Texas Advances to Final Against Lone Star

Originally appeared on usqworldcup.com on April 12, 2015. (http://usqworldcup.com/2015/04/ut-texas-advances-to-final-against-lone-star/)

After overcoming a multitude of injuries and playing a marathon quarterfinal against Arizona Quidditch Club, the Lost Boys were dispatched by the mighty two-time defending champions the University of Texas at Austin, 180*-30.

From the beginning, Texas’ offense proved ruthlessly efficient, rolling out line after line of aggressive and confident chasers. The Lost Boys relied almost exclusively on a two-male beater set of Peter Lee and Chris Seto for defense. Undersized and exhausted, the Lost Boys’ chaser defense never truly had a chance. For perhaps a moment, the Lost Boys appeared to be in contention. Lee and Seto secured bludger control, and Browne hit a mid-range shot, bringing the score to 30-10 Texas. However, despite overwhelming crowd support, the Lost Boys could not stop a dominant shift from veteran Texas keeper Augustine Monroe, which brought the score to 70-20. Around the same time, Texas beater Michael Duquette applied heavy pressure on the Lost Boys, who eventually abandoned the two-male beater set.

All hopes for the Lost Boys faded with an injury to Browne. With limited options on the bench from a weekend of bruising quidditch, the Lost Boys lacked an answer to Texas’ onslaught of drives. Although Browne briefly re-entered, the Lost Boys were well out of range. The semifinal concluded with a snitch catch from Evan Carr and a final score of 180*-30.

The University of Texas advances to the final against Lone Star Quidditch Club. Texas will attempt to earn a third consecutive championship.