{"id":11826,"date":"2024-04-05T10:25:06","date_gmt":"2024-04-05T10:25:06","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","slug":"Preview-Outlook-of-the-area-s-high-school-boys-lacrosse-teams-54223132\/","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/?p=11826","title":{"rendered":"Boys\u2019 lacrosse previews: Hopkinton focused on repeat championships"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"From
From left, Hopkinton boys\u2019 lacrosse captains Patrick Buss (14), Steven Reddy (8), Lincoln Wilson (22) and John Despres (6), head coach Deacon Blue and assistant coach Kyle Devitte celebrate with the championship plaque after the No. 5 Hawks defeated No. 2 Campbell, 7-4, to win the NHIAA Division III title on June 11, 2023, at Exeter High School\u2019s Bill Ball Stadium.<\/figcaption><\/figure>
\"Hopkinton\u2019s
Hopkinton\u2019s Colby Boissy makes a save in the first half of the NHIAA Division III boys\u2019 lacrosse championship on Sunday, June 11, 2023, at Exeter High School’s Bill Ball Stadium. Boissy \u2013 then a first-year goalie \u2013 made 13 saves to help lead the No. 5 Hawks to a 7-4 victory over No. 2 Campbell. Boissy is back for another season between the pipes as the Hawks look to make another run at the title.<\/figcaption><\/figure>
\"Hopkinton
Hopkinton players lift up Merrick Chapin (17) in celebration after Chapin scored with 2:38 left in the NHIAA Division III boys\u2019 lacrosse championship on June 11, 2023, at Exeter High School\u2019s Bill Ball Stadium. Chapin’s goal gave the No. 5 Hawks the final tally in a 7-4 victory over No. 2 Campbell.<\/figcaption><\/figure>
\"Bow\u2019s
Bow\u2019s Gavin McCabe tries to run past Hopkinton\u2019s Steven Reddy in last season\u2019s D-III semifinal on June 7. Bow\u2019s season ended that day, while Hopkinton went on to win the championship. McCabe and many starters from last year\u2019s team are back to lead the Falcons in 2024.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/figure>

There are three adjectives\u00a0Hopkinton head coach Deacon Blue used to describe his team entering the 2024 spring season: deep, strong and skilled.<\/p>\n

The regular season hasn\u2019t yet begun, but the defending Division III champions look well-positioned to have a shot at pulling off a repeat in June.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think more than ever that I\u2019ve seen with our team, we just really didn\u2019t skip a beat from last year,\u201d Blue said. \u201cThe guys really have the same mentality we had in the latter half of last season which is great to see.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hopkinton\u00a0graduated nine seniors from last year\u2019s team that beat No. 1 Bow in the D-III semifinals and No. 2 Campbell in the state championship, including Defensive Player of the Year\u00a0Steven Reddy. But Blue said the eight returning starters have remained focused on repeating the success of last year.<\/p>\n

The 2023 season didn\u2019t exactly start as planned for the Hawks. They began 5-5 through the first 10 games, but by the middle of the season, Blue said, the team became much more locked in and committed to winning.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe weren\u2019t quite doing everything we could\u2019ve been in terms of just focusing up at practice, a little bit too much goofing off,\u201d Blue said. \u201cA couple new teams last year, Bow, Coe-Brown coming down from D-II, that was a bit more of a challenge than we expected, so we really had to push ourselves. When we were at .500 last year, we took a big look at what we were doing, we adjusted a few things. …\u00a0We went on an eight-game streak and won the championship.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking ahead at this season, Blue highlighted captains on defense, Cam Bassett and Brayden Crawford, and\u00a0captain Patty Buss, Merrick Chapin and Jackson Westover on offense.<\/p>\n

Westover, in particular Blue\u00a0said, should be a key scorer for the Hawks even though he\u2019s only\u00a0a freshman.<\/p>\n

Lots can change between now and the end of the season, but right now, Hopkinton finds itself with a good chance of being\u00a0a top competitor in Division III this spring.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur mentality has always been one day at a time, keep improving, learn from your mistakes and have fun and support your team. That\u2019s our formula,\u201d Blue said. \u201cI don\u2019t think there\u2019s anything too special we need to do against any specific opponent, just make sure we\u2019re doing everything we can to support each other and have success on the field.\u201d \u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b<\/p>\n

