Ranked 9th in all of Illinois by laxpower.com, New Trier Boys Lacrosse is a powerful team that has been consistently working hard throughout the season.  The team’s current record is 10-9 and is ranked 1st in the CSL. They recently took down Neuqua Valley by a score of 8-7.

The team has taken their workouts to the next level by working with Jim Davis, the strength and conditioning coach.

“Davis has brought his knowledge and expertise to the lacrosse program, and we are confident this will benefit the players and the program for years to come,” said Assistant Varsity coach Charles Cauley.

Cauley is confident in his team’s abilities and believes they have what it takes to win.  “The strength of this team and the New Trier lacrosse program is a rich, deeply rooted tradition of commitment and dedication to excellence.

The lacrosse team prides itself on hard work, heart, and class on and off the field.

We see our team as a family, one that looks out for each other, and one that recognizes the needs of the family extend beyond the playing field,” said Cauley.

Sophomore Tyler Kroll agrees. “Our talent is definitely our strength. We have it in us, we just need to execute,” said Kroll.

Although the team has been working hard to improve their strength and skills, injuries have been recently getting in the way.

“I hope everyone can get healthy and stay healthy. We’ve had some injuries this year, and I’m hoping we can get everyone back to full strength,” said Kroll.

Injuries may be hampering the team’s success right now, but some also feel they are in need of working on specific skills in order to reach their full potential.

“Speed, size, strength and stick skills are important to the game of lacrosse; Stick work is a priority of every practice,” said Cauley.  This is another reason why the team has decided to bring in Davis for strength and conditioning.

Sophomore Matt Solberg had similar ideas  “I think that we’re not playing to our full potential.  We definitely have to practice harder in order to make it to state championships.  In practice we really need to work on our dodging, ground balls, catching and passing,” said Solberg.

Head coach Tom Herrala  could not be reached to comment on the issue.

The Varsity Boys Lacrosse team is also working hard to ensure a successful future.  With every game comes a new challenge and they must practice hard in order to play hard.

“Our goal is to take each game as it comes, one at a time, play hard, play smart, win, and earn our place playing for the state title,” said Cauley.

Players had similar responses.  When asked what the team’s main goal is for the future, Sophomore David Stacke said, “We are hoping to win another state championship.”  Sophomore Dan Maentz agreed. “I hope to continue our streak of state championships,” said Maentz.

Other players also have hopes of defeating rivals in upcoming games.  “The main goal is to beat Loyola, and I think that is definitely possible,” said Solberg.

And with the way the team played in their most recent game against Neuqua Valley on Tuesday, May 15 it looks like they are headed in the right direction.

“We started out strong with a score of 2-0, within the first few minutes.  Then we started jogging and we let them come back.  At the end of the first half we were very close. The second half we stepped up our game and some players like Jack Connelly made some important saves.

“We executed good plays and we led 8-7.  This is when the lightning hit,” said Solberg.

The lightning was a factor that could have potentially made a serious impact on the game.  Although there will be no need for a re-match, the lightening eliminated five minutes of playing time that they will never get back.

“It was a battle. We had some unforced errors, but also some key goals and defensive stops. We were getting a lot of high quality looks, which bodes well for the future. It was unfortunate the last five minutes couldn’t be played because of weather,” said Kroll.

With the next couple of games comes an increased amount of pressure on the team as they come closer and closer to state.  “We expect our team to push themselves and each other to be the best they can be every minute they are on the practice field and every game,” said Cauley.

And whatever the future holds for this determined team, it looks as though they will be able to face any challenge with a motivated and impressive work ethic.