Rest of D2 boys lacrosse looking to end Portsmouth, Derryfield run

The Portsmouth High School boys lacrosse team has won four of the last five Division II championships, but the most recent one sure didn’t look like the rest.

Not when the Clippers were the No. 6 seed going into the playoffs, needed a last-minute comeback to escape the quarterfinals and then went scoreless for two-and-a-half quarters before coming back to beat Derryfield in overtime in the championship game.

The two teams have played in six of the last eight finals and they go into the season as two of the favorites to get there again in D2. Last year’s semifinalists, Winnacunnet and St. Thomas, are also on the list of teams that could get in the way, along with Timberlane and Hollis Brookline.

Oyster River-Newmarket and Goffstown, both with new head coaches, could get in the way, too, while plenty of other teams in the division could surprise.

Favorites

Portsmouth (16-5 in 2025, won title): The Clippers have won four of the last five division titles and played in seven of the last eight championship games. Until that changes, it’s hard not to put them in this spot.

It starts for Portsmouth on faceoffs, and the Clippers again have one of the best faceoff guys in junior Sam Biddle, who will also stay on the field as a two-way middie. Sophomores Trevor Sifferlen and Miles Parker are also back at midfield, and they’ll be joined by junior Jack Martin and freshman Max Deneen.

Leading the defense will be senior Andy Brown and junior Nash Conklin, along with junior Max Russman (LSM) and sophomore Luke Brandt. The Clippers will have a goalie battle for the first time in a while, as senior AJ Craig and juniors Cooper Feragamo and Will Lefabvre will compete for time.

Junior Henry Purcell is coming back from an offseason injury to lead the offense, with senior Gus Alati and juniors Cortland Barr and Gus Baker to join him. Junior Chase Eberhardt will also see time at attack.

Derryfield (19-1, lost final): In the 10 seasons the Cougars have played in D2, they’ve been in the final nine times, winning five of them. Until that changes, like Portsmouth, they start the year here.

Derryfield returns a lot of experience, but a lot of it is in its junior and sophomore classes. Leading the way will be juniors Dom Cercone and Ryan Maxwell, who will see time at midfield and attack, while junior Jackson Hatfield and sophomore Awaab Mousa return to handle faceoffs.

Sophomores Heath Mueller and senior Garrett Lande also return at midfield, where they’ll be joined by junior Vittorio Masoni.

Senior Alistair Wright is back to lead the defense along with junior goalie Liam England, while junior Patrick Masoni and freshman goalie Ryder Proulx will also be in the mix.

Challengers

Winnacunnet (13-4, lost in semifinal): The Warriors graduated just seven players from a team that earned the second seed last season and reached the final four.

Winnacunnet returns a strong core, starting with seniors Beck Rath and Anthony Magri on attack and senior Alec Mitchell, who will see time at midfiled and attack along with handling faceoffs. Junior Liam McNally also returns at attack while senior Hale Dodier and juniors Brian McCown, Spencer Zigler and Burker Spaulding are back at midfield.

Junior Joal Williams is back at goalie to lead the defense, along with senior Brock Emery (LSM). They’ll be jouned by senior Junior Paschal and juniors Evan Stamper and Jax Masse while sophomore Michael Bramhall will see time as a defensive middie.

St. Thomas (13-6, lost in semifinal): The Saints lost just five seniors from a year ago and have a new head coach this season, as Dan De Tolla takes over the program.

The offense for St. Thomas will be led by senior midfielder Luke Daly and junior attack Ryan Resch, while sophomores Cam Aceto and Mike Flood will also see time at midfield and attack. Junior Colby Tasker will also see time at attack, along with freshmen Grady Estes and Josh Kupka, and freshmen Owen Clark and Peter Jennings will be in the mix at midfield.

Juniors Cooper Copeland (LSM) and Jake More (goalie) return to lead the defense along with senior Aiden Molt (SSDM) and junior Gavin Canti. Also returning are senior Harper Jellyson, junior Lincoln Hydock and sophomore Nick Kodiz while freshman Cam Piccard will see time at defensive middie while freshman Ryan Carr will contribute on defense.

With Davin Pinatrelli out with an injury, sophomore Rhys Sullivan will handle faceoffs and play at midfield.

Timberlane (12-5, lost in quarterfinal): The Owls were moments away from making it to the semifinals last season, and despite losing nine seniors, they’re planning on getting back this year.

Timberlane returns a lot of firepower on attack, with seniors Rocco Psareas and Landon Petry leading the way, and they’ll be joined by sophomores Dylan Lindblad and Travis Lavoie.

Senior Gio Recesso is back to lead at midfield along with senior Bradyn Gillespie and junior Gaven Dubois, while freshman Aidan Davern will also see time. The defense will be led by senior Cole Rego while junior Nick Vaccarezz (LSM) and senior Ryan Bazidane (goalie) will be looked to to contribute.

Hollis Brookline (13-6, lost in quarterfinal): The Cavaliers were also close to a final four appearance last season. HB gradauted only five seniors but saw a couple other players transfer out, but there is plenty returning for the Cavs to make a run.

HB looks to return a strong group on defense, led by senior Dillon Kinney and juniors Aiden O’Hearn, Tyler Allen and goalie Levi Mitchell. They’ll be joined by junior Colten Herrera while junior Hunter Knight will have a chance to contribute.

Senior Luke Kinney and sophomore Sam Petrella are back at midfield with sophomore Nate Constantine joining them. Juniors Mike O’Hearn and Bennett Torgersen will lead the attack with junior Oliver Spencer joining the mix.

Contenders

Goffstown (9-8, lost in prelim): The Grizzlies turn to a new coach in Dave MacPherson, and while they’ve got a talented group, it’s a young one, too, with 14 sophomores on the roster.

