Four Jesuit Dallas athletic programs will head into the weekend to compete in their respective postseasons, as the Ranger baseball, lacrosse, rugby and competitive shooting teams target strong performances in their respective second seasons. The action begins on Friday as the Ranger baseball team begins a three-game series against Arlington in the University Interscholastic League (UIL) Region I-6A Tournament.
 

Baseball

UIL Region I-6A Tournament
Bi-District Round
 
No. 1 7-6A Jesuit Dallas vs. No. 4 6A Arlington
Game One: May 7, 7 p.m., Arlington H.S.
Game Two, Three: May 8, 1 p.m., Wright Field (DH)
 
Hitting Their Stride: Jesuit Dallas enters Friday's matchup on a 16-game winning streak, a run that started with a 9-7 win over J.J. Pearce on March 16. The Rangers have put together several eyebrow-raising numbers during this streak, including a .329 team batting average, a .943 team OPS and 142 total runs scored (8.9 runs per game). Jesuit's pitching staff has also been a massive difference maker, holding opponents to a .164 clip since March 16, combining for 114 strikeouts and forging a 1.46 team earned run average during the streak. Senior Jordan Lawlar has led the team offensively during this run, hitting .455 with three triples, four home runs and 24 RBI while classmates Drew Messick (.432) and Gardner Lawrence (.424) are both slugging the ball well with on-base percentages above 50 percent. Jesuit has stolen 50 bases over the last 16 games, 12 of which have come from senior Connor Chavez, and six members of the team have 10 or more RBI during the winning streak, a list that includes Lawlar (24), Messick (16), Lawrence (10), Chavez (13), senior Nick Lazzara (11) and senior Gavin Perryman (10).
 
Scouting Arlington: The No. 4 seed out of District 8-6A, the Colts closed the regular season with a 12-12-1 record while forging a 5-4 mark against district opponents. Arlington enters the playoffs after earning wins in three of its final four games, but suffered a 4-3 setback to Lamar in the third-place playoff on May 1. A team that specializes in attacking the base paths, the Colts have three players on their roster this year that have hit home runs; Tyler Daniels, Brayden Jones and Piers Ross, who is also a starting pitcher for Arlington. Daniels is set to attend Clarendon College in the fall as one of five college recruits. Carson Hagan is bound for Mary Hardin Baylor, Jason Peek will play at Central Christian Community College and Devan Wong will join the program at Texas Wesleyan. Kris Sims committed to West Texas A&M for football, but will aim to walk on and join Jesuit Dallas senior JJ Luna on the Buffs' baseball team.
 

Lacrosse

 
THSLL State Semifinal
No. 2 Jesuit Dallas vs. No. 3 Episcopal School of Dallas
 
May 8, 2:30 p.m., George Turner Stadium (Humble, Texas)
 
Gritty Effort Propels Jesuit to State Semifinal: A determined and unrelenting Jesuit Dallas defense helped five first half goals stand, propelling Jesuit Dallas to the Texas High School Lacrosse League (THSLL) Final Four for the fourth time in the last six seasons with a 5-3 win over Lake Travis on Saturday at Postell Stadium. Jesuit Dallas will battle ESD in the THSLL Class AA State Semifinal on Saturday, May 8 in Humble, Texas. Senior Sam Teachout picked up two first quarter goals to start the scoring for the Rangers before sophomore Cameron Martin picked up two goals in the early stages of the second to spark a scoring run for the Rangers. In the waning moments of the quarter, senior Caiden Vlasimsky found senior Curran Rose in the slot, who was able to rip a shot past the Lake Travis netminder for a huge momentum-capturing goal heading into halftime. Jesuit's defense took over in the second half, keeping Lake Travis away from junior goalkeeper Connor Knight and forcing the Cavaliers to take low percentage shots. Seniors Tristan Hassell, Alex Chen and junior Tyler Gazzam anchored the back line while sophomores Billy Robertson Michael Mathie, junior Charlie Metz, senior Mason Chandler and freshman Cooper Tilden made major impact plays, causing Cavalier turnovers and never allowing the Lake Travis to settle into their offense.
 
Rivalry Returns on Massive Stage: The Episcopal School of Dallas won its first round game, 15-5, over Southlake on Saturday to punch their ticket to the second round. On Saturday, the Rangers and Eagles will meet in the state semifinal two weeks removed from their regular season showdown at Gerald J. Ford Stadium. Jesuit Dallas won that matchup, 11-4, propelled by four goals and two assists from Teachout, and are 6-4 against the Eagles since the 2015 season. However, the last time that these two teams met in the postseason, a 2019 THSLL State Semifinal, ESD defeated Jesuit, 5-4, en route to capturing the state championship. Jesuit Dallas has met ESD in the playoffs three times since 2016, including a state semifinal win over the Eagles in 2016 and a 9-8 win over ESD in the state title game in 2017. The winner of the matchup will advance to the 2021 THSLL Class AA State Championship against either Highland Park or The Woodlands.
 

Rugby
 

Texas State Champs Head to the Big Easy: Jesuit Dallas will travel to New Orleans this weekend to compete at the Sebastian Cup Championships against New Orleans Rugby Football league champion Brother Martin (La.), facing a 10-2 Martin team that defeated St. Paul's (La.), 33-19, on Saturday to claim the state title. Jesuit captured the third state title in program history with a 36-28 win in the Rugby Texas Single School State Championship game on May 1 in Houston, Texas. The historic win provided Jesuit with the third state title in team history and the first championship for the program in 11 years. Senior Sy Mendenhall scored two tries as fellow fourth years Jack Judson Aidan Piotrowski, junior Charlie Freeman and sophomore Neil Lancaster each converted tries for the Blue and Gold. The championship additionally marked the first state title for Jesuit Dallas Hall of Famer and head coach Matthew Upton '02. Kickoff for Saturday's game is set for 12 p.m. at the Shrine on Airline, the former home of the New Orleans Zephers.
 

Competitive Shooting

 
Rangers Set their Crosshairs on Postseason: Jesuit Dallas competitive shooting will look to punctuate a stellar season at the SCTP DFW Championship on Saturday and Sunday at the Ellis County Sportsman Club. The championship tournament was moved from its original date due to last week's rainstorms but allows another program to make a massive splash in the postseason this weekend. The Rangers have already pieced together a historic 2020-21 season as senior Brittan Welborne earned the program's first individual victory in late February, the team secured a win over Allen on Apr. 10 then earned a top-five finish at their home tournament in late April. Welborne and junior Richard Hambleton continued their upward momentum in late April, earning spots as two of the top shooters in the SCTP Northeast Division.