\n

CONCORD<\/p>\n

\n Division<\/strong>: I<\/p>\n

\n Coach<\/strong>: Jeff Smith (12th\u00a0year).<\/p>\n

\n Last year<\/strong>: 5-13, reached quarterfinals.<\/p>\n

\n Returning starters<\/strong>: Carter Doherty, so., A\/M; Will Chorlian, sr., M; Sebastian Nichols, sr., D; Broc Pelchat, jr., D; Logan Shimer, so., G.<\/p>\n

\n Top newcomers<\/strong>:\u00a0Jaden Haas, fr., FO\/M.<\/p>\n

\n Outlook<\/strong>: Fifteen of the 25 players on the roster are sophomores, so the focus for the Tide will be gaining experience this season.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are looking for them to keep learning and get used to the speed of New Hampshire D-I lacrosse,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n

Shimer started eight games in goal last year for Concord, while fellow\u00a0goalie Harry Snow is one of many sophomores who will compete for a starting role.<\/p>\n

\n Teams to beat<\/strong>: Bishop Guertin, Pinkerton, Exeter.<\/p>\n

\n

HILLSBORO-DEERING\/JOHN STARK<\/h2>\n

\n Division<\/strong>: II<\/p>\n

\n Coaches<\/strong>: Howie Roever (4th\u00a0year) and Thomas Zervos.<\/p>\n

\n Last year<\/strong>: 1-13, did not make tournament.<\/p>\n

\n Returning starters<\/strong>: Noah Carter, sr., D\/G; Mason Nichols, sr., M; Cejay Noyes, jr., M; Lucas Gagnon, sr., A; Jakeb Hurd, sr., A; Ben Boothby, sr., D; Wyatt Puza, so., D.<\/p>\n

\n Top newcomers<\/strong>: Parker Hamel, fr., G; Shane Brunini, fr., D; Cam Shaw, so., M.<\/p>\n

\n Outlook<\/strong>: Hillsboro-Deering has two wins in its three-year history as a varsity program and looks to continue to improve in its second year as a cooperative program with John Stark.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe HDJS boys\u2019 lax\u00a0team aims to get better every day,\u201d Roever said.\u00a0\u201cTo develop our talents. To play cohesively, as a single unit. We plan on growing as a group throughout the season\u00a0and picking up some quality victories along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n Teams to beat<\/strong>: Derryfield, Portsmouth, Timberlane.<\/p>\n

\n

MERRIMACK VALLEY<\/h2>\n

\n Division<\/strong>: II<\/p>\n

\n Coach<\/strong>: Sean Gill (2nd\u00a0year).<\/p>\n

\n Last year<\/strong>: 4-10, did not make tournament.<\/p>\n

\n Returning starters<\/strong>: Michael Kingsbury, jr., G; Nolan Beck, sr., A; Tyler Carter, jr., A; Conner Hanson, jr., A; Colin Reardon, so., A; Jackson Deyermond, jr., D; Travis Garcia, jr., D; Colby Scheffer, jr., D; Jacob Leclerc, jr., LSM; Mike Heine, jr., M; Brayden Hussey, sr., M; Matt Lauren, jr., M.<\/p>\n

\n Top newcomers<\/strong>: Carter Lankhorst, fr., M\/FO.<\/p>\n

\n Outlook<\/strong>: \u201cThis season our primary\u00a0goal is to make the playoffs,\u201d Gill said.\u00a0\u201cLast season we were in a three-way tie for the bottom seed and this season we plan to earn our spot\u00a0convincingly. To do this we have to focus on the fundamentals, playing together\u00a0and forming a brotherhood. We have solid skills, speed and size in all positions, a junior goaltender who is locked in, scoring threats from the inside and out, and leadership across the team. Our greatest weakness right now is lack of field time, thanks to the New England weather, however, we are not the only team experiencing this. We are excited to get started.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n Teams to beat<\/strong>: Derryfield, Portsmouth, Timberlane, St. Thomas.<\/p>\n

