D-II Round 1: Mo. State at Loyola Marymount

LOS ANGELES – I’m duty-bound to travel to Missouri every summer for a week to visit the in-law's summer residence.

It’s down to the Lake of the Ozarks; a pretty hefty drive from Wisconsin.

Do you know how I know I’ve crossed the Missouri border?

There’s a huge fireworks store literally yards over the state line.

D-II Round 1: Missouri State at Loyola Marymount | https://t.co/gs72vIeHPN #virtualmcla20
— MCLA Tournament '21 (@MCLA_Tournament) March 29, 2020

Do you know what’s going to happen when Missouri State visits Loyola Marymount?

Fireworks.

This is going to be a shootout and the team with the last possession is going to win it.

MoState is going to win the LSA once again and the Bears will do it with a complete squad.

The midfield is absolutely stacked, led by sophomore Stephen Vellia and joined by Blake Donnelly and Shane Clawson.

Throw in junior attackman Colton Daniel and the offense is well accounted for.

“Is Missouri State ready for Los Angeles, or is Los Angeles ready for Missouri State?” asked MoState coach Donnie Curran*. “You might be surprised by the answer.”

A trip to LaLa land might not be the vacation that the Bears think it is, despite their postseason experience.

Junior attackman Rett Canon – a Dallas transplant – makes all of his teammates better, including sophomore Alex Jacobs.

The Lions’ midfield is loaded, led by sophomore Jordan Atwell and junior Kirby DelFatti.

“Missouri State presents plenty of problems, but we’ve got a couple of troublesome individuals, too,” said Loyola Marymount coach Ryan Kelly. “The challenge is really what motivates our guys."

[*- The coach didn’t really say this. This is all made up. It’s fake]