Just a couple weeks into the preseason, the Saint Ignatius lacrosse team is drawing attention.
The Lax Cats have been ranked as the No. 7 team in the Midwest according to the Under Armour/IL Top 10 Regional Coaches Poll.
That's a high preseason honor. As Inside Lacrosse writes, "The Coaches Poll is a tabulation of high school coaches and media members in each of IL's designated regions nationally. The poll will form the baseline for the National Power Rankings throughout the season."
The Lax Cats have certainly been hard at work to earn the ranking. Just a couple weeks into practice, the Wildcats are looking good. And that's with almost half of the team missing due to other Saint Ignatius sports commitments (hockey, basketball, etc.)
The Wildcats' schedule is peppered with other teams in the poll. The No. 1 team in the Midwest, Culver Academy, will meet the Lax Cats at the University of Notre Dame on April 6. The Wildcats will match up with No. 5 Brother Rice on Saturday 23 in Michigan and the No. 5 MICDS (MO) in Indiana on March 30. Three of the first six games of the season will be against Midwest-ranked opponents.
Earlier this offseason, Inside Lacrosse named the Wildcats' game vs. MICDS as one of the top 10 games in the country this season. The site wrote of the game: "Andy Kay’s Rams haven’t backed down from playing top Midwest talent — they’ll host the Cleveland-based program in an intriguing late March contest. MICDS will trot out five-star senior Graham Bundy (Georgetown), while No. 24 junior Mikey Boehm (Michigan) is equally excitable for the Wildcats."
Later in the season, the Wildcats will do battle with the No. 6 team in the poll – St. Xavier. The two programs have plenty of history together, including a thrilling matchup in the state title last June. The Lax Cats and Bombers will meet halfway in Columbus at Fortress Obetz in a premier contest on Friday, April 26 at 7:30 pm.
On April 20, amidst the Wildcats' Easter break trip, the squad will see the No. 7 ranked team in the Mid-Atlantic, Georgetown Prep (MD).
The Wildcats kick off the 2019 season on Tuesday, March 19 at University School. The two programs will do battle at 5 pm. Before then, look for a season preview.
In the meantime, here is the full poll:
- Culver Academy Prep (Ind.)
- Detroit Catholic Central (Mich.)
- MICDS (Mo.)
- Loyola Academy (Ill.)
- Brother Rice (Mich.)
- Cincinnati St. Xavier (Ohio)
- St. Ignatius (Ohio)
- New Trier (Ill.)
- Dublin Coffman (Ohio)
- Upper Arlington (Ohio)