Surrendering three unanswered goals in the third quarter, it was not quite the walk in the park Sailors fans expected in the second half of No. 3 Steamboat boys lacrosse’s second round playoff matchup with No. 14 Resurrection Christian on Friday night. 

Head coach Brian Rodgers said the team came out “off-script” in the second half, but the leadership of his veterans came through in the end, leading to the Sailors’ 13-8 victory, which advances Steamboat to the state quarterfinal. 

“We needed some critical plays by our seniors to stem the bleeding and get back to our script,” Rodgers explained. “I think our guys have to realize that — and if there’s a message from it — is how important it is to stay focused on the plan as we get deeper into these playoffs.” 

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Entering the game, Steamboat knew exactly what it had to do to earn the win. Senior Brady Adams said the goal offensively was to exploit Resurrection Christian’s defensive weaknesses while staying aggressive against the younger team. 

“We knew they have an amazing faceoff guy and that was their strong suit and somewhere they could hurt us,” senior Hunter DeWolfe said. “We had a gameplan coming into that, and we knew to clear the ball and control possession.” 

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Resurrection Christian’s leading scorer in the game was freshman Jacob Adams, who netted five shots throughout the contest and was a huge proponent of the Cougars’ comeback in the third quarter. 

At halftime, Steamboat led by five goals, though that lead had shrunken to just two goals entering the fourth quarter. 

“We stuck with it; it’s a game of runs,” Adams said. “We had big bench energy, kept staying positive and got some big goals in the fourth from the boys.” 

Adams scored several of those goals himself and earned a hat trick on the day. Joining him in the hat trick party were Evan Ellis, who scored four goals, and Finn Rodgers. 

The victory sends Steamboat to the state quarterfinal where the Sailors will host No. 6 Air Academy at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday at Gardner Field.

“It’s always amazing not having to take a long bus ride to wherever we play and that’s always a good advantage,” DeWolfe said. “Our fans were great tonight and we’re hoping they can come out again. Playing at our home field, we know what to expect here and we’ve got a nice routine going.” 

Steamboat Springs 13, Resurrection Christian 8
RC: 1 2 3 2 — 8
SS: 2 6 0 5 — 13