By
Jeff Lund
Arizona Daily Wildcat
There's no place like home. This old clichˇ was very true for the men's lacrosse team, as they ended a two-game losing streak with a 14-7 win over No. 9 Auburn Saturday to remain undefeated at home.
The No. 10 Laxcats (8-2), notorious for slow starts, exploded with seven goals in the opening quarter. Matt Wilkens found the net early to give the Laxcats the lead and control.
Arizona upped their lead to 10-6 at the half and put the Tigers away with stifling defense in the third quarter. The Laxcats added four more goals in the second half to further bury Auburn.
"We played really well," Matt Wilkens said. "We showed ourselves and the whole league that we are contenders. The losses are just a little bump in the road."
Wilkens, who had been having a dismal season by his standards, broke out of his slump with three goals and one assist.
"It makes me more confident," Wilkens said. "Each player is stepping up. We are really focused."
Offensively, conference scoring-leader Charlie Mink added five more goals to his league-leading total, and conference assist-leader Eric Renner tallied three assists in the win. But one of the more impressive stories of the night was the play of freshman Jeems Lockridge, who logged a stellar performance starting in the place of injured Josh Morrison.
"Jeems has really stepped up," goalie Greg Parkington said. "Having Josh (Morrison) out has affected us a little, but Jeems has done a great job. He knows a lot about the game."
On the defensive side, the Laxcats tightened the clamps after a somewhat shaky first half, allowing the Tiger offense just one goal in the second half.
"I am happy with the team's effort," defenseman Tommy Christian said. "(Auburn) is much better than any other team we have played at home."
Although the Laxcats didn't let the Tigers look like a top-10 team, Arizona players said they knew how difficult winning big games on the road can be. After all, the UA had lost two games on the road last week.
"They weren't on top of their game," Christian said. "The game could have been closer, but you've got to do what you got to do and get up for the big games."
The Laxcats will take on UCLA at home Saturday. The last time the two teams met, Arizona destroyed the Bruins 16-5 in Los Angeles.
Not that UA plans on taking the Bruins lightly.
"UCLA is not a good team," Greg Parkington said. "We're looking forward to a bigger win this time."
