D3 Boys Lacrosse Preview: Trinity looks like a favorite in a wide-open division

While Division III boys lacrosse has been dominated by one program for a couple of years, this season, it appears to be the division that is wide open.

The Hopkinton High School boys team has won the last three titles, losing just one game during that stretch, but like everyone else in the division, the Hawks will be taking the field with an almost entirely new roster.

The team that looks like it might be ahead of the pack at this stage, in terms of known commodities, is Trinity. The Pioneers bring back perhaps the best combination of experience and talent on their roster and could potentially put together their best season since winning the title in 2015.

Hopkinton should once again be at the top of the division, along with Pelham, which is the only team to beat the Hawks during their run, and Plymouth, which brings back a strong senior class of its own. Laconia and Campbell should also be in the mix, but might be a year away from challenging for a spot in the final.

Favorite

• Trinity: The Pioneers look to have a good mix of experience and talent on the roster for this season, while they might have to build depth as the year moves along. In goal, senior Dylan Purdy has improved his game and will be pushed by sophomore Nick Guerra, while the defense will be led by senior Brendon Boss and junior Matt Miclette. They’ll have a bunch of new varsity players alongside them, including junior Mike Evans, senior Cam Laventure and freshmen Will Brauer and Sam D’Urso. Trinity’s top midfield line is solid, with senior Dillion Brown leading the way while sophomore Brady Watts will handle faceoffs and play two-ways. Also at midfield are junior Austin Pepin, sophomore Colton Gooden and freshman Brennan Walsh. On attack, only junior Jack Socha returns for the Pioneers, but sophomore Tate Flint has potential for a breakout season. Joining them are sophomores Ethan Flannagon and freshman Andrew Overy.

Challenger

• Hopkinton: The Hawks return one of the top players in the state in senior LSM Steven Newton-Delgado, and he’ll be joined by two-way middies Sam Brown, Hayden Lynch and Aidan Burns. Eli Standefer gets the nod in goal after a solid offense and will lead the defense. On offense, Spencer Burdette and Ryan Brown will lead Hopkinton at attack.
• Pelham: The Pythons return a balanced group of almost a dozen seniors, including Andrew Butler, Cam Satolucito, Matt Jones, Jimmy Langenfeld and goalie Jon Savage on defense. Dylan DeFranzo, Patrick Soonthornprapuet and Ryan Nicolosi are back at midfield and Sean Conners, Cam Hyder and Josh Surprenant return at attack. Also returning for Pelham are Conor Hamilton (attack), Tyler Katin (attack), Keegan McKenney (midfield) and Ethan Giniewicz (defense).
• Plymouth: The Bobcats have a solid senior core this year, with Cody Bannon, Joe D’Ambruoso and Trevan Sanborn returning at midfield, Nick Aprilliano at attack and Brenckin Bates and Gabe Wheeler on defense. Junior goalie Jake Marcoux also returns to lead the defense.

Contenders

• Campbell: The Cougars were a playoff team for the first time in 2019 and will try to build off that with a balanced roster, led by seniors Michael DeCarli (midfield) and Drew Adamakos (attack). Junior middie Jack Noury will play a key role along with fellow juniors John Newell (midfield), Brendan Boschi (attack) and Eric Coates (defense). Campbell will also look to get contributions from sophomore Jackson Kanaley, who made the move to LSM, and freshman middie Andrew Willnus.
• Laconia: The Sachems will be junior-heavy this season, but do return two key seniors in Ryan Whitton (attack) and JT Alfieri (defense). Also back on defense are juniors Jake Mello and Edgar Conroy along with goalie Cam Harriman. Junior Zach Whitney will see time at midfield and LSM while junior Lucas Beane and freshman Carson Tucker will also play big roles at midfield. Junior Evan Carignan is also back at attack while juniors Tim Ausevich and Cole Roy could see time at midfield and attack.

Dark Horses

• Kearsarge: The Cougars return a handful of seniors, led by goalie Kyle Gaherty. Joining him on defense is Nolan Haley, while senior Jake Cardillo and junior Ford Simano will be looked to to step up on that end. Seniors Travis Kane, James Greason and Christian DeCosta return at midfield and will be joined by seniors Tim Flanders and Gavin Fleming. Senior Luke Witmer will lead a young attack.
• Lebanon: The Raiders have a solid returning core, led by Griffin Auch (attack), Noah Mekus (midfield) and Allisdair Macphail, who transferred in from Kimball Union Academy.

Rest of the Field

• Monadnock
• Milford
• Gilford
• Inter-Lakes/Moultonborough
• Bishop Brady
• Hillsboro-Deering
• Stevens

Editor’s Note: With an open playoff divided into regional brackets, instead of predictions for who will make the playoffs and the final four, below is a projected top five and a prediction for the championship game.

Top Five

1. Trinity
2. Hopkinton
3. Pelham
4. Plymouth
5. Laconia

Championship

• Trinity over Hopkinton

Preseason Offensive Player of the Year: Tate Flint, Trinity

Preseason Defensive Player of the Year: Steven Newton-Delgado, Hopkinton

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