The ORR lacrosse teams are fairly new; this coming season will mark the third year since the program’s development in 2010. However, there has been no shortage of victories for either team despite the young program, due in part to good coaches and talented players. The boys’ and girls’ lacrosse teams look to continue their successes from last year in this upcoming spring season.
The boys’ team, led by Coach Erich Carroll, went 12-4 last season and advanced to the state tournament, where they lost to Blue Hills in the opening round. Despite losing several players to graduation, the team brings back several outstanding players, including last year’s top-scorer, senior Cam Severino. The team also brings back senior Midfielders Chris Marchisio, Max Houck, and Peter Krause, along with sophomore Defender Hunter Cooney. Coach Carroll also says that “swing-players” like sophomore Gerald Lanagan and juniors Chad Santello and Mikey Pruchnik will also make a difference on the team.
Although the boys easily advanced to the state tournament last year, Carroll is not focused on making it to the postseason. His goal for the team is to simply play better game by game and to improve from wherever they start out.
“I think going into the season with the goal of making the state tournament is a little wrong,” he stated. “You should come in and try to improve every game, and the tournament will take care of itself.”
The girls’ lacrosse team has a similar stance on the tournament. Head Coach Jeff Lombard wants the team to make the tournament, but he also wants to “better our team attack, transitional play and team defense.” The girls went 5-12 last season, which did not qualify them for the tournament. However, they bring back 14 varsity players, and that experience may be enough to get them into the postseason.
Some of these players include Alison Francis and Bailey Truesdale, both who were named to the All-SCC team last year. Seniors Erika Boulay, Brianna Thomson and Kara Sylvia along with junior Tori Saltmarsh will also add valuable experience to the team.
“We have a lot of very athletic players with speed, aggressiveness, and a willingness to work at their skills,” said Lombard. “The key to our success this year is taking what we learned last year against a better team to help us in becoming a better lacrosse team.”
Lombard also hopes that the third-year team will be able to be more competitive with the more established programs in the area.
Both lacrosse teams begin captain’s practices this week. The boys’ first game is on April 1 at 4:00 pm at Old Rochester, where they will face off against Bishop Connolly. The girls’ first game is March 30at 10:00 am at Bishop Stang High School.
By Michael Kassabian
