Bulletin | Fall 2013 55
Captain Brennan Marczewski ’13
Team(ing) with Talent Boys Lacrosse Earns Year-End Accolades After clinching their first Founders’ League title in 20 years, the Choate boys varsity lacrosse team was well represented at the Western New England Prep School Division I award ceremony. A quartet of Wild Boars was selected to play in the Western New England All Star Game, while three were named to the Division I All Western New England team. Midfielders Jimmy Coughlan ’13, Bob Collins ’13 and defenseman Steel White ’13 earned All Western New England distinction for their play. Coughlan, a postgraduate from Ward Melville on Long Island, led the team in scoring with 27 goals and 9 assists. The winner of the team’s Robert Berry Lacrosse Award for excellence, he will attend Brown. Collins, from Mahwah, N.J., finished the season with 23 goals and 7 assists, and will attend Notre Dame. White, a co-winner of the team’s Coaches’ Award for Dedication, Enthusiasm, and Team Spirit, led the team in ground ball victories. The two-year defender from Weybridge, Vt., will attend St. Lawrence University. Conor Duffy ’13 was awarded an honorable mention for the award given to the top defenseman in the league. His play earned him a spot in the Western New England All Star Game and an honorable mention for the All Western New England team. He will attend Lehigh. Michael Rastivo ’13, who notched 15 goals and 16 assists at attack this season, received All Western New England honorable mention for his play. He, along with White, was a co-winner of the Coaches’ Award for his efforts this spring. Rastivo will attend St. Joseph’s University in the fall.
Christopher Rusnak ’14
Two awards from US Lacrosse were also claimed by the Wild Boars. Andrew Mitchell ’13 was named to the Academic All-American team for his efforts on the field, in the classroom, and in the community. The senior from Hamden, Conn., will attend the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. Head Coach Mike Velez ’00 was named US Lacrosse Coach of the Year for the Western New England district. The team finished with a record of 9-6 in Velez’s third year as head coach. Before the league meeting, co-captains Michael Shanahan ’13 and John LaViola ’13 were recognized by the Talon Vise Corp. for their leadership. Shanahan helped to anchor a defense, which yielded 6.4 goals per game this season. The four-year senior will attend Connecticut College. He finished his senior campaign with 7 goals and 7 assists.
Dylan Farrell ’14 and Captain Abbie Cooper ’13
Coach of the Year Mike Velez ’00 Boys varsity lacrosse head coach, Mike Velez ’00, received coach of the year at the New England West 1 Lacrosse banquet. Velez has been at the helm of the Choate lacrosse for the past three seasons. Each season his team has improved on the one before. This year the team ended up with an overall record of 9-6, beating Avon and Westminster. The team also took home a share of the Founders League Title for the first time since 1993. Velez has helped the program get back to form and continues to seek excellence from his student-athletes.
2013 Varsity Lacrosse Seniors, from left: Jimmy Coughlan, Andrew Mitchell, Steel White, John LaViola, Conor Duffy, Michael Shanahan, Michael Rastivo, Alex Choi, and Bob Collins