Senior Noah Babin returns to lead Goffstown’s defense along with sophomore Ben Hill while junior Nick Cote steps in at goalie. Sophomores Blake Jordan (LSM), Liam Johnson and Jacob Ryan will also see time while freshman Isaiah Aseltine will be looked to to contribute.

Senior Isaac Robinson returns to lead the midfield along with junior Jason Matatall and sophomore Sean Burnett. Junior Kai Tupper and sophomore Carter Smedick return at attack, where they’ll be joined by sophomore Taiden Wong-Zoll.

Oyster River-Newmarket (9-8, lost in quarterfinal): The Bobcats lost six seniors to graduation, another returner to prep school, and will have a new head coach for the third straight year, as former assistant Brendan McKenna takes over.

But Oyster River-Newmarket has a big group of returning players, including on defense, where seniors Kavi Weber and Finn Rice and juniors Cabot Hould-Mount and Jackson Pearson (LSM) return as starters. Sophomore Athan Alcocer and goalies Grant Norris (sophomore) and Connor Evans (junior) are also back while freshman Max Persson will be in the mix.

Senior Jayden Smart and junior Demitrius Tsakiris are back at midfield as is senior Cole Levesque, who will also handle faceoffs. Senior Dom Derose, junior Camden Ayotte and sophomores Parker Oulette, Toby Bergeron-Killough and Carter Michaud are also back at midfield.

The attack will be led by senior Alex Moody and junior Jeff Keyes while freshman Blake Callander will also have a chance to contribute.

Hanover (7-10, lost in quarterfinal): The Bears saw just six seniors graduated, but one was all-state goalie Henry Cotter. Hanover will also have a new head coach this year, as Geoff Colla takes over.

The Bears return their three leading scorers from last year with senior Sam Bagatell and juniors JJ Bornstein and Michael Anderson returning on attack. Juniors Hopper Kelley and EJ Frechette will also be in the mix on attack.

Senior John Taylor returns to lead at midfield along with seniors Jack Myers and Casper Besana and junior Zach McCarthy. Junior Ben Parker steps in at goalie while seniors Phin Roy-Ollie and Gabe Clerkin and junior Andre Whyte return on defense. Junior Silas Clifford and sophomore Peak Temple are back at LSM while junior Ben Fogg and Alex Bolg also join the mix.

Kingswood (4-10): The Knights will look to get back to the playoffs after a year out and they’ve got a lot of returners to help them try.

That includes senior Keller Peacock and junior Collin Pelletier at midfield and juniors Brady Walston and Myles O’Keefe at attack. They’ll be joined by freshman attack Parker Gilpatrick while senior Parker Aucoin returns to handle faceoffs.

Seniors Ryker Booth, Devin Perkins and Liam Brown are back to lead the defense while senior Grady Whitcomb and junior Atley Rollins will battle for the starting job in goal.

Rest of Field

Merrimack Valley (6-10, lost in prelim): With 14 seniors graduated and just four starters returning, the Pride will have some holes to fill this season.

Seniors Colin Reardon returns to his starting role on attack while he’s joined by senior Tyler Baker and junior Chandler Hildreth. Junior Carter Lanhorst is back to handle faceoffs while he and junior Gavin Anderson return at midfield. Junior Brady Rathbun and freshman Carter Diminico will look to contribute at midfield as well.

The defense will be led by senior Carter Garland while he’ll be joined by senior Bode Wood and sophomore Dylan Lemieux. Sophomore Romeo Robles (LSM) is also back while sophomore Adrian Buss steps in at goal and junior Nate Wallace will see time at defensive middie.

Pembroke (2-13): The Spartans return eight seniors as they try to get back to the postseason.

Leading the way on attack are seniors Kevin Benard, Charles Braga and Jackson Olisky while seniors Will Chabot and Gabe Johnson will return at midfield along with sophomore Chase Boggs. Sophomore Charlie Carignan will also see time at midfield.

Senior Jacob Menczywor and junior Shane Bowen are back on defense while senior Jacob Hanson returns after switching to LSM. Senior goalie Shane Eldredge is back after missing last season due to an injury and sophomore Mason Hurley will also be in the mix on defense.

Souhegan (4-13): The Sabers go into the year with a young roster that features 16 freshmen.

That means Souhegan will lean on its returning seniors, starting with captains Micah Dibble, Reid Kimball and goalie Sean Reardon, who all return on defense. Also back on defense are senior middies Owen Wood and Keegan Beatty.

Senior Nate Hill will lead the attack while juniors Mason Mobley and Gus Stevenson will see time at attack and midfield.

Spaulding (0-16): The Red Raiders have a big number of returning players, including a good sized junior class.

Spaulding will look to its defense to lead early on, with junior goalie Seth Jones back along with juniors Jackson Shapleigh and John Hebert. Sophomores Derik Mangificio (LSM) and Riley Rup will also see time as will sophomore goalie Maverick Cates.

Seniors Kyle Hogan and Aeden Walsh will lead the midfield while senior Max Drena will look to contribute as well. Senior Jack Meyer and junior Rowan Hughes will lead the attack while junior Logan Hickman and sophomore Kayleb Baker will both take faceoffs and see time on attack.

Freshmen Drew Reilly (defense) and Mike Almedia (goalie) will also look to contribute this year.

Alvirne (1-15)

Postseason Predictions

• Teams (10): Derryfield, Goffstown, Hanover, Hollis Brookline, Kingswood Oyster River-Newmarket, Portsmouth, St. Thomas, Timberlane, Winnacunnet.
• Final four: Derryfield, Portsmouth, St. Thomas, Winnacunnet.
• Championship: Portsmouth over Winnacunnet.
• Offensive Player of the Year: Beck Rath, Winnacunnet.
• Defensive Player of the Year: Nash Conklin, Portsmouth.