Bay City Western and Swartz Creek's lacrosse match ended early after on-field incident
Schools investigate fight after coach allegedly strikes opposing player
SWARTZ CREEK -- An investigation is underway for Swartz Creek and Bay City Western's lacrosse teams after Swartz Creek head coach, Mike Lakies, allegedly entered the field of play and punched one of Western’s players in the helmet on Wednesday evening, both athletic directors confirmed to NBC25.
According to Western head coach Todd Ballor, as reported from Mlive.com, Lakies came onto the field, pushing one Western player, before punching another player in the helmet. Neither of the players was injured in the altercation.
Lakies will miss at least the next game, acoording to MHSAA’s rules pertaining to the ejection of a coach for sportsmanship. Both athletic directors, in conjunction with the MHSAA, are investigating the incident.
"Both coaching staffs did a nice job in this situation of deescalating the incident," said Bay City Western Athletic Director Michael Thayer. "It's all about moments of learning for everyone involved."
Both schools said they are working towards a quick resolution and will decide if further disciplinary action will be taken once their investigations conclude.
