WASHINGTON BOYS HIGH SCHOOL LACROSSE ASSOCIATION DIVISION I

The Team to Beat: Mercer Island

The Islanders graduated just four seniors off last year’s state finalist team, and with eight returning starters they’ll be tough to beat. Mercer Island brings back its entire defense and a standout goalie, so it will be particularly tough for opposing teams crack. Offensively, the Islanders have two attackmen and two first-line middies back.

Leading the way will be a group of five captains who have all been on the varsity since their freshmen season. Senior defenseman Conner Beckwith and senior defenseman Connor Raffety will both be four-year starters, and senior goalie Hayward “Hap” Giraud, senior middie Jon Wettack and senior middie Steve Taylor will all be four-year letter winners.

Joining them will be Oberlin-bound senior middie Spencer Tierney, and junior attackman Matt Shields, who is the little brother of graduated Australian standout Daniel Shields.

Contenders: Bellevue, Issaquah, Bainbridge Island

Bellevue has what could very well be its best team in program history. The Wolverines return eight starters, including two on attack, all three first-line middies, two on defense and their goalie. Leading the charge will be Denver-bound senior middie Cole Nordstrom, who is one of the top players in the Western United States. Nordstrom has a strong supporting cast behind him, with senior middie Thomas Zervas, senior middie Eric Omri, senior attackman Ryan Deal, senior attackman Brett Mennella and senior long-stick middie Alex Mennella all in the mix.

Two-time defending state champion Issaquah graduated eight seniors but only six who actually contributed. Six starters will be back, including the entire starting attack and close defense. Senior attackman Todd Jones has started since his freshman season and was the team’s second-leading scorer last season. He’ll be joined by junior attackman Jake Fritz, the team’s third-leading scorer in 2009, and junior defenseman Tyler Lucas, junior middie Kevin Powers and sophomore goalie O’Neil Hughes, a transfer from Eastside Catholic.

This will either be a rebuilding year or a reloading year for Bainbridge Island, which graduated 14 seniors from its state semifinalist team. The Spartans return just one starter, senior attackman Jordan Wagner. Senior goalie Nick Navarro has big shoes to fill in the cage, and junior middies Cameron Parker and Alex Crane will need to step it up to give Bainbridge Island a chance to make a deep playoff run.

Sleeper: Northshore

The Cougars stormed into Division I last season. Northshore qualified for the playoffs before being dispatched in the quarterfinals, and it has its two stars coming back for another season. Senior middie Taylor Wisman and junior middie Foster Wisman are both game changers, and Northshore will always be a threat as long as that pair is on the field.

NCAA Division I Recruits: Sten Jernudd, MF, Lakeside (Cornell); Cole Nordstrom, MF, Bellevue (Denver).

Jernudd, along with Issaquah junior middie Kevin Powers, tried out for and made it onto the Swedish National Team that will participate in the B Division of the World Cup of Lacrosse this summer in England.

Other Top Players: Brock Beall, MF, King’s Way (Dominican); Conner Beckwith, Def., Mercer Island; Colby Carr, MF, Curtis; Alex Crane, MF, Bainbridge Island; Jeremiah Davenport, MF, Lake Tapps; Gregor Davidheiser, Att., Vashon Island; Ryan Deal, Att., Bellevue; Taylor Dean, Att., Curtis; Kyle Decker, Att., Eastside Catholic; O’Neil Hughes, G, Issaquah; Austin Franks, Def., Vashon Island (Dominican); Jake Fritz, Att., Issaquah; Hayward “Hap” Giraud, G, Mercer Island; Jordan Goodspeed, Att., King’s Way; Chap Grubb, G, Overlake; Eric Hoeffner, Def., King’s Way; Todd Jones, Att., Issaquah; John Linari, MF, Mukilteo; Tyler Lucas, LSM, Issaquah; Alex Manella, LSM, Bellevue; Brett Manella, Att., Bellevue; Nick Navarro, G, Bainbridge Island; Eric Omri, MF, Bellevue; Kevin Park, Def., Stadium; Martin Park, MF, Stadium (Wittenberg); Cameron Parker, MF, Bainbridge Island; Robert Pfluger, Def., Eastside Catholic; Kevin Powers, MF, Issaquah; Connor Raffety, Def., Mercer Island; Hector Rhodes, MF, Lakeside; Devon Schmidt, Att., Overlake; Matt Shields, Att., Mercer Island; Zach Steedman, G, Puyallup; Steve Taylor, MF, Mercer Island; Drew Thomas, G, Stadium; Spencer Tierney, MF, Mercer Island (Oberlin); Sky Tweedie-Yates, MF, Overlake; Danny Vais, Def., Eastlake; Jordan Wagner, Att., Bainbridge Island; Riley Wanzer, Def.-LSM, Mukilteo (Whittier); Brennan West, Att., Skyline; Jon Wettack, MF, Mercer Island; Foster Wisman, MF, Northshore; Taylor Wisman, MF, Northshore; Thomas Zervas, Att., Bellevue.

Preseason Top 10: 1. Mercer Island, 2. Bellevue, 3. Issaquah, 4. Bainbridge Island, 5. Northshore, 6. Skyline, 7. Puyallup, 8. Curtis, 9. Vashon Island, 10. Lakeside.

Notes: There will be a new alignment and six more teams in Division I in 2010. The league has scrapped its old single-table format in which every team played each other once and will now consist of two 10-team conferences. Eastside Catholic, King’s Way, Lake Tapps, Mukilteo, Overlake, Stadium and Tacoma have all been promoted to the state’s top flight, while Garfield has been relegated to Division II. The new Northeast Conference will consist of Bellevue, Eastlake, Eastside Catholic, Issaquah, Lakeside, Mercer Island, Mukilteo, Northshore, Overlake and Skyline. The new Southwest Conference will consist of Bainbridge Island, Curtis, King’s Way, Lake Tapps, Puyallup, Seattle Prep, Stadium, Tacoma, Tahoma and Vashon Island.