Week 4
- Plant (9-1) – Plant cruised through 2 very big victories in week 4 against Bloomingdale and Sickles. As much as the TLR community would like to see the Plant vs Newsome game on March 24th, chances are it will not happen unless rescheduled. Let’s hope the teams are able to make that happen.
- Newsome (8-0) – What TLR thought would be a tight game, the Wolves decided they had different plans and rocked Steinbrenner 16-9 last week. Most had this pegged as a two-goal game either way. Great job by Newsome and a very solid victory. As mentioned above, their next game on the 24th is supposed to be against Plant. We don’t imagine that happening unless it is rescheduled.
- Alonso (8-1) – Due to the Steinbrenner loss to Newsome, Alonso moves up a spot to #3. The Ravens haven’t yet gotten into the meat of their schedule yet, but Covid-19 worries may not let them. Here’s hoping we get to see Alonso vs Steinbrenner, Lakewood Ranch, Newsome, and Mitchell. All worthy opponents and yet to be played.
- Steinbrenner (6-2) – The Warriors loss to Newsome 16-9 drops them a spot on our list. But don’t be fooled – losses to Plant and Newsome are nothing to be ashamed about. Steinbrenner still has one of the better teams in the area in 2A. We’d love to see their matchup against Alonso if it can still happen this season.
- Mitchell (5-2) – Mitchell does very well against the teams they should beat, but has yet to get a big win against a tougher opponent. That doesn’t detract from the talent this team has. The Mustangs have a big chance to get that win on April 9 against Alonso. TLR is hoping that game gets played this season.
Week 3
- Plant (7-1) – Plant hosted TLR’s week 2 #1 in 1A Mooney last week and came away with a 1 goal victory. Aside from their loss to Riverview at home, this team is looking very good in 2020.
- Newsome (6-0) – Newsome hasn’t broken a sweat this season. That may change when the #2 Wolves host the #3 Warriors on March 12th. That game should be worth attending.
- Steinbrenner (5-1) – Steinbrenner’s only loss (like Alonso) is to #1 Plant. But since then, the Warriors have rattled off 5 wins in a row. March 12 vs Newsome is shaping up to be a must-see game.
- Alonso (7-1) – The Ravens have been putting up very impressive numbers this season and are out to a 7-1 record. Their only loss so far is to #1 Plant and it was a fairly tight game.
- Mitchell (4-2) – The Mustangs got doubled up by #3 Steinbrenner – an outcome TLR didn’t expect. They are still a team others shouldn’t overlook and are arguably one of the better 2A teams in the area.
Week 2
- Plant (4-1) – Two games – two wins for the Plant Panthers. We mentioned their game against Cardinal Mooney on 3/5 last week, but we’ll remind you again. Don’t miss this game if you are in town!
- Newsome (4-0) – Two more wins for Newsome in week 2. We’ll be watching more closely when the Wolves meet up with Plant on 3/24. They’ll likely remain unbeaten until then.
- Lakewood Ranch (2-1) – LWR plays a 3/3 game against Out-of-Door that should be their next exciting matchup. TLR will be keeping tabs on it as best we can.
- Steinbrenner (3-1) – The Warriors aren’t going away yet. 3 wins in a row in week 2 will help build confidence. TLR is excited about their game on 3/3 against Mitchell. We think it has the makings of a great game.
- Mitchell (3-1) – Two more wins for the Mustangs in week 2. As we said above, all eyes will be on them and Steinbrenner on 3/3. Circle that date!
Week 1
- Plant (2-1) – Plant cruised to victories against Steinbrenner and Lakewood Ranch, but lost a defensive battle to Riverview 3-2. As Riverview was relocated to a non-TLR district in 2019, we feel Plant will keep their #1 spot for now. The Panthers will likely have all they can handle against Cardinal Mooney on 3/5, so be watching for that game.
- Newsome (2-0) – The Wolves ensured a fairly easy schedule out of the gate in 2020 until they meet up with Plant on 3/24. We expect them to remain unbeaten until then as that should be a great game to watch.
- Lakewood Ranch (1-1) – LWR began the season with a win against a solid Riverview team, but then dropped their next game against Plant 7-17. We’re not sure what team to expect here as they beat the team that beat Plant, but lost to Plant pretty bad. Their 3/3 game against Out-of-Door will be their next difficult game.
- Steinbrenner (0-1) – We dropped the Warriors a spot due to their lopsided loss to Plant, but we aren’t ready to remove them from the Top 5 just yet. It’s early in the season and there is a TON of lacrosse left to play. Their district game against Sunlake on 2/25 will be big as will be their district game on 3/3 against upstarts Mitchell. Tough start for Steinbrenner.
- Mitchell (1-1) – Keep and eye on the Mustangs. If they keep playing like they have in week 1, we think they’ll be climbing this poll quickly. They may even run the table for the next couple of weeks.
Pre-Season
- Plant – Coach Francis has had the Panthers looking very good over the last few years. They were a young squad in 2019, starting at #3 in our pre-season poll and finishing at #5. We believe they’ll be better in 2020 and are the best 2A team in the area.
- Newsome – The Wolves should notch another district title for themselves in 2020. We don’t see another team in 2A/11 that can go toe-to-toe with them this year. We think they teams they’ll need to pay attention to will be outside their district or outside their classification.
- Steinbrenner – The Warriors finished 11-2 in 2019. They started and finished #7 in our polls. With a key win against a strong opponent, they could find themselves with the confidence to make a run in 2020. However, we’re not entirely sure they can leap over either Newsome or Plant.
- Lakewood Ranch – This team finished 10-4 last year in an extremely tough district (losses only to Riverview, ODA, and Cardinal Mooney). Keep and eye on them as none of those teams are in their 2020 district.
- Wiregrass – Wiregrass began 2019 without appearing on our pre-season poll, but ended up #9 with a record of 9-2. They are in a good position to battle for a district title in 2020, though. Watch them!