Local coach brings home national lacrosse championship

The Copperhead Lacrosse Club, Rising Star (HS Juniors) Lacrosse Team competed in the Dick’s Sporting Goods Tournament of Champions recently in Tampa, Fla.  The invitational tournament featured 53 championship teams from across the country for Select Teams from the summer and fall of 2009.

Local representation also included Jack Bornhofen and Alex Schuemann of McIntosh playing extremely well for the Atlanta Elite Team.

The Copperhead Club features high school players from all over metro Atlanta.  The Club sent four qualifying teams to Tampa in different age groups.  But the U17 Rising Stars team made of sophomores and juniors from south and metro Atlanta and coached by PTC resident Mike Muetzel were the upset-minded Cinderella team of the tournament.

Muetzel a former US Lacrosse Coach of the Year, and former coach at McIntosh High School is now the Director of Coaching for the Copperheads and coached both the U19 and U17 Rising Star Teams at the National Championships.  He coached McIntosh to a State Championship game in 2008 in just their fourth year as a varsity program, has an overall coaching record of 95-42, and conducts coaching clinics across the country as well as a national website for lacrosse coaches. 

The Rising Star Copperheads breezed through challenging pool play on the first two days outscoring opponents from Colorado, New York and Florida by a total of 45-7, typical of explosive Muetzel Teams.  But on the final day the teams and the games were extremely more competitive.

In the semi-final game against a strong Leading Edge team from Rutgers New Jersey, the Copperheads saw a three-goal lead and all their momentum fade away in the second half to being a goal behind with less than four minutes to play.  The Copperhead offense rallied to score with three minutes left to tie the game, and again with minute left to lock in the exciting win.

In the National Championship Game, in front of a packed stadium, the Atlanta Copperheads faced Burning River, a team made up of players from all over Ohio, including a number of DI lacrosse prospects.  The Copperheads went out to an early lead and maintained throughout the second half to bring the first Lacrosse National Championship to Atlanta. 

“Our kids just played great team lacrosse with a ton of heart,” commented Coach Muetzel.  “It was an awesome display of team ball movement lacrosse and great players making great plays in critical situations, really a great statement for Atlanta Lacrosse.”

The Championship Trophy will be on display at the US Lacrosse Convention next weekend in Baltimore, and then come to Atlanta until the tournament next year.