Although Snohomish High School won the state title with the winning score of 12-7, the Beavers’ presence at the championship alone was already a historical moment in itself. Prior to this, the boys lacrosse team had never made it to state since the program was created 14 years ago.
Competing at state was a new experience for the team and created new memories for the players to look back on later.
“It was one of the best feelings I’ve ever felt,” Connor Peabody, sophomore lacrosse player, said. “It was one of my favorite moments and it was super fun.”
Peabody had been a key player in the championship against Snohomish and executed a behind-the-back shot, a high-risk and high-skill technique used to prevent the goalie from seeing where he’s aiming, allowing him to score.
“It felt pretty special,” Peabody said. “I feel like everyone thinks about trying to score a behind-the-back goal in the state championship and when you actually do it, it’s pretty cool.”
Initially, the team seemed unlikely to advance past the Metro championship, but as the season went on, steady improvement was found across the roster.
“As we continued to play through the season, more people started to become more committed and spend more time getting better,” Peabody said. “Overall, that allowed the team to get a lot better throughout the season.”
Peabody was one of many players putting in extra time practicing and focusing on improving his skills to help the team progress to state.
“When I realized that we could actually go to state, I started to put in more work outside of practice to get better and I think that helped,” Peabody said.
When Peabody knew the team had the potential to make it to state, he started to prepare himself for not only the physical demands of the tournament but also the mental pressure to win.
“I just wanted to have fun,” Peabody said. “I’ve always wanted to play in the state championship, and the fact I got to was super cool, but I was also mentally preparing myself for all the pressure that comes with it because I’ve never played in that kind of game before.”
Peabody wasn’t the only player who noticed the team’s growth throughout the season leading up to the championship.
“Throughout the season, I saw every person on the team getting better at passing and shooting,” Dash Yoder, sophomore lacrosse player, said. “I also saw the team building a community and just having fun.”
Bjorn Oswald, junior lacrosse player, also found competing at state a rewarding experience, and believes it’ll benefit the future of the program.
“It felt amazing,” Oswald said. “We worked so hard to get there and it was a good step in the right direction. It really put our program on the map.”
Oswald remembers as the season continued, the team cohesion got stronger and brought everyone together, allowing them to play as a more united team.
“Our chemistry got a lot better,” Oswald said. “It didn’t matter if you were a freshman or senior, everyone got along and that really contributed to how we played together instead of every man for himself.”
While the state championship defined the end of the year, individual players will hold onto different highlights of the season.
“My favorite memory was beating Bainbridge in overtime,” Oswald said. “We went into the game knowing they’re really good and it went down to the wire. Hitting the game-winning shot felt amazing.”
