Apr. 7—WATERTOWN — Led by Jack Adams and Nico Spaziani, the Watertown boys lacrosse team is coming off a historic season.
Sparked by the dynamic duo, the Cyclones went further and perhaps achieved more than any other team in program history, which spans the course of six decades.
The Cyclones won 15 games last year and ultimately went where no boys lacrosse team at the school has gone before, reaching a sectional final.
"Going to the sectional finals for the first time in program history was obviously really cool for us," Adams, a senior midfielder, said, "And this year we hope to step it up and actually win it and progress into states."
Now bolstered with the wealth of 13 returning players, including eight starters, the Cyclones have set their goals even higher this year.
"We're very excited, we've been excited for a long time now for this group," Watertown coach Brian Navarra said. "A lot of them have played together since fourth grade lacrosse and we've kind of followed them all the way up and they've been successful all the way up. So this is it, this is their senior year and we have 12 great seniors, it's a great class and we have high expectations for the year, no doubt about it."
"This is our senior year for most of us and we've been playing together for a long time, and I feel really good about the guys who are coming back and also the guys who are coming up," Adams said.
They not only want to generate a return trip to a sectional final, they also want to take one step further.
Last year on a hot afternoon during Memorial Day weekend, Watertown defeated East Syracuse-Minoa, 12-10, in a decision in a 12-10 semifinal at Baldwinsville.
"The emotions were electric, that's how I would describe it," said senior attackman Kage Loftus said. "Like nobody in program history had gotten past the semifinals, so we were the first team and came in there and we were down at first. But we slowly started gaining back and the next thing you know we were ahead."
"It felt really good," Spaziani, a senior midfielder, said. "It just shows like what happens when you like really work hard in practice and stuff to really get over that hump."
The victory was a breakthrough one, not only historically, but in the moment as in recent years the Cyclones had struggled to advance past the quarterfinal round in sectionals.
"It's something that I never thought would be possible," Loftus said. "But it's from all the hard work and dedication our team has put in over the years that we can make it there, so it's really nice."
"That was a very tough game, hard fought by both teams," said senior defender Noah Fargo. "We squeaked it out by a couple goals and it was a great feeling when it was over."
Watertown was beaten by perennial power West Genesee, 16-7, in the final, but the experience proved to be a profound one.
"Overall, that experience in the semis was amazing," Navarra said. "And then to get to the finals, we certainly weren't happy with the way we played and performed in the finals, we seemed a little off and nervous maybe. But hopefully that experience helped so this year if we get that far, which we're hoping to and expecting, we'll be in a more comfortable place, a more confident place."
This season, the Cyclones are once again led by Adams and Spaziani, who anchor the team from the midfield.
"Between Jack and I, we both know, I mean I don't know how to explain it, but we kind of just get out of the way of each other, move the ball together, know where each other is," Spaziani said.
Last year, Adams paced Watertown in points ...
