There was nothing defeatist in the words of graduating Laurentian Lacrosse Voyageurs senior Avery Brooks - this despite his team suffering their ninth straight setback of the year last weekend in Sudbury.

"I am so confident with the team moving forward," said the 22 year old Concurrent Education major in the aftermath of a 13-7 loss to the McMaster Marauders, a far better showing than L.U. put forth compared to the Friday night encounter in Hamilton.

"Looking at the team now compared to my first year, it is so impressive to see the steps that we have taken, how much we have improved as a program - even just how much closer we are as a team."

"I can't wait to come up next year and watch these guys play."

With a spirited crowd on hand at the Laurentian field, the Voyageurs played McMaster dead even in the first quarter (1-1) before seeing things spiral out of control in the second, with the Marauders leading 8-2 at the half.

"I know that in our games, we will have defensive breakdowns or offensive breakdowns where we lose our communication," said Brooks. "That's what we need to strengthen."

With that issue addressed at the break, Laurentian and McMaster split the ten second half goals right down the middle as Jake Sudsbury and Grant Petronech scored twice each for the homeside, with Rowan Smith, Matteo Di Ciccio and Emmett Cancilla rounding things off.

The first tally of the game by Sudsbury, an early second quarter snipe that gave the Voyageurs a brief 2-1 lead, provided a ray of hope for the students in the stands. "At first, you're really focused but as the game wore on, you can hear the cheers which was really nice," said Brooks.

"When Jake scored, I've never heard a crowd pop like that before while playing lacrosse. It was nice to have that fan support."

A native of the Orleans region who grew up on a box lacrosse background, Brooks is like so many of his teammates who must find a way to adjust to a fairly different game.

"Controlling your stick is a big thing," he said. "In box, it's all about cross-checking, with how you can get the ball away. Here, you can't do that - and you have so much more space."

"In box, it's so tight and compact; ten players on half a hockey ice surface - versus 12 on half a football field here."

Laurentian will close out their 2026 fall CUFLA (Canadian University Field Lacrosse Association) schedule with a trip to North Bay this Sunday, facing the Nipissing Lakers at 1:00 p.m.