Lacrosse paralleled the success of last year’s team by claiming the league title this season. Even though the team was relatively young this spring, it still managed to excel and meet its high expectations.
The team ended its season at the top of the El Camino division, but its success wasn’t immediate. Early in the season, the relatively young team faced off against some of the top teams in the Bay Area, and as a result sustained a few losses to teams like St. Mary’s High School, St. Francis High School and Dougherty Valley High School.
In addition, the team was hindered by the absence of two seniors due to injury. Co-captain senior Daniel Kahan broke his collarbone in a skiing accident just before the start of the the season and senior Andrew Thomas sustained a knee injury during rock climbing that also kept him from participating.
After persevering through injury and tough matchups early in the season, the Eagles came out with fire as the season progressed. Early difficulties helped the team rally together, and the team was able to finish the season with a 10-2 in-league record. By the end of the season, the Eagles had claimed the El Camino League title for the second time in school history. Along the way, Los Altos took down top teams like Saratoga, Woodside and Sequoia.
Daniel cites the team’s athleticism as the driving force for the teams success in such a short period of time. Many of the players were on the younger side, but the already present athleticism among the various players lent to a team that was able to learn and adapt quickly.
Some key, experienced players also contributed to the success of this season. One of those players, sophomore AJ Guralas broke the goals record this year by scoring 63 of the 85 goals in the season.
“[The goals count] well surpassed the point total for anybody else who’s played lacrosse,” Daniel said. “He played a large part in our success.”
As the season came to a close, the team had a lot to be excited about. The team overcame the challenge of playing with younger, more inexperienced players and yet managed to match the accomplishments of last year’s team.
“Highlight of the season I’d definitely say was watching the team grow and come together, making it to playoffs and winning the league championship,” Daniel said. “We didn’t do it as easily as last year.“
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