Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 4/28/10
The LaxGuys’ National Rankings is courtesy of LaxPower. To participate in the discussion about the rankings, please visit the thread on the Boys’ High School Lacrosse Forum.
1. Deerfield Academy (MA) (10-0) (Previous: 1) • The Big Green continue to hold down the #1 ranking this week after dominant performances against average competition. On Wednesday, they traveled to Loomis Chaffee and knocked off the Pelicans, 16-5. They also shut out Phillips Academy 12-0, boosted by two Duke-bound players, at home on Saturday. They will also topped Northfield Mt. Hermon on Monday, 15-3. Deerfield will host Hotchkiss on Saturday afternoon.
2. West Islip (NY Sect 11) (8-1) (9) • Don’t look now, but the Lions are all the way back to #2 in our rankings. They capitalized on a slew of losses by last week’s top 10 and some good wins of their own to make the jump, including a 13-3 triumph over a good Smithtown West team on Wednesday. West Islip also got a career-high eight assists from Nicky Galasso in a 12-4 win over Bay Shore on Monday and finished the week out with a 14-9 victory over Floyd. This week they’ll face a test from Connetquot on Tuesday before traveling to West Babylon on Thursday.
3. Manhasset (NY Sect Eight) (10-0) (12) • In what most were calling a rebuilding year, the Indians now find themselves at #3 in our rankings after a 10-0 start that includes wins over John Jay, Chaminade, and Darien. Last week, Manhasset got a game winner from Matt Tompkins to beat Chaminade in overtime and then pulled away from Darien in the fourth quarter to win 9-5 behind six goals from Penn-bound midfielder Drew Belinsky. This week, they’ll travel to Locust Valley on Wednesday before facing rival Garden City in the 119th Woodstick Classic on Saturday. (Manhasset leads the series 65-53).
4. Jamesville-DeWitt (NY Sect 3) (7-0) (15) • The Red Rams responded well to their first close game of the season against then-#17 Fairport, as Syracuse-bound Jake Bratek scored five times to lead J-D to a 13-11 victory at Onondaga Community College on Saturday. They also defeated Cortland and New Hartford by a combined score of 35-6 during the week. They will play just one game this week, traveling to formerly second-ranked LaFayette for a showdown against the Thompson brothers on Saturday.
5. Canandaigua Academy (NY Sect 5) (8-0) (7) • The Braves got past Webster-Schroeder, 9-4, on Tuesday night before getting three goals from Penn State-bound senior midfielder Tom LaCrosse in a 9-6 victory over rival Penn Yan on Friday. Canandaigua’s schedule continues to heat up this week, as their only contest is a game against Class A frontrunner Fairport on Saturday, which will go a long way to determining Section 5 bragging rights. CA has now won 28 consecutive games dating back to early last season against Corning East.
6. Ward Melville (NY Sect 11) (8-1) (16) • The Patriots climb back into the top 10 after cruising to a 15-4 victory over West Babylon on Monday and then picking up a solid 10-7 win over previously unbeaten and then-#23 Connetquot on Wednesday. Duke-bound defenseman Matt Kunkel contained high scoring Kieran McArdle and Kevin McElhone netted three goals to lead WM to victory. This week, they’ll face a test at home from Smithtown West on Tuesday before facing off against struggling Northport at Stony Brook on Saturday as part of Lacrosse for Autism day.
7. Boys’ Latin (MIAA) (11-2) (4) • The Lakers were able to clinch a 14-9 win against Spalding early in the week, propelled by attackmen Wells Stanwick and Pat Foster, but received their first league loss on Saturday at Loyola. Despite a superb performance by Stanwick, BL’s only lead occurred in the opening minutes, and they ended up falling to the Dons, 7-6. The Lakers will look to bounce back this week with two away games at McDonogh and St. Mary’s, respectively.
8. Salisbury School (CT) (6-1) (14) • The Crimson Knights continued to cruise this week, crushing Berkshire and Hotchkiss by a combined score of 24-4. After having some early problems with their defense and feeling the effects of losing their star FOGO Ian Gordon, it appears that Salisbury has recovered and is playing top notch lacrosse. They will face two struggling teams this week, Northfield Mt. Hermon, and Kent School.
9. La Salle (PA) (9-1) (19) • The Explorers have done nothing but take care of business since their opening game loss to Haverford School. Last week, La Salle dismantled lesser competition, winning their two games by a combined score of 26-5. However, this week La Salle faces two big tests on the road, at Malvern Prep on Tuesday and Springfield-Delco on Saturday.
10. Skaneateles (NY Sect 3) (7-0) (NR) • The Lakers, perennial contenders in Section 3, enter our rankings for the first time this week after trouncing then-#2 LaFayette, 15-3, in one of the more shocking scores of the season. Kevin Rice led Skaneateles with six goals and two assists, and the Thompson brothers were held to a season-low two goals. They also defeated Marcellus, 13-5, earlier in the week and have wins over 6-1 teams Auburn and Cazenovia Central. This week, the Lakers should cruise through games against Onondaga Central and Manlius-Pebble Hill.
The rest of the Top 25 can be accessed by clicking here