\n

PEMBROKE<\/h2>\n

\n Division<\/strong>: II<\/p>\n

\n Coach<\/strong>: Bill Lawson (2nd\u00a0year).<\/p>\n

\n Last year<\/strong>: 7-9, reached prelims.<\/p>\n

\n Returning starters<\/strong>: Caden Mix, sr., M; Cameron Clarke, sr., A; Owen Hills, sr., A; Nathaniel Jordan, sr., M; Luke Hanson, jr., D.<\/p>\n

\n Top newcomers<\/strong>: Gabriel Johnson, so., M.<\/p>\n

\n Outlook<\/strong>: The Spartans reached the playoffs last season, but graduated 13 seniors from that team, and have 10 sophomores and a freshman on this year\u2019s varsity roster.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a lot of work in front of us, but are looking to improve on last years\u2019 performance,\u201d Lawson said.<\/p>\n

\n Teams to beat<\/strong>: Derryfield, Portsmouth.<\/p>\n

\n

BISHOP BRADY<\/h2>\n

\n Division<\/strong>: III<\/p>\n

\n Coach<\/strong>: Frank Lamparelli (4th\u00a0year).<\/p>\n

\n Last year<\/strong>: 6-10, reached quarterfinals.<\/p>\n

\n Returning starters<\/strong>:\u00a0Josh Lamparelli, sr., D; Evan Dow, sr., D; Ben Abromowich, sr., M; Alex King, jr., A; Joey Richard, so., A; Roman Shetpa, sr., SSDM.<\/p>\n

\n Top newcomers<\/strong>:\u00a0Oscar Pupillo, sr., D; Jack Devlin, so., M; Jason Doyle, jr., FO.<\/p>\n

\n Outlook<\/strong>: \u201cWe are a young team with a strong, seasoned defensive unit,\u201d coach Lamparelli said. \u201cWe graduated a lot of talent last year with the departure of seven seniors.\u00a0Our goal as always is to contend with the top teams in the division.\u00a0 We will take it one game at a time like we did last season with the ultimate goal of still be playing after Memorial Day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Senior captains Lamparelli and Dow will anchor the\u00a0veteran defense.<\/p>\n

\n Teams to beat<\/strong>: Laconia, Campbell, Pelham, Bow.<\/p>\n

\n

BOW<\/h2>\n

\n Division<\/strong>: III<\/p>\n

\n Coach<\/strong>: Devin Calkins (2nd\u00a0year).<\/p>\n

\n Last year<\/strong>: 15-1, reached semifinals.<\/p>\n

\n Returning starters<\/strong>: Brad Ekstrom, so., G; Gavin McCabe, sr., M; Ryan McCabe, sr., A; Brodie O\u2019Neil, sr., A; Logan Rain, sr., A; Eli Ayers, so., D.<\/p>\n

\n Top newcomers<\/strong>: Luke Virta, sr., D; Nate Davis, sr., A; Billy Smethurst, sr., A; Sam Bennett, so., M; Jake Antuna, jr., FOGO.<\/p>\n

\n Outlook<\/strong>: The Falcons\u2019 undefeated season came to an untimely end in overtime in the semifinals against Hopkinton, so Bow is especially eager to take the field. The Falcons also improved significantly from 2022, a season where they only won two games.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe bring back a lot of our core, several seniors with game experience who lead by committee,\u201d Calkins said. \u201cWe\u2019re really strong at the goalie position and that\u2019s a great place to build out from. Our biggest addition is probably adding another experienced coach to the assistant\/defensive coordinator role. This is a group that knows about winning now, and it can be easy to get lost in that. So, our challenge is to stay process oriented instead of result oriented. If we can play with a consistently high level of engagement and focus, then we\u2019ll put ourselves in a good spot.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n Teams to beat<\/strong>: Campbell, Laconia, Pelham.<\/p>\n

\n

COE-BROWN<\/h2>\n

\n Division<\/strong>: III<\/p>\n

\n Coach<\/strong>: Tony DePalma (6th\u00a0year).<\/p>\n

\n Last year<\/strong>: 10-6, reached prelims.<\/p>\n

\n Returning starters<\/strong>: Joseph Fenton, so., A; Ryan Matson, sr., M; Jack Matson, jr., G; Tully Keefe, sr., M; Ryan Rodler, jr., M.<\/p>\n

