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4/8/2010- Lacrosse

2010 Oakland County Boys Lacrosse Preview

By ROSS MAGHIELSE
Special to The Oakland Press

Five in a row. That is the number of consecutive Michigan High School Athletics Association state championships won by the Birmingham Brother Rice lacrosse team. The Warriors have been the most dominant lacrosse program in the state even prior to the sport becoming sanctioned by the MHSAA in 2005.

Competing as both a club and sanctioned varsity team, Brother Rice has won 12 state championships in the past 14 years and 13 of the last 14 Catholic League titles. The Warriors will be looking to continue that dominance this season and have their sights set on winning yet another state title.

“What we feel good about is that everybody on our team is 100 percent committed,” Brother Rice coach Rob Ambrose said. “The kids know that and the bar is set high for them. We expect development in quantum leaps year after year. Our mantra is that we never have a rebuilding year here.”

Brother Rice is a program which annually shuffles through all-state and, at times, all-American talent, leaving Ambrose with an overhauled roster at the start of each season. This season, the Warriors are particularly young.

“We made a transition from last year and I think it's going to be a learning curve for us because it's all about experience,” Ambrose said. “I'd say about 90 percent of our roster doesn't have experience. But we have a lot of young talent and we don't have any boundaries. It doesn't matter if you're a senior or a 10th-grader. Our culture here is to raise the bar at all times.”

The Warriors are off to a fast start this season and are quickly cementing themselves as the team to beat in Division 1.

Another lacrosse program on the rise in Oakland County is Orchard Lake St. Mary's. Last season, the Eaglets had a breakout year and made it all the way to the Division 2 state championship — losing to perennial power East Grand Rapids, 13-12, in overtime.

The Eaglets lost only one player from last year's team and are off to a fast start again this season, winning by 20-plus goals in a couple of early contest. But the schedule will get increasingly tougher for St. Mary's as the season wares on.

“Our schedule is probably the toughest in the state,” St. Mary's coach Greg Normand said. “We play the top teams from Illinois, Ohio, Pennsylvania and East Grand Rapids, Forest Hills Eastern and Forest Hills Central. That's along with competing in the Catholic League with teams like Brother Rice and U-D Jesuit.”

Nonetheless, the Eaglets' goals are to be among the best teams in the state and compete for another state championship. But Normand knows his team won't catch anybody by surprise this season.

“We aren't ducking anyone,” Normand said. “I think people recognize that we're a good program and our expectations are to be one of the best teams in the state. I tried to schedule the toughest schedule possible, because I wanted to make sure we're battled-tested come playoff time. We might not sport a great record at the end of the regular season, but we will be ready.”

Offensively, the Eaglets expect to be downright scary — for their opponents. Among those players returning from last season is All-American attackman Ian Brambs. Brambs, who will be continuing his lacrosse career at West Point, collected 135 points last year and has already begun a campaign to break that record this season. He's already tallied games of 11 points twice this year.

Flanking Brambs on the offensive end are teammates Drake Chwalibog, Taylor Docking, Alex Houck, Drew Schupbach and Doug Boyd.

“As dangerous as we were a year ago, I really believe we're better offensively. And that's a tough statement to make … we're really able to move the ball and we have a number of offensive weapons,” Normand said. “I don't know if this is as talented as the 2007 Brother Rice team offensively, but it's the best offensive team I've been around. We have a bruising dodger in Drew Schupbach, a gunner in Doug Boyd, the best passer in the state in Ian (Brambs) and the two of the faster players in the state in Drake (Chwalibog) and Taylor (Docking). What more could you ask for?”

Five other teams to watch:

Novi Detroit Catholic Central

The Shamrocks return a lot of talent from last season's team. Although Catholic Central finished with an overall .500 record (11-11) a year ago, it made an impressive run to the Division 1 state semifinals, before falling to eventual champion Brother Rice.

Among those back for the Shamrocks this year are three players who received all-state honors a year ago. Senior goalie Kevin Lerg (third team) and senior defenseman Alex Moore (second team) will anchor of the Catholic Central defense. Junior attacker Mitch Burgin (second team) and senior midfielder Robby Brzezinski will lead the Shamrocks offensively.

Overall, Catholic Central has 22 juniors and seven seniors. Fifth-year head coach Dave Wilson said he expects that experience to pay off and has high expectations for his team this season.

Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood

The Cranes return four all-state seniors from last season's 13-6 squad and have a roster full of talent and experience coming into this year. Among those returning are first-team all-state midfielder Will Miller and defenseman Dakota Sherman.

A pair of second-team all-state players, attacker Andrew Stanton and defenseman Kevin Collon, return as well. Senior attacker Billy Stacy will also be a force for the Cranes this season.

Birmingham Unified

Head coach Jeff Martin and his Birmingham Unified squad had aspirations of competing for a state title and potentially a Midwest title last season. Yet, Birmingham struggled to a disappointing 6-14 overall record and lost in the regional semifinals.

