Bulldogs hope to avenge losses to Ramblers in today district championship
May 25—The Meadville boys lacrosse team will face Cathedral Prep today for the fourth time this season, but the stakes are higher this time around.
The Bulldogs (9-6) and the Ramblers (14-5) will play for a District 10 Class 2A Championship at 6 p.m. at the Hagerty Family Events Center's Dollinger Field, Prep's home turf.
"They knew there was a good chance we would be meeting them again in the D-10. They have been focused for it pretty much the whole season," Meadville head coach Rob Schwab said. "Playing at home for any team is an advantage. This will be the third time we have played them on their field this season so we are acclimated to it."
In the teams' matchups this season, Meadville lost 10-8 on its home turf on April 14 and lost at Dollinger twice. Prep won a 13-3 thrashing on May 2 and narrowly beat Meadville 11-10 on May 13.
The rivalry goes beyond this season. The teams met in last year's District 10 championship game with Prep winning 12-4. For the Ramblers, it was revenge as Meadville bested Cathedral Prep in 2019 10-6. There was no season in 2020 due to the pandemic.
Meadville defeated Fairview 20-7 in a semifinal game with Fairview last week to reach the finals. Prep beat Conneaut 23-2 in its semifinal tilt.
The Bulldogs are led by seniors Michael Mahoney and Brandon Cornell. Cody Schwab chipped contributed in a big way in the win against Fairview with seven goals while Cornell had five.
"We will need to limit the number of mistakes, stay out of the penalty box and win the ground ball battle," Schwab said.
Alex Topor can be reached at (814) 724-6370 or by email at .
