Conquistadors aiming high

By Robert Daski

Published: March 22, 2008

A banner hangs in the Seton School gym, reminding those who enter of the Virginia Independent Schools Division III state championship won in 2007 by the boys’ lacrosse team.

Members of that squad remember their victory.

“It was a pretty sweet memory,“ attack Danny O’Donohue said.

Now comes the challenge: trying to repeat that feat in 2008.

Nearly the same players return to help the Conquistadors go for another state crown. Senior goalie Blaise Dufrain and senior defenseman Kevin Hughes will be team captains and Hughes will team with Joe Ross and Paul Duda to anchor the defense.

The midfield also has an abundance of experience, led by senior Sean Koehr, winner of 60 per-cent of his face-offs a year ago. Matt Crowhurst and freshman Nick Kenna also return.

Uncertainty, though, surrounds the front line. Two voids were left when established goal scorers Kevin Rafter and Justin Petrisek graduated last year. Rafter scored 51 goals as a senior, regis-tered 30 assists and was state tournament MVP as well as the Potomac News & Manassas Jour-nal-Messenger All-Area Athlete of the Year. Petrisek contributed 25 goals, filling the role of top scorer when opponents shut down Rafter.

Sophomore Dan Koehr returns after scoring 30 goals last year. Joining Koehr at attack are O’Donohue, who moves up from attacking midfield, and his brother Michael, a freshman and newcomer to the squad. Danny O’Donohue contributed 30 goals as a junior and led Seton in ground balls.

“We have a lot of returning players and a lot of experience,“ athletic director Dan Vander Woude said. “A big reason why we did so well last year is because we had big chemistry and strong defense. But a big question mark will be how we play offensively.“

The coaching staff has also changed. Last year’s coach Sam Higgonbottom is now in law school and will not roam the sideline this season. Vander Woude will coordinate the staff, but former Paul VI junior varsity coach Andy Cooper has taken over for Higgonbottom. Rick Salomon works with defense and former Naval Academy player and Prince William County youth league coach Jack Jackson is handling tactical training of the offense.

“We’ve got a lot of solid coaches,“ Danny O’Donohue said. “Mr. Salomon is a great defensive coach. Andy Cooper’s a really excellent coach. Mr. Jack-son’s great too. With our new coaches and our returning prospects, we hope to win.“

But they have a tough schedule. Seton plays in the Fredericksburg Academy Tournament and Miller Tournament. Both consist of Division III schools. The Conquistadors plan to play the Wake-field Tournament, which features Division II and Division III schools. They also play traditional rival, Trinity at Meadowview, twice.

“It’ll be interesting to see how we fare against a lot of other Division III schools in the state,“ Vander Woude said.

The Conquistadors should be prepared for their competition. Players sharpened their fundamen-tals participating in last fall’s Fall Brawl Tournament against Freedom and Group AAA Lake Braddock.

Hughes took his out-of-season conditioning a step further by attending a West Point Army La-crosse Camp and playing for the Generals travel lacrosse team who practices in Gainesville.

“It still is different starting the season, but we’ve been keeping up with our skills in the off-season,“ Hughes said. “There’s a noticeable difference skill-wise. We have a more refined understanding of the game.“

Vander Woude hopes the players combine that knowledge with their talent and mesh well enough with the coaches for Seton to make another run at a state crown.

“We’re hopeful with the experience and talent and good coaching staff, our goal is to do the best we can, get back to the state tournament and defend our title,“ Vander Woude said.