\n Top newcomers<\/strong>: Sam Frye, fr., A\/M; Cooper Copeland, fr., D; Rory Collins, fr., LSM; Colby Strum, fr., M; Jackson Alie, fr., G; Myles Brackett, fr., M; Ryan Toussaint, fr., D; Shea Raymond, so., D.<\/p>\n

\n Outlook<\/strong>: After graduating 12 seniors from last year\u2019s team that made the playoffs, this year\u2019s squad is eager to step up in search of the program\u2019s first ever playoff victory.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere will be a lot of new guys getting time out there this year and we are excited to see how they step up,\u201d DePalma said. \u201cLike many, we have been grinding out the preseason in pavement paradise, so once the season starts we will get a better feel for how well this crew plays together. We are still in search of our first playoff win as a program, and the playoffs are a long way from now, so we just want to get better every day through focused training, and control the variables we can, while trying not to worry about the ones we can\u2019t. \u2026 We will be ready and anxious to get out there to begin the process of discovering our potential.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n Teams to beat<\/strong>: Bow, Hopkinton, Campbell, Pelham.<\/p>\n

\n

KEARSARGE<\/h2>\n

\n Division<\/strong>: III<\/p>\n

\n Coach<\/strong>: Chris Boucher (1st\u00a0year).<\/p>\n

\n Last year<\/strong>: 3-11, did not make tournament.<\/p>\n

\n Returning starters<\/strong>: Noah Whipple, jr., D; Aiden Deegan, sr., M;\u00a0Brodie Malynowsk, jr., G; Gunnar Benedict, jr., A;\u00a0Elliot Asbury, sr., A; Owen Garzia, sr., D;\u00a0Alex Tockman, sr., M\/D;\u00a0Noah Rubenberg, jr., M;\u00a0Blake Grieco, so., M.<\/p>\n

\n Top newcomers<\/strong>: Quinn Cusick, fr., M; Chase Paquette, so., D.<\/p>\n

\n Outlook<\/strong>: The Cougars have a new coaching staff and several players returning after a year away from lacrosse, including team captain and defensive anchor Whipple, Garzia, Asbury and Tockman (also a captain). That brings Kearsarge\u2019s\u00a0number of players\u00a0to 46 strong, a record number of participants.\u00a0Deegan (captain), Tanner Lewis, Sawyer Slayton, Grieco and\u00a0Cusick provide a lot of talent in the\u00a0midfield.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe team is looking to build on last year\u2019s performance with the addition of new athletes and the return of key role players,\u201d Boucher said.\u00a0\u201cImproved fundamentals, enhanced discipline\u00a0and a renewed sense of excitement are expected to propel the program forward. The team will face tough competition in the first three games of the season (against Campbell, Trinity and Hopkinton), providing a challenging test for the new coaches and team.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n Teams to beat<\/strong>: Pelham, Hopkinton, Trinity.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There are three adjectives\u00a0Hopkinton head coach Deacon Blue used to describe his team entering the 2024 spring season: deep, strong and skilled.The regular season hasn\u2019t yet begun, but the defending Division III champions look well-positioned to have…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":188,"featured_media":11827,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","_newspack_byline_active":true,"_newspack_byline":"by [Author id=188]Eric Rynston-Lobel[\/Author] Monitor staff, and [Author id=135]Dan Attorri[\/Author] Monitor staff","newspack_content_restriction_is_exempt":false,"newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,508],"tags":[56,60,91,24,426,189,200,226,244,505,274],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"coauthors":[533,551],"class_list":["post-11826","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-high-school-youth","category-top-headlines-cm","tag-bishop-brady-high-school","tag-bow-high-school","tag-concord-high-school","tag-facebook","tag-high-school","tag-hopkinton-nh","tag-john-stark-regional-high-school","tag-merrimack-valley-high-school","tag-nhiaa","tag-paywall","tag-pembroke-academy","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/43320021-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11826","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/188"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=11826"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11826\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11828,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11826\/revisions\/11828"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/11827"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=11826"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=11826"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=11826"},{"taxonomy":"newspack_spnsrs_tax","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fnewspack_spnsrs_tax&post=11826"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nne-concord-monitor-2.newspackstaging.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcoauthors&post=11826"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}