Vestavia Hills finished unbeaten with an 18-0 record, including a 13-10 victory against Mountain Brook during the regular season.By Rubin E. Grant
The Vestavia Hills boys lacrosse team came up just short against Mountain Brook in the state finals the past two years.
The Rebels lost by a single goal to the Spartans both times. But those heartbreaking defeats gave Vestavia Hills invaluable experience.
So, when they met again in the 2023 Alabama Lacrosse Championships final on May 6 at Buccaneer Stadium, that experience paid off in a 13-7 victory, ending the Spartans’ stranglehold on the state title.
Vestavia Hills finished unbeaten with an 18-0 record, including a 13-10 victory against Mountain Brook during the regular season.
“I think a lot of it had to do with us being young last year and now most of the guys on the team are a year older,” Vestavia Hills coach Randy Nace said. “They knew what they were doing.”
Plus, the Rebels drew inspiration from the death of former player Tate Czeschin, who died in January. His younger brother Zane Czeschin was an attacker on the team this spring.
“The team just came together to support Zane and his family,” Nace said. “It’s something the kids bought into and they played for a bigger purpose.”
The Rebels and Spartans were locked in 2-2 tie early on, then Vestavia Hills took control with seven unanswered goals in the first half to take a 9-2 lead. The Rebels held the Spartans at bay in the second half.
Attacker Owen Behr led the Rebels with five goals and two assists with a 71.4 shooting percentage. Midfielder Owen Scott and attacker Riley Pierce had three goals each and attacker Zane Czeschin had two goals.
The state title was the Rebels’ second. The first one came in 2017. The Spartans had won the previous four titles, excluding the 2020 season that was canceled because of COVID.
Behr, Scott and defender Will Bond were named first team All-State while Pierce and Zane Czeschin and FOGO Brayden Belski were named second team.
Mountain Brook had four players named first-team – attacker Charles Oliver, midfielder William Grier McDuffie, defender Jack Donahue and FOGO Vaughn Frost. Spartans goalie Stutts Everette was second team.
The Spartans finished league play 15-0 and were 4-4 against some strong out-of-state teams.Spartan Girls Knock Off Vestavia in Title Game
Tom Lewis might have been in his first season as Mountain Brook’s girls lacrosse coach, but he was familiar with the players, having coached them in the youth program.
“We have a lot of players who I have been coaching since the third or fourth grade,” Lewis said. “We spent a long time coaching the fundamentals and then it comes to fine tuning what they do.
“These girls have a good lacrosse IQ and have learned the nuances of the game. So many of them can pass, catch, shoot and cradle the ball effectively.”
The Spartans were at their effective best in the finals, defeating Vestavia Hills 8-5 to win their third consecutive state championship.
Sophomore midfielder Grayson Crowe scored four goals to lead Mountain Brook. Sophomore attacker Meghan Donahue had two, and sophomore midfielder Olivia Heaps and sophomore attacker Ruthie Armstrong had one each.
The Spartans’ defense, led by sophomore Ashby Russell, held the Rebels to zero goals in the final 17 minutes of the game.
“Our defense was rock solid,” Lewis said. “Our defensive coach Sharon Acoff does a really good job with them.
“Ashby is really good. She sees things before they happen or when they are about to happen, and that helps us.”
Crowe, Armstrong, Heaps, Russell and goalie Addison Hardy were all named first-team All-State. Donahue was named second team.
Vestavia landed midfielder Alex Rountree on first team and attacker Georgia Rafferty on second team.
The Spartans finished league play 15-0 and were 4-4 against some strong out-of-state teams.
“We only have two seniors graduating and two juniors, and the rest are rising juniors or rising sophomores,” Lewis said. “I’m looking forward to the next couple of years.”
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