PEARL Accolade Goes to Air Force’s Tilton

(Photo by Lance Wendt)

ATLANTA – Air Force rolled to a trio of ranked victories at the Rocky Mountain Rumble in Denver thanks to the play of freshman netminder Connor Tilton, who was named the MCLA Division II PEARL Goalie of the Week for the period ending Feb. 18.

The Falcons started their three-game run on Friday night against No. 10 Missouri State at the Denver Broncos practice facility and, thanks to 13 saves from the Houston native, Air Force posted the 16-5 victory.

On Saturday, Air Force clashed with No. 16 North Dakota State and again Tilton was rock solid. He made another 13 saves against just five goals against to help the Falcons roll.

Air Force routed No. 3 Cal State San Marcos, 21-6, in the weekend finale on Sunday, and Tilton made nine saves before giving way to his backup.

In the three contests, he combined for 35 saves against just 13 goals allowed – a staggering 72.9 save percentage.

“Connor did not play like a freshman this weekend,” said Air Force coach Robert Koehler. “His solid goaltending really gave our defense confidence. He did a great job clearing the ball and he is turning into the leader of the defense as a freshman.”

As the recipient of the PEARL Goalie of the Week honor, Tilton will receive a PEARL swag bag of goodies that will include PEARL lacrosse balls – the official ball of the MCLA.

PEARL Honor Roll

Justin Juarez, Sr. – Cal Poly-Humboldt
The Goleta, Calif., product turned away 21 of the 27 shots that came his way against against UC Santa Cruz, helping the Lumberjacks down the Slugs, 11-6.

Jarrett Smith, Jr. – UC San Diego
In wins over MoState and NDSU, the Monrovia, Calif., native combined for 42 saves and a 71.2 save percentage. He also dished out an assist.

Anthony Steele, Sr. – Loyola Marymount
The Woodland Hills, Calif., native combined for 31 goals and just 14 goals against in wins over Tulane and Washington (Mo.).

Ethan Zwickey, Jr. – Montana State
In three wins for the Bobcats, the Belgrade, Mont., product amassed 49 saves against 13 goals allowed – a save percentage of 79.0.