Slight Shift In The LVLA Power Rankings

After a few games last week, I have made a slight change in the power rankings.   This is also the final week of regular season, and I'm sure each team would like to grab a win before the playoff bracket is set.   1. Palo Verde Panthers (7-1) - The Panthers defeated the Coronado Cougars, Centennial and the Bishop Manogue Miners last week, which keeps them on top of the power rankings. Their offense continues to thrive because they can beat you in a variety of ways. They have middies and attackmen who can snipe it from the outside or they can feed it to Mason Robinson and Ricky Jameis, who both have good hands, on the inside. Defensemen Robbie Pruitt and Clay Ohlsen have also impressed me with their play in the last week. Their next game comes against Faith Lutheran on Wednesday. It will start at 7:30 PM.   2. Bishop Gorman Gaels (6-2) - Bishop Gorman went 1-1 last week. They defeated the Pirates and lost to the Miners. In the recent games that I've watched, I've noticed that they come out hot, and then tend to simmer down once the second half begins. Standouts [player_tooltip player_id='126834' first='Ben' last='Urso'], [player_tooltip player_id='124923' first='Ryan' last='Cambeiro'], and Diesel Riiber will need figure out ways to keep the offensive flowing. The Gaels are slated to play their final regular season game tomorrow (4/29) against the Coronado Cougars at 7:00 PM.   3. Faith Lutheran Crusaders (5-3) Faith Lutheran leap frogs the Cougars after beating them last week 4-2. Their cohesion on defense has been one of the strength this year and goalie Daniel Auon makes phenomenal passes that help jump-start the offense. I have also been a fan of Weston Schultz this season. He quarterbacks their offense at times and he knows how to set his teammates up for good looks. The Crusaders also played the Bishop Manogue Miners and barely lost. They take on the #1 ranked Panthers on Wednesday, whom they lost to 8-7 earlier this season. Time will tell if they will turn the tables on them.   4. Coronado Cougars (4-4) - Coronado's offense sputtered a bit in their 4-2 loss to the Crusaders. Although they have more than a few guys who can fill it up. The Faith Lutheran defense kept slides ready and their sticks up. Which prevented them from getting clean close range shots. However their own defense did play pretty well themselves. [player_tooltip player_id='125048' first='AJ' last='Landy'] made some acrobatic saves, and both Bo Pippenger and Liam Hunsaker were physical. In order for them to defeat the Gaels on Tuesday, they'll all need to play smart and sound on defense again.   5. Centennial Bulldogs (0-8) - Centennial has been ahead against the top 4 teams a couple of times this season. Unfortunately they just haven't been able to finish the job. They also had a tough game last week against the Panthers, who ended up winning 24-3. If Noah Gutierrez and [player_tooltip player_id='125067' first='Tyson' last='Vickers'] bring their A game this week, they may be able to snag two W's.   6. Pinecrest Sloan Canyon Pirates (0-4) - The Pirates lost to Bishop Gorman last week and they are still yet to win a varsity matchup. But that may change on Tuesday when they face Centennial, who is also winless in the LVLVA varsity division. Both teams will also play on Friday at Pinecrest Sloan Canyon. Hopefully starters Cooper Lichty, Mason Mclay, and Ryland Peterson can get the rest of the squad ready to go for the last 2 regular season games.

After a few games last week, I have made a slight change in the power rankings.