By Chris Goldberg
TopLaxRecruits.com, Posted 4/1/13
Dallas Jesuit (TX) is one of several teams that are helping put Texas in the national spotlight in boys’ lacrosse.
The Rangers are off to a 10-1 start and cracked the TopLaxRecruits.com rankings at No. 20 this week.
Dallas Jesuit has lost only to No. 15 Gilman School, a power from the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association. That defeat, 11-9, occurred March 12 at the King of Spring Tournament in North Carolina and the game was the third in three days for the Rangers.
“We should have won,” said Dallas Jesuit coach Chris Surran, an All-American at Syracuse who was the MVP of the Final Four and captain in 1993 when the Orange won the NCAA title. “We were up, 6-1, in the first half, but our face-off guy got an illegal stick penalty and a 3-minute unreleasable and they scored three quick goals.
“This was our third game in three days and Gilman’s only game at the tourney. We sort of ran out of gas. There was not a lot of difference between the skill levels of the players, but they played with a lot of poise and made much better decisions under pressure than we did.
“It was a good experience four our kids. They obviously are an excellent and extremely well coached.”
After the loss to Gilman, the Rangers took off eight days and then claimed a key 7-5 win over Dallas rival St. Mark’s (7-3). Senior goalie Dan Morris (Maryland) was a standout for the Rangers and senior attackman Zach Coker (Furman) had four goals.
“I gave them five days off after the loss – I had never done that before,” said Surran “I was a little concerned the first game back, but we ended up playing a lot of people that contributed.”
Dallas Jesuit features four more senior D1 players: midfielder Garrett Van de Ven (Duke), face-off specialist-middie Sam Rosengarden (Jacksonville), defenseman Hunter Hill (Air Force, has been out all year with a hamstring injury), and backup goalie Christian Carson-Banister (Boston University). Also, senior midfielder Carson Buell is headed to D2 Rollins College and junior midfielder Lee Belland has committed to Lehigh.
Dallas Jesuit then claimed a key 8-4 win over Houston Christian (10-2) as Buell had three goals and an assist and Coker had two goals and two assists.
Surran said an early-season scrimmage win over Lawrenceville School (NJ) was a big boost in confidence. He also hopes to get Hill back soon.
“We have some guys that are very athletic and we get good production from our midfield,” said Surran. “It will be helpful if we got Hunter healthy.”
The Rangers have been a state power since Surran took over in 2007, but they are searching for their first Division I state crown. Last year Dallas Jesuit lost to Highland Park in the state semifinals. The Ragers host Highland Park (8-1) on April 13.
“If our kids are healthy at midfield we are pretty tough to guard,” said Surran. “All four of our guys can make you pay. Teams are playing zone against us, but eh kids are now very comfortable with it since we’ve seen it so much.
“When our goalie is on, he’s one of the best in the country. I think we are ready to knock down the door. The kids just need to make good decisions in the closing moments of tight games. We’ve been pushed this year, which is good.”
The TopLaxRecruits North America Boys’ Rankings
1. Boys’ Latin, Md. (7-0) Prev: No. 1
2. La Salle, Pa. (2-0) Prev: No. 4
3. St. Anthony’s, N.Y. (2-0) Prev: No. 3
4. Chaminade, N.Y. (3-0) Prev: No. 5
5. St. Paul’s School, Md. (8-0) Prev: No. 6
6. Smithtown West, N.Y. (3-0) Prev: No. 10
7. Garden City, N.Y. (2-1) Prev: No. 2
8. Salisbury School, Conn. (0-0) Prev: No. 8
9. Gonzaga, D.C. (7-2) No. 12
10. Hill Academy, Ontario (8-3) Prev: No. 11
11. St. Ignatius Prep, Cal. (8-0) Prev: No. 13
12. Culver Academy, Ill. (3-1) Prev: No. 15
13. Calvert Hall, Md. (2-2) Prev: No. 16
14. Malvern Prep, Pa. (2-0) Prev: No. 14
15. Gilman School, Md. (3-1) Prev: No. 7
16. Jamesville-DeWitt, N.Y. (2-0) Prev: No. 19
17. Yorktown, N.Y. (2-0) Prev: No. 20
18. Hereford, Md. (4-1) Prev: NR
19. Duxbury, Mass. (1-0) Prev: NR
20. Dallas Jesuit, TX (10-1) Prev: NR
Under consideration: Arapahoe, AZ, (6-0); Avon Old Farms, CT., (1-0); Brunswick School, Ct., (2-0); Darien, Conn. (0-0); Don Bosco Prep, N.J. (0-0); Landon School, Md., (4-3); McDonogh School, Md. (6-1); Ithaca, N.Y. (0-0); Loyola Blakefield, Md. (4-2); Niskayuna, NY (0-0); Radnor, Pa. (3-0); St. Andrew’s, Fla. (11-2); West Genesee, NY (1-0); West Islip, N.Y. (1-1).