Returning from that team, with a chip on their shoulder, are a handful of seniors who will be looking to end their high school careers on a positive note. Senior midfielder Scott Drummond was the team's leading scorer in 2009 with 37 goals and 26 assists. Birmingham's second-leading scorer, senior Brent Prior (30 goals, 19 assists), is also back and will flank Drummond in the midfield.

The Birmingham defense will be led by seniors Mack Howell and Charlie Kelly, both of whom were accepted by West Point. Also looking to make a contribution to this year's team will be senior attacker Matt McCarthy, who missed last season with a shoulder injury.

South Lyon

In a sport typically dominated by private schools, South Lyon is looking like one of the best public schools in Oakland County, if not the state. Last season, under first-year head coach Joseph Laird, South Lyon posted a record of 13-5 and made a run to the regional finals.

Kyle Detavernier is a solid attacker and has the ability to be the top goal scorer in the Kensington Lakes Activities Association this season. Tyler Jimenez is the workhorse of the South Lyon defense and Trey Pesci is a solid presence in the midfield.

“Trey (Pesci) is the captain of our midfield,” Laird said. “(He's) not expected to score all of our points, but his knowledge and experience make him the player that he is. Trey is also our No. 1 faceoff guy.”

With the exception of Novi, the KLAA is somewhat of a sub-par lacrosse conference and South Lyon should have a chance to compete for a league title and make a run in the state tournament. However, Laird cautioned that his team is very young and lost a lot to graduation after last season. South Lyon has nine seniors on its roster this year.

Clarkston

The Wolves boast some impressive individual talent and will be looking to improve upon last season's 9-7 record and quarterfinal exit from the state tournament. Leading the way for Clarkston is all-state senior midfielder Andrew Miller. Miller is very fast and an excellent faceoff man, winning 70 percent of his faceoffs a year ago. After this season, he will be heading to Aurora University on a lacrosse scholarship.

Anchoring the defense will be senior goalie Jeff Turner. Turner has been a two-year starter for the Wolves, has great one-on-one skills, and will be playing lacrosse at Adrian College next year. Providing some defensive support in front of Turner is senior defenseman Chapin White. White made the all-region team last year and will also play collegiate lacrosse at Davenport University.

A potential setback for Clarkston could be the loss of senior Jon Avery. Like many of his teammates, Avery will also be playing lacrosse at the next level (Mars Hill Academy), but he will not be able to contribute to the Wolves this season after suffering an ACL injury which will keep him out for the year. Avery was a three-time all-regional player and a first-team all-state selection last season.

A few other teams to watch:

Birmingham Detroit Country Day

As an independent school, Detroit Country Day typically finds itself with a tough schedule of competition. This year is no exception. The Yellowjackets will face many of the state's top teams, including East Grand Rapids, Brother Rice, Cranbrook Kingswood, and U-D Jesuit. They will also compete in the Midwest Tournament. None the less, come playoff time, Country Day should be well tested. The Yellowjackets, who played mostly with sophomores and juniors last season, have enough talent to make a serious run in state tournament.

Bloomfield Hills United

Bloomfield Hills finished 9-10 last season and has a decent amount of talent returning to the team this year. The strength of this team will be in its midfield, where Bloomfield Hills returns seniors Drew Stokas and P.J. Babcock, along with sophomore Keegan Kelly.

Lake Orion

Still trying to build his program, Lake Orion head coach Nick Banda will try to take the Dragons to new heights this season. Banda has been at the helm of Lake Orion lacrosse since the team's inception four years ago.

The Dragons finished 6-11 last season and lost in the second-round of the state tournament. Returning to lead the team this year will be three seniors. The Dragons will rely on the speed and strong shot of Tyler Pelts for much of the offense this season and Jon Hill and Matt Gattinger will serve as enforcers on defense.

Also looking to make an impact for the Dragons this year is freshman Alec Naseef. Banda describes him as having great stick skills and a great shot. He is the first freshman to make the varsity team at Lake Orion.

Top players:

Ian Brambs, Orchard Lake St. Mary's

Brambs was an All-American selection as a junior and is already off to great start this season. Last season, he posted a school-record 135 points and is on pace to break that record this year. He has had two games of 11 points this season and will be continuing his lacrosse career at West Point.

Luke Jackson, Birmingham Brother Rice

Jackson will be a premiere attackman for the Warriors. His offensive contributions will be needed this year as Brother Rice lost most of its scoring from last season's team.

Alex Moore, Novi Detroit Catholic Central

Moore claimed second-team all-state honors a year ago and will be relied on heavily to anchor a very talented defensive unit for the Shamrocks.

Scott Drummond, Birmingham Unified

Drummond led Birmingham with 37 goals and 26 assists last season. He will be paired with some talented players in the Birmingham midfield this season and again will be expected to lead the team offensively.

Will Miller, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood

Miller is expected to play a major role for the talent-loaded Cranes this season. He was a first-team all-state performer a year ago and is one of the best midfielders in the state again this season.

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