By Matt Jenkins
Staff Writer
May 13, 2008 02:10 am Lax Lowdown Matt Jenkins Ryan Gendreau's lacrosse career has been a virtual ping-pong match of stops on the North Shore. A Danvers resident, Gendreau began playing lacrosse as a third grader in the Peabody Youth Lacrosse League because Danvers didn't have a program at the time. He continued playing at the Glen Urquhart School in Beverly while in junior high, and has been a contributing member of the Hamilton-Wenham varsity team since his freshman year of high school — despite still living in Danvers. "I visited Hamilton-Wenham when I was at the Glen Urquhart School and really liked it. It seemed small and I like the people there," Gendreau said. "There are also 6-7 other kids from (Glen Urquhart) that go there now." He doesn't think much about his unusual path to playing lax for the Generals. But Gendreau is sure this team has what it takes to make a run in the Division 3 East tournament this spring. Gendreau scored his 100th career goal earlier this spring, and was a major contributor on the Generals' team that went 19-2 and advanced to the East semifinals two years ago. He started with 11 points as a freshman, boosted that total to 47 as a sophomore, scored 57 last year and already stands at 53 right now. The lessons learned in both his sophomore and junior seasons will definitely help Gendreau lead the Generals into the state tournament. "It was incredible two years ago; we won 19 straight games. Teams rarely do that," Gendreau said. "Last year we were 10-10 because we lost our starting defense and a lot of senior leadership. It was a tough year, but we got through it." Hamilton-Wenham is currently 9-5, with all losses coming to highly-thought-of teams. They include setbacks against Malden Catholic (8-6), North Andover twice (10-6 and 8-7 in overtime), and Masconomet twice (13-9 and 5-1). Blemishes like that — while they don't look good on a record — will only help in the postseason. Gendreau's scoring ability will also help the Generals put teams away when it's win-or-go-home time. There's no questioning Gendreau's ability to put the ball in the net, but he's also a student of the game. "I would say my intelligence (is my best attribute). The more I play, the smarter I get at reading defenders and goalies," Gendreau said. "Year in and year out you pick up on stuff that kids like to do and their tendencies, especially goalies. Some goalies are good on low or high shots; others are good on bouncing shots." In order to hit another spot on the North Shore map, Gendreau will take his lacrosse talents to Salem State this fall. There's little doubt that he'll make an immediate impact for the Vikings. "I had originally wanted to go to Endicott," Gendreau, 18, said, "but Salem State was more affordable, and staying close to home will be nice." nnn Gendreau is not the only General who will be wearing the Viking gear next year. Hamilton-Wenham's other scoring standout Jake Cotter will join Gendreau in Salem State's lineup. "They'll be impact players right away," Hamilton-Wenham coach Jim LaSelva said. "Jake and Ryan could actually play a big role right away. They're our one-two punch, but I'm not going to say who's one or two." Hamilton-Wenham has four games remaining, including one against Ipswich and one against Austin Prep which should act as a good barometer for the Division 3 tournament. Looking down the road, LaSelