The Birmingham United boys lacrosse team beat Livonia United 11-5 on Wednesday, winning its first Division 1 regional championship since 2012 and advancing to face Rockford in this weekend’s state quarterfinal.
And the Bulldogs (13-5) might not have gotten it done had Brody Feldmaier not joined the team last season.
Some states are known for being the best of the best when it comes to high school sports.
That’s Texas for football. Minnesota for hockey. And when it comes to lacrosse, everyone knows Maryland has some of the greatest prep players.
And that’s the state Feldmaier left when he transferred to Birmingham Seaholm after the eighth grade.
He picked up lacrosse in kindergarten, excelled at the club level and played for his middle school.
But when he transferred to Michigan? He was hesitant to continue playing because he had a stacked schedule. He prioritized helping the basketball and soccer teams first.
It was his older brother, Brett, a recent Michigan commit, who convinced him to join the Bulldogs. Now, the team has another regional title, thanks to the sophomore finally giving in and signing up.
“I think going from Maryland to Michigan helps a lot with the speed of the game,” said Feldmaier, who scored a game-high seven goals vs. Livonia. “I just transferred that (past playing experience) tonight.”
Livonia (10-6) made a game out of it, overcoming a 5-3 halftime deficit to knot the score following goals by Bryce Napier and Luke Beri to start the third quarter.
Feldmaier, Birmingham’s second-leading scorer this spring, got to work after a timeout, scoring five of the final six goals for the Bulldogs. That included him scoring four straight across the end of the third and the beginning of the fourth.
“(We were) moving the ball well,” Feldmaier said. “After that one timeout in the third quarter, our coach said to play unselfish, and that’s what we did. We shot off-stick and scored every time.”
Added ninth-year coach Nick Stensen: “It’s a game of runs. A lot of credit to Livonia for keeping it tight. We just got a couple of bounces our way, honestly, and we took advantage of some opportunities. We took advantage of some penalties and just kept that momentum going in our direction.”
Indeed, Feldmaier’s game-winner came during a Livonia penalty, as he sniped in a shot from the backside.
“Not a surprise because he’s been able to do that all season,” Stensen said. “The kid continues to step up in big moments. He’s an awesome kid, great teammate and just works his tail off to get better one day at a time.”
Other highlights for Birmingham included James Liebler and Frank Hill scoring early in the second quarter and Beckett Bambrough lasering in a shot with just over nine minutes left in regulation.
Caleb Garrett had the closest thing you’ll see to a buzzer-beater in lacrosse to end the first half. The Bulldogs screamed down the field in the waning moments, setting up the junior for a point-blank shot that went in with only two seconds left before the horn.
Napier finished with three goals for Livonia, while Madonna University commit Jack Curtiss scored on a breakaway in the second quarter.
Birmingham is only two wins away from playing for a state championship.
“It means everything to our program, the alumni, the guys who came before me, our fans, everything,” Stensen said. “The kids earned it.”
Brandon Folsom covers high school sports in metro Detroit for Hometown Life. Follow him on Twitter at @folsombrandonj.
This article originally appeared on Hometownlife.com: Maryland transfer leads Birmingham United boys lacrosse to 1st regional title since 2012
Reporting by Brandon Folsom, Hometownlife.com / Hometownlife.com
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
