After a 5.5 game improvement last year, the Cinnaminson High School boys’ lacrosse team looks to have an even better season than their 9-8 record from the 2017 season. With playoffs in sight, the boys will be working for their first ever playoff win, after being defeated 15-2 in the first round last year against James Caldwell High School.

So far this season, the boys are off to a 4-2 start after winning the first three games of the season against Oakcrest, Highland and Delran before consecutive losses to Northern Burlington and another heartbreaker to neighbor Holy Cross, 7-6.   The boys righted the ship last Friday against New Egypt in a 12-7 win, but a rematch awaits next Monday against Holy Cross.

Led by senior captains Mason McLaverty, Liam Wharton, Matt O’Brien, and junior captain J.T. Holt, the lacrosse team’s full rebuild is nearly complete. The years of losing and struggling have seemed to pay off, as the captains look to lead the team deep into the playoffs.

Wharton, a Stockton University commit and one of the few who was on the team for both the good and the bad, believes his team has made great strides into their success last year and their hopes for this year:

“I believe that we can win the division with the group of guys we have. We work really hard and to see the results show how hard we’ve been working. We’ve come a long way from our struggling years and I think we can prove to cause some trouble in the playoffs this year,” Wharton said.

The team has certainly made some strides in the last three years. After years of struggling and losing, their transformation process has paid off, as they now look to be one of the most dominant teams in South Jersey. Coach Craig Angelini, who has been the lacrosse coach since their inaugural season, is very pleased with how far he’s seen the team come in the last few years:

“I really love to see how far the team has come in the last couple of years. When you look back, maybe 3 years ago, we were 3-13. To see our team where we’re at now really shows the heart that these guys have and the work ethic to constantly become better players.”

The Pirates will battle with with division rivals Rancocas Valley and Burlington Township for the BCSL title this year, and hope to make a deep run in the playoffs come May.  The team will face a daunting schedule coming off of the senior trip as it will have three games per week, weather permitting, over the next three weeks to prepare for playoff positioning.  Up first will be a rematch with Holy Cross on Monday before the boys play at New Egypt on Wednesday and another rematch with Northern Burlington on Friday.