High school boys lacrosse: Watertown puts together a season, team like no other

“It’s really special,” Watertown coach Brian Navarra said. “Every senior class has wanted this and they’re really proud that they’re the ones to finally break through and do it. A lot of these guys, most all of them seniors, have played together since the third or fourth grade or maybe even before that.”

“It’s incredibly special for all of us on the team,” Cyclones senior defender Joe Girardi said. “Winning the first (undefeated) plaque in program history, it’s amazing, all of the guys are super happy. There’s no words to express how incredibly proud every one of us is.”

Now led by a core of seniors who have served as the backbone of the team, Watertown will open sectional play next week where they also hope to make a splash.

“We can see the finish line, but we’re just striving for better and we want everything,” Girardi said. “So any challenge that comes to us, we’re ready to face it and we’re excited for what comes ahead.”

The Cyclones, who have reached the sectional semifinals in Class B for the past two seasons, are hoping this year to finally breakthrough to the final and beyond.

Watertown (12-3), which is ranked No. 16 in the state in Class B, is the highest-ranked team from Section 3 in the class.

The team entered the season brimming with confidence and experience, led by a host of seniors, including Patrick Duah in goal, Girardi on defense, with Mick O’Donnell anchoring the midfield and Kyan Combs and Jack Clough providing leadership on attack.

“A lot of senior leadership this year,” Combs said. “We learned a lot from the seniors two years ago, that was a big group. So we took that and used it this year and we’ve all just kind of learned how to be leaders.”

Through Thursday, Clough had generated a team-leading 37 goals, while totaling 51 points. O’Donnell stood tied for the team lead in points with (52), including a team-leading 37 assists.

Clough and O’Donnell’s chemistry has continued this season and perhaps has even grown as the two continue to play off of one another.

“Me and Mick have been playing together since kindergarten, since we started playing lacrosse at (Immaculate Heart Central),” Clough said. “We’ve stayed together and it shows with the connection we have and it really helps us in games.”

“We’ve played in the backyard together our whole lives, so we have a great connection,” O’Donnell said.

Combs, a versatile forward, who missed much of last season because of injury, has returned strong and totaled 15 points, including 14 goals.

“Kyan’s getting healthier and healthier every day,” Navarra said. “And at the midfield he just brings an uncanny ability to dodge, he’s got a great shot. He creates and he finishes very well.”

Girardi guides a defense that has allowed only double digits in goals twice this season through Thursday.

“Joe anchors the defense, he’s really our main leader of the whole team, he just kind of does it all,” Navarra said.

Duah, who was thrust into the role of a starting goalie last year as a junior, has recorded a .648 save percentage through 14 games this season.

“Pat’s been phenomenal in goal,” Navarra said. “I mean he’s just a natural even though he didn’t always play goalie, he’s just a natural back there and he’s so much fun to watch.”

“It’s been good, I haven’t played goalie too long, every game I’m still learning,” Duah said. “It’s great, just communicating with your team and learning the game, and just seeing it from a different perspective, it’s a lot of fun.”

Senior Sam Lachenauer has paced the team in winning faceoffs, a job he first took on when called upon this season.

“He’s done an awesome job for us this year,” Navarra said. “We didn’t really know what we were going to do before the season started and he stepped up. Man, he’s been awesome and a huge part of our success this year thanks to his work at the faceoff X.”

Along with this core group, the Cyclones also possess plenty of firepower as sophomore midfielder Nico Spaziani stood tied with O’Donnell in points generated (52), including scoring 35 goals, and sophomore Jack Adams has scored 22 goals, while junior Jack Rathbun has generated 19 goals.

“They’re amazing, every single one of them pushes each other every day in practice and in games,” Girardi said of the team’s overall talent. “We push each other to the limit and it’s amazing.”

The Cyclones achieved a program first by finishing undefeated in league play and also claimed their fourth consecutive league championship. The Frontier League dates back to 1993 in boys lacrosse as it was founded a year after legendary Watertown coach Matt Branski stepped down after coaching the team over the course of four different decades.

“We’ve always said coming up through the program that we would be the team that would make Watertown go undefeated,” Lachenauer said. “And I think us really coming together last year and this year, I think that’s what really helped us, is playing together and having each other’s back. We just all care about each other.”

They accomplished this by defeating traditional rival Carthage twice this year, as well as dispatching General Brown twice.

“It’s a great feeling knowing that in the beginning of the season we were really close with the Frontier League teams and we’ve really dialed it in during the second half,” Clough said. “And the way we’ve been able to communicate and bond with each other is a once-in-a- lifetime experience, that’s why went undefeated this year.”

Watertown has now beaten Carthage in eight straight meetings, but its most recent win over General Brown may have been the turning point of its season, according to Navarra.

“We’ve really been playing well since halftime of the General Brown game, we were down five goals at one point to start the second half,” Navarra said. “And I don’t know, something just clicked with the guys and we started playing with urgency and I think that’s the key word, that’s what we focus on every game now is urgency for 48 minutes.”

Through Thursday, the team had fared 2-3 against nonleague competition this season, and despite a 16-15 home loss to West Genesee, which is ranked No. 17 in the state in Class B, on April 29, it was encouraged by the outcome.

“Especially in sectional play coming up, we’re really going to have to compete with the Syracuse teams, it’s going to be a dogfight, really,” Lachenauer said. “I think that game against West Genny really let Syracuse (teams) know what we are and who we’re about.”

Last year in the postseason, Watertown defeated Central Square, 16-3, in a sectional quarterfinal at home, before losing to Fayetteville-Manlius, 15-3, in a semifinal. The season before that, the Cyclones also reached the semifinal round, only to come up short in a 9-7 loss, also to F-M.

“I think we’re rolling, I think everybody would agree with that,” Combs said, “Just on offense, moving the ball, not caring who scores anymore just getting the ball and scoring. Defensively, talking more, everybody’s rolling and meshing together, so we’re feeling pretty good going into sectionals.”

The Cyclones, who finished their regular season with a home game against New Hartford on Friday night, will await their seeding in the Section 3 tournament, as pairings will be announced following Monday’s sectional meeting.

“Actually we’re really thankful of most of them that grew up going to (Immaculate Heart Central) and transferred over to Watertown,” Navarra added. “What a great group, right? They’re all really close, they’re all really good friends, they hang out outside of lacrosse and all that, so it’s a tight group.”