By Ernie Gonzalez
The San Jose State Lacrosse team extended its win streak to three straight and four out of its last five after defeating the Central Washington Wildcats 16-13, improving its record to 4-4 overall.
Of the 16 goals the Spartans scored, 13 of them were scored by the the top two scorers in the WCLL conference: George Pertessis and Nick Egan.
Pertessis led the way with seven goals, giving him 47 already this year. The 6-foot-2-inch junior is playing out of this world averaging just over 5.8 goals per match. Egan has about half the goals of his teammate, but still sits tied for second in the WCLL with 24 after yesterday’s win.
Head coach Derek de Lemos had really high praise for his star player, saying in his 20-plus years of coaching, he has yet to see a player like Pertessis.
“He’s like the Michael Jordan of lacrosse,” de Lemos said.
Pertessis took a much more modest approach.
“That’s a little generous” Pertessis said. “My teammates keep setting me up to score, so I got to give a shout-out to them – just out here having fun.”
Long-Stick midfielder Brandon Gip did all the dirty work, winning 75 percent of his faceoffs, scooping-up nine ground balls, scored once, and even tacked on an assist.
SJSU goalie Alex Gallardo had a solid performance in front of the net, saving 14 of the Wildcats’ 27 shots.
But the drama didn’t only last during the game Wednesday night, but before as well.
In a game where the Spartans nearly had to forfeit due to timing issues, the first face-off didn’t occur until 40 minutes after the initial start-time due to the softball team occupying CEFCU field. Due to league regulations, if a match does not begin within 15 minutes of its scheduled time, the home team must forfeit.
It’s an issue the athletic department has dealt with for quite some time now, and has been the main reason for the renovation of south campus. The Wildcats could have claimed the win, but decided to wait and play the game out.
“They were cool with it. They didn’t seem to have a problem.” de Lemos said.
The Spartans will remain in San Jose for their upcoming game against the Western Oregon Wolves on Saturday.
The game is set for 11 a.m.