Looking top-seeded

No. 1 Blue Griffins maul Sandia in final tuneup before state playoffs

If Saturday was all about Santa Fe Prep’s lacrosse team saying goodbye to its six seniors, the moment immediately after its match against visiting Albuquerque Sandia was all about Danny Laposata.

The team’s goalie, he came within three minutes of posting a shutout against one of the Blue Griffins’ primary threats heading into next week’s state tournament in Albuquerque. After the time expired to close out the regular season — marking the final game at Brennand Field for the upperclassmen — the entire team ran onto the field to mob Laposata.

Minus a late goal by the Matadors’ Jesse Gue- vara, he was a proverbial wall in front of the net as Prep closed out a 7-1 win to earn its 13th victory in 14 matches.

The Griffins head into next week’s final four as the heavy favorites in their quest to capture a third straight title. To get there, it’s going to take the kind of defensive effort put forth by a unit with Laposata solidly in the middle.

A junior, he made nine saves and handled the one shot he didn’t stop exactly the way his head coach wanted him to.

“You’re going to allow shots no matter what, but one of the attributes of a great lacrosse goalie is he’s going to give up goals and handle it well,” said Prep head coach Sidney Monroe. “It has to be that it’s not going to bother him. As long as the defense can force the shots to come from certain spots on the field, the goalie’s going to have the best chance to see the ball and make the stop.”

In other words, keep the ball outside and avoid the point-blank releases amid a crowd of players and swinging lacrosse sticks. The greater distance on the shot means more reaction time for the goalie.

In a sense, Monroe said, lacrosse is a lot like hockey. The hotter the goalie, the better the chances of winning.

“To an extent, yeah,” Laposata said. “Everyone on this team is part of a formula that makes us win. Playing well as a goalie definitely helps us out but it’s a bunch of other guys helping out

Conner Burnham looks upfield as Albuquerque Sandia’s Ben Dallas offers a stick check. Burnham, a senior at St. Michael’s, notched a goal for Santa Fe Prep in the Blue Griffins’ final regular season game, a 7-1 home win. They enter the playoffs next...