Lake Larsen | Sports editor
With gear bags slung over their shoulders and sticks in hand, Western lacrosse walked onto a pitch black field at the University of Oregon to take on the Ducks. Murmurs of what could be going on spread across the team as game-time ticked closer. Due to the adjacent Hayward Field being under construction, there were major lighting issues at the lacrosse field.
After a few pulls of a ripcord, a generator roared to life to finally light up the field on a cold Nov. 9 night. Western took the the field to start their warm ups for the final game of the fall season. They hoped to end the pre-season on a high note but a few passes into their warm up, the hum of the generator faded and so did the lights. Again, the Wolves and the Ducks were left in the dark.
The official game time came and went and the lights were unable to stay on for more than just a couple of minutes. Nearly 45 minutes after what should have been the start of the game, the Wolves and Ducks lined up for the faceoff.
Western had been unable to get a complete warm up due to the lighting issues. Because of this the Wolves quickly sank to a multiple goal deficit. Unable to set up their offense, the Wolves couldn’t seem to find a way to mount a comeback attempt.
This action didn’t last long however. After a short 30 minutes of play, again the teams found themselves engulfed in darkness. This was the final straw for the coaches. With the inconsistent lightning, the game was canceled. This delay and eventual cancelation left the Wolves very ill tempered.
“We were (very upset). We drove all the way to Eugene for a game time that was already late. Then, add on the 45 minutes we had to wait in the cold and the game was canceled. It really got under our skin,” said senior education major Bryce Hinkle.
After the official cancelation the game only lasted approximately 30 minutes. This short game with a lack of warm up ended the Wolves fall ball leaving them 3-5. Western packed up and got ready for the short off season with their first game only two months away.
Contact the author at howlsports@wou.edu
