Redwoods make PLL history, ‘build some confidence’ in rout of Atlas

For multiple weeks in a row, Chris Kavanagh sat at the table at the postgame press conference, looked at the assembled media and into the camera and said California’s players – himself included – needed to look in the mirror and execute better.

>

>Sunday afternoon in Columbus against the New York Atlas, Kavanagh set the tone and his teammates followed as the 2025 Rookie of the Year set a career high with five goals and tied a career high with seven points and the Redwoods won, 21-13, setting a PLL regular-season record for scores.

>

>“Going into the game, [head coach Anthony Kelly] was harping on just enjoying it, being where your feet are, and loving the sport,” said Josh Balcarcel, who also set a career high with six points. “Going into [Friday’s game against the Carolina Chaos], there was some pressure. Going into today, it was more of just, be together, find that love in the locker room and just have fun. Remember why you play the sport. Remember why you love the game of lacrosse.”

>

>There was a lot to love about this game for California, but it didn’t start smoothly. The Redwoods had to dig themselves out of an early hole as the Atlas scored two two-pointers to go up 4-0 in the first 93 seconds of the game. Kelly said he was frustrated because the game plan was to not let New York shoot two-pointers, and he laid into his team for putting goalie Dillon Ward and the defense in a bad position.

>

>Once the Redwoods broke onto the scoreboard 32 seconds later, there was no stopping them.

>

>California scored five of the next six goals to tie the game, then outscored New York in each of the final three quarters, including a shutout in the fourth.

>

>Up by one at halftime, the Redwoods put the game away by scoring nine goals in the third quarter. Kavanagh led the charge with three goals and one assist.

>

>Fellow All-Star and second-year player Andrew McAdorey tallied a goal and an assist in the quarter.

>

>“I thought 96 for them was absolutely the best offensive player on the field,” Atlas head coach Mike Pressler said, referring to Kavanagh. “[McAdorey] really stepped up his game. He’s a handful. I thought those two players in particular really took over for them.”

>

>California had eight different goal-scorers, seven of whom had at least two goals. In addition to Balcarcel’s three-goal, three-assist game, Aidan Danenza had his first three-point game of the season (2G, 1A) and short-stick defensive midfielder Brian Tevlin also scored two goals.

>

>Kelly said having players outside of the team’s All-Stars score like they did against the Atlas will help the team see more success down the line.

>

>“Mac and [Dylan] Molloy and Kav are under so much pressure every game,” Kelly said. “When we can open up our offense and have these other guys contributing the way they did today, that’s what I think really triggers everything else coming together. That allows those guys to have a great game.”

>

>While the offense shot 42.9% and tallied 11 assists, its strongest outing of the season, California outplayed the Atlas in every facet of the game. TD Ierlan continued his strong play at the faceoff stripe, besting rival Trevor Baptiste and winning 57.6% of his faceoffs.

>

>After three games with a save percentage lower than 43%, Ward bounced back with 13 saves and a 56.5% save percentage. He was aided by his defense, which saw the return of Cole Kastner for the first time since the first game of the season. It was the first time Kastner, Chris Fake and Cullen Brown all played together, and those three combined for seven of the team’s 10 caused turnovers.

>

>The win – one Balcarcel said was the closest to a full 48-minute game the team has played all season – snapped a three-game losing streak and helped the Redwoods stay in the thick of the crowded Western Conference playoff race.

>

>With two games remaining in the regular season, the team believes it’s found some extra confidence heading into the final playoff push.

>

>“It’s good to see the offense turn a corner,” Kelly said. “We knew what we were capable of. We’ve been playing around with some pieces and figured things out.”

>

>“We’re hitting our stride at the right time,” Molloy added. “Build some confidence and get back to work.”