The Warriors are champions once again

| 16 Jul 2019 | 02:16

    By Josh Lashley
    It's commendable for a sports team to set lofty goals. But it takes lots of hard work and dedication to go out and achieve them on the field.
    That’s just what the Delaware Valley High School boy’s lacrosse program did this spring. The Warriors set out to be champions, then took the steps needed to get there.
    Delaware Valley finished with a stellar overall record of 16-3. And they were 11-1 (second place) in League competition. The Warriors won the AAA District 2 championship, then lost in second round of the District 2/11 Sub Regional with Emmaus.
    “The contests that stand out early on were victories against Minisink Valley, Scranton Prep and Vernon (New Jersey),” said DV head coach Jeff Krasulski. “Minisink Valley, we were down in the first half and came back to win it 8-5. This was an important win as we couldn't keep a lead when opening the season at Highland (NY).
    “Scranton Prep was a big early road win as they defeated us twice last season. It was a defensive battle that we won, 6-5. Then we defeated Vernon (NJ). That is always a measuring stick game for us. We had a big lead early and was able to hang on to a 9-7 win. We lost our biggest game of the year versus Crestwood. It was our only League loss. It was a one goal game at half but we spent most of the third quarter in the penalty box and lost, 17-12. Crestwood ended up advancing to the State semifinal game.”
    Leaders on the field
    There was no shortage of leadership for the Warriors the recently concluded season.
    “Nash Hamill, James Staeckeler and Seth Croll were leaders on the defensive side of the field,” Krasulski said. “Defense requires communication and being a cohesive unit and these guys stepped up their game to set the tone for how we wanted to play defensively.
    “On the offensive end Josh Balcarcel, Shane Roche and Jackson Melnick set the tone. They led our offensive with high lacrosse IQ and skill.”
    A number of student athletes demonstrated continual improvement throughout the year, which impressed their coach.
    “Henry Hamill, sophomore goalie, was in battle to win the starting goalie job,” Krasulski said. “He ended up winning the job and had his best game in our Sub Regional semifinal game with Emmaus recording 12 saves.
    “Finnegan McCormmack, sophomore midfielder/face off, had a tremendous season with face-offs. All but one game he had won the majority of his face-offs, winning 77 percent over the course of the season. Joe Casella, junior defensive midfielder, has always displayed great athleticism but had his best lacrosse season defensively. His stick skills improved, and he had a great second half of the season.”
    Look for the strong momentum to continue for Delaware Valley in 2020.
    “We only graduate two players and return the rest of the team,” Krasulski said. “We have three juniors returning with all over 100 career goals so far in Josh Balcarcel, Jackson Melnick, and Shane Roche.
    “We bring a lot back and have an impressive group of rising freshmen who went undefeated on the middle school level this season. The future is very bright if the guys keep on working and improving.”