Milton High Boys Lacrosse Hopes to Achieve Success with New Coach

With a new coach at the helm, the boys lacrosse team is optimistic about delivering a fine season along with a return appearance to the tournament.

Serving as an assistant for several years, coach Ben Midura is quite familiar with the program and is well aware of the challenges that await him.

One aspect that Midura has been pleased with so far has been the large number of participants that were present during the first day of tryouts. According to Midura, 55 athletes showed up on the first day of tryouts.

“We had approximately 55 players come out for the program, which was a 
significant increase compared to the last few years,’’ said Midura. “Each class was 
well represented, including 16 freshmen.”

Despite the large numbers, Midura is also well aware that there is a limited amount of lacrosse experience among some of the players.

“At this point in the season, I have to say that our strengths include our numbers, work ethic, and the closeness of our core group of players,’’ said Midura. “Although we are not young on paper, we have many players with a limited amount of lacrosse experience to build on.  However, the team is ready and wanting to improve.”

Leading the way for the Wildcats will be the senior co-captain duo of John Huntington and Brendan O’Halloran. While Huntington is slated at defense, Huntington should emerge as a solid two-way player at midfield.

Other key returning players in the mix for the Wildcats include senior midfielders Will England and Jack Kosak. Rounding out the midfield squad for the Wildcats is the group of juniors Gordon Jarvis and Sean Gordon followed by Liam Surette-Fahey, Will Russo along with Jack O’Brien, Brian Higgins and Gordon Jarvis.

Manning the defensive units in the back will be senior Javonttae Lucas and Cam Flaherty followed by the junior core of Brendan Hayward, Evan Jones, Seth Epstein, Colin Stanley, TJ Maher and John Murtaugh.

On attack, the Wildcats will contain some youth and inexperience featuring some sophomores and juniors. Leading the way will be the junior duo of Brooks Gallagher and Casey Stewart along with sophomores Conor Greaney and Brendan Kelley.

Battling for the starting goalkeeping position will be senior Jay Rosenberg and sophomore John Binda.

“We have a number of very talented individuals, but we have many areas 
where we need to get better, including playing as a team, playing with 
confidence and trusting the system and our teammates on the field,’’ said Midura. “It’s going to take some time, but the kids have been working hard and I’ve been very pleased with their efforts.”

As for the initial goals of the pre-season, Midura is managing to take things just one step at a time.

“This is my first year as Milton's head coach,’’ said Midura. “Among the team's goals are building a strong foundation for the program to ensure annual success and being competitive in every game.”

While the Wildcats have a long road ahead of them, Midura is optimistic that through hard work and determination a tournament berth could well be within reach.

“We have a lot of work ahead of us this season, but if everyone is on 
board, we will be more likely to have the kind of success we want,’’ said Midura. "As a member of the Bay State League, we will be playing a very competitive league schedule. If we work hard and prepare for each game, we will be capable of playing with each of our opponents.”

In preparation for the season, the Wildcats battled on Wednesday before hosting Hull in Monday’s non-conference match-up at Brooks Field.