Lacrosse: Undefeated Aquinas Focused On Task At Hand

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St. Thomas Aquinas veteran boys' lacrosse coach Terry Crowley borrowed a page from athletic director George Smith's playbook when he was the Raiders' football coach: "The next game is the biggest game of your life, so it's game-by-game."

It would be easy to look ahead to the State Final Four when your team is undefeated (15-0), ranked No. 1 in the state, No. 2 in the southeast region, riding a 34-game regular season win streak that dates back to 2014 and just won its' seventh consecutive district title.

But Crowley and his team know better. They are not looking past the opening round state play-in game against Douglas on Friday, April 15th at Cumber Stadium.

"We have some big obstacles in our way to the state final," Crowley said. "We are never looking ahead. We can't lose our focus. Our focus right now is Douglas. Douglas will be a great game. This one might be a little personal for them. The coaches are still the same. Two of my former players are now coaches. Half our starters including Lou Yovino are from Parkland. It's going to be a challenge but we wouldn't want it any other way. After the game, we will all play nice in the sandbox."

It will be the first time Crowley returns to Douglas where he coached seven consecutive district champions and 2007 state champion team before taking over at St. Thomas Aquinas.

St. Thomas Aquinas advanced into the play-in game with an impressive 17-5 victory over American Heritage Plantation Friday in the District 28 final. Douglas advanced with a 16-5 victory over Pine Crest Thursday in the District 27 final.

Even more impressive earlier in the season was the Raiders' 13-12 victory over defending state champion Lake Highland in Orlando. The Raiders' only loss last season (23-1) was to Lake Highland, 13-11, in the state final.

Since the FHSAA sanctioned lacrosse in 2008, the sport has increased in popularity and is a 10-month sport with club and high school competition. With junior club programs in Davie, Fort Lauderdale and Weston, all feeder programs for the Raiders, the team has become a powerhouse.

Crowley has been involved in the sport since 1968. In the last seven years, the Raiders have had 30 student-athletes play in college. There are 20 former players currently competing at the college level including seven in NCAA Division I programs.

"The great part of this job is George Smith," Crowley said. "You will never have a better boss than George Smith. He has been a coach and he understands how difficult it is. I told him to give me four years and we will get there. In years five and six we went to states. Year five we lost in the semifinals and year six we lost in the final."

Crowley returned six starters including his son Kevin, a Hofstra commit, off last year's team that has its sights set on avenging that one loss.

"We have to win the last game," Crowley said. "We beat them in the regular season but it's the second time around that counts in this sport and that's crucial to remember. We had a very tough road to get to the state championships. We beat St. Andrew's in the semifinals and turned around in 24 hours and played the final. We were winning at the half but then six minutes into the third quarter the wheels came off the bus. We just didn't have enough energy."

The Raiders have some outstanding athletes, including several off the football team. Yovino, a senior who has committed to Furman, is a two-time All-American. Mike Adler, the state's top goalie, signed with St. Joseph's. Junior Jimmy Harrington is part of a family legacy in lacrosse. He is the third of four sons to play at St. Thomas. Also, Brody Speno has become one of the team's top contributors.

The Raiders have 85 athletes in the program with 40 on varsity. The roster will be pared to 25 for the playoffs per FHSAA requirement.

"I knew we had something special with this team when we were invited to a national invitational at Farmingdale College on Long Island and knocked off some traditional powerhouses," Crowley said.

The Raiders will be playing without 6-foot-3 sophomore Noah Cash, the team's best defenseman who tore his ACL in pre-season and junior starting midfielder Ethan Martin, who broke his collarbone in the regular season finale against Jupiter.

"We always talk about the next man up," Crowley said. "We are balanced and deep at every position. They may not be the first guy on the depth chart but they know they are a thumb nick away from playing. This is what they trained all season to do, to step up."

KEY DATES
April 15: State First Round Play-In Games: St. Thomas vs. Douglas at Cumber Stadium, Douglas, 7 p.m.; Belen Jesuit at Cypress Bay, 7 p.m.; Key West at Gulliver Prep, 7 p.m.

April 19: State Second Round Play-In Games

April 23: State Third Round Play-In Games

April 29-30: State Final Four, Jupiter High School