Annual Copper Cup to be played in Missoula

Photo Credit: Larry Johnson

By: Lucas Ailport

The Montana men’s lacrosse team will host the 2019 Copper Cup at Washington-Grizzly Stadium on April 6th. The annual event consists of the three lacrosse teams in Montana. The other two being the University of Providence and Montana State.

However, this year’s event will only consist of the Grizzlies and the Bobcats. The University of Providence announced on Monday that it will cut its men’s lacrosse program. This year’s go-around was supposed to be in Great Falls, but was made official on Tuesday that it will be played in Missoula.

The day just won’t consist of the Griz-Cat rivalry. Head coach Tucker Sargent wants to make it an all-day event. The details aren’t exactly written in stone yet, but it will feature Hellgate (Missoula), Glacier (Kalispell), Great Falls and Bozeman High School boys lacrosse programs.

It may not exactly be the Brawl of the Wild, but Sargent’s already set to make sure it turns out to be just as impressive. The rivalry between the two teams have been a consistent battle since Sargent took over the program in 2010. Now, both teams seem to be competing for conference titles so it makes the matchup that more exciting.

Montana State is in a different conference than the one Montana is apart of. The Bobcats are associated with the Rocky Mountain Lacrosse Conference, while the Grizzlies are in the Pacific Northwest Lacrosse League.

The Grizzlies are ranked eleventh and the Bobcats are ranked sixth in the Men’s Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA) division-II preseason polls.

The times for the high school games are not yet confirmed but the Griz-Cat matchup will be at 7 p.m.