(Photo by Frank Wojciechowski) JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT: Princeton Day School boys’ lacrosse player Garret Jensen heads to goal in a game this spring. Junior attacker Jensen’s offensive production played a major role as the Panthers ended the spring at 10-5. Jensen was recently named as a second-team All-Prep B performer along with Tyler Olsson, Mike Davila, and Cody Triolo. PDS senior stars Aaron Shavel and Dan Reynolds were first-team All-Prep B picks.

PDS Boys’ Lax Ended on High Note In Producing Superb 10-5 Campaign

Bill Alden

It was the start of alumni weekend at Princeton Day School but it was the end of the season for the PDS boys’ lacrosse team.

After suffering losses in the Mercer County Tournament quarterfinals and the state Prep B semis, the Panthers were determined to finish things on a high note as they hosted Pennington on the evening of May 13 in the season finale.

“It was a great night for the school, there was a record crowd and there was a great atmosphere,” said PDS head coach Rob Tuckman. “It was a 6:00 game and it kicked off alumni weekend.”

The Panthers proceeded to give their throng of supporters plenty to cheer about as they rolled to a 13-5 victory over the Red Raiders to end the spring with a final record of 10-5.

“It was the perfect way to end the season,” said Tuckman, who got three goals and two assists from senior star Aaron Shavel in the win with junior Garret Jensen chipping in three goals and four assists and Tyler Olsson contributing two goals and an assist.

“We were able to gain control of the game early and once we were in control, we were able to get in players who hadn’t been in much.”

In Tuckman’s view, the fact that all the players bought into the team was a key to its superb season.

“I think we had a great team attitude; every kid in the program was committed to the program,” said Tuckman.

“They made sure that they not only played their best but that their teammates were also playing ntheir best.”

The PDS senior captains, Aaron Shavel, Peter Blackburn, Dan Reynolds, and Will Kearney, set the tone.

“Aaron was a team captain as a junior and a senior and he ended up with 119 goals in his career,” said Tuckman of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute-bound attackman.

“He was, without a doubt, the foundation for our offense; he really had an impact. He was first on the field for practice and last to leave. He spent extra time on his shooting. When the young kids see that, they want to do the same thing. I always say you live and die by your goalie and having Peter there this spring was great. We also got great leadership from Reynolds and Kearney. The defense was the crux of our team.”

Going forward, the team’s core of rising stars should be at the crux of the program’s development.

“We rely on young kids to step up; we got a lot out of our young kids this year,” added Tuckman, who got some big production this spring from juniors Jensen, Olsson, and Mike Davila together with sophomores Cody Triolo and Taran Auslander.

“The sophomore class is a foundation; we had three freshmen who had big roles and did well.”

The foundation appears to be in place for the Panther program to be a big player on the local lacrosse scene.

“I feel we have gotten PDS lacrosse back on the map,” asserted Tuckman. “Something like 90 percent of the guys are going to be playing summer ball in the various clubs across New Jersey. That is a huge cultural change. We also have kids who are looking to play at the collegiate level.”

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