we are down or up we play at 100%.  We have a lot of threats on the team.  We play basic lacrosse and we play it very very hard.” As for the emotion we saw from his guys tonight he said, ” This team has a real “family” attitude.  They look out for each other on and off the field.  I have a feeling we are going to go even further.  We made history tonight.  This is the first time we’ve ever beaten Oak Hall.”  Where do they go from here? “We’ll probably end up playing them again for the district finals.  They are an excellent team.  John Montes does an excellent job coaching that team.” We asked him if they can do it again if they meet in the district finals. “Absolutely.”