By Justin HAGER

The Crescenta Valley High School boys’ lacrosse team may have entered Tuesday’s game against Canyon looking a little too far ahead. The 8-0 Falcons, who were ranked in the top 200 nationally and in the top 50 in California, were heavily favored against the 4-4 Canyon Comanches, who aren’t even in the top-100 in the state. Rather than focusing on the match in front of them, they may have been looking toward today’s matchup against the California top-20 ranked Sierra Canyon, and a 10-0 start to the season. But that’s what makes sports so much fun: On any given day, an upset can change everything.

The match started relatively predictably with Falcon star senior Mason Daly winning several faceoffs and attempting several shots on goal. What was different is that only one of Daly’s five attempted shots was successful. Fortunately, he had help from senior Henry Kaufman and junior Damian Valdez who each added goals of their own. First-half play ended with the Falcons trailing 4-3. Unfortunately, the Comanches came out swinging in the second half, quickly adding two more goals and holding the Falcons scoreless to make it a 6-3 game entering the final 12-minute period.

The Falcons attempted to mount a comeback in the final period … and looked like they might pull it off. After two quick scores early in the fourth period, and two more traded goals later in the period, they pulled to within two with just four minutes remaining. But Canyon refused to relinquish the lead and, just as quickly as the Falcon’s had scored, Canyon added another goal, going up 9-6 with just over a minute left to play. CV would add another goal as time expired, but it was too little too late as the Falcons lost 9-7.

The silver lining of the match was the diversity of players who scored for CVHS. Their seven goals came from five different athletes with Kaufman and sophomore Quincy Lunt each scoring two. Seniors Ezra Suh and Easton Caneva provided the Falcons’ assists and additional shots on goal.

The now 9-1 Falcons will face an even bigger challenge this afternoon (Thursday, March 24) when they face the Sierra Canyon Trailblazers, a powerhouse in lacrosse and perennial CIF contender. Game time is set for 4 p.m. in Chatsworth.