If you’ve ever taken the bus up the hill for an 8:30 a.m. class, you’ve probably seen the SFU lacrosse team running plays on Terry Fox Field.
The early hours might seem a bit much, but they’ve paid off historically for the SFU Clan, entering their 19th season in the Pacific Northwest Collegiate Lacrosse League (PNCLL), the northwest conference of the Men’s Collegiate lacrosse Association (MCLA), the largest collegiate-level lacrosse league in the world.
With over 200 teams across 10 conferences and two divisions, the Simon Fraser Clan is the only Canadian team in the American league and has seen an enormous amount of success in its 19-year history. With eight PNCLL Championships and nine MCLA National Championship appearances (including a 2nd place finish in 2010), the 2014 Clan, ranked 17th in the MCLA going into the season, are looking to continue the tradition of success.
At the helm are 12th-year head coach Brent Hoskins — himself an ’02 SFU grad — and third-year assistant coach Chris Fox calling the shots from the sidelines.
Senior Riley Wanzer and juniors Bayne Bosquet, Sam Clare, and Mark Hilker lead the team on the field. Clare, a midfielder, is coming off a 2013 season that saw him earn 2nd team All-American honours, while defencemen Wanzer and Hilker both had 1st team All-Conference seasons. Meanwhile, their fellow defenceman Alex Thompson earned 2nd team All-Conference honours.
The Clan has a challenging season ahead of them this year, with five of their 18 games against other nationally ranked opponents: #3 Arizona State, #4 BYU, #8 Oregon, #13 Texas, #19 Oregon State, and #23 Arizona. The Clan have just five home games on Terry Fox Field this season, the most-anticipated being the matchup against PNCLL rival Oregon. The Clan opens their season this weekend with a double header at home against Western Washington on Feb. 8 and Portland State on Feb. 9.
Despite the tough schedule, Hoskins still says this is one of the best teams he’s had the privilege of coaching in some time, with speed, athleticism, and an overall maturity that make this team a contender. He says another PNCLL conference title and a trip to the national tournament could very well be in the team’s future, as SFU lacrosse continues the strong tradition of Canada’s official summer sport on the West Coast.
