Union wins boys lacrosse state title

The Union boys lacrosse team rallied from a 4-1 halftime deficit to beat Richland 8-7 to win the Washington High School Boys Lacrosse Association Division II state title on Saturday at Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila.

As the clock ticked down in the fourth quarter, it was Union’s Andrew Harrah who found himself in the driver’s seat converting the tying goal with just over three minutes to go, then again as he fired the game-winner past Richland’s Kyler Welch with just 42 seconds to go.

“It was a big fourth quarter for us,” said Harrah who finished with a game-high five goals, including four in the second half, as the Titans rallied from a 6-2 deficit with 2:36 to go in the third to score six of the last seven goals and set the stage for the first state lacrosse title for a Vancouver-area school.

“Richland shut us down and picked apart our defense in the first half,” Harrah said after the Bombers scored four of the first five goals of the contest. “Once we started getting looks inside it was awesome.”

For Richland midfielder Jacob Ritchie it wasn’t necessarily a big change that he saw from Union or his own squad, just a shift in the flow of the game.

“They went on a run and we didn’t answer,” Ritchie said. “It was a good fight.”

Throughout the contest Union goaltender Dominic Mendez, who finished with 12 saves — eight in the first — turned back a potent Richland attack led by All-Conference selection Vincent Sliva who had eight shots but only managed a single goal.

Sliva shined with 12 ground balls, but went head-to-head with Mendez throughout the half, with Mendez holding Silva to just a single goal and two assists, all in the first.

“Dominic has always been big for us. He stood on his head today,” said Union second year coach Tim Goodspeed.