The fabled “five peat.” That is all the Langley Saxons boys lacrosse team had heard about leading up to the spring of 2013. The previous four teams had dominated competition across the Commonwealth rather easily, taking home a consecutive four state championships. It was up to the team that head coach Earl Brewer assembled this year to make it five consecutive titles. However, with the departure of eighteen seniors from the 2012 team, there were certainly a lot of holes to fill. Yet the Saxons still had their sights on earning that fifth straight championship ring, or as senior defenseman Kyle West called it, “one for the thumb.”
Ultimately, the Saxons were unable to capture the state title this year, falling to the Chantilly Chargers 8-2 in the Northern Region tournament. Plagued by injuries for much of the season, the Saxons simply struggled to compete at full strength. What turned out to be the knockout punch was dealt when starting attackman, J.T. Meyer, suffered a torn ACL in the loss against Chantilly.
“I hate it for J.T. because he is a tremendous player, probably one of the best to come through Langley in a few years,” said senior Nicky Guglielmo. “But it’s also crushing to know that if he was on the field with us against Chantilly, we could have beaten them.”
Still, the future looks bright for the Saxons. A young core of talent that includes sophomore attackman Weston Simonides, freshman goalie Patrick Dunne, and sophomore Luke Brugel should help carry the team over the next two years. And potential senior captain Billy Orme, the team’s leading scorer, will seek to lead the team back to the state championship. Senior Luke Salzer believes that next year will be a successful one for the Saxons.
“As long as Coach Brewer is here, we will be competitive,” Salzer said. “I have faith in the young guys and I think Patrick Dunne will step up.”
There were initial rumors that Brewer would retire upon the season’s end; however he has confirmed that he will return in 2014.
“That’s huge for us,” said Simonides. “Coach Brewer is a mastermind and knows what it takes to get to the state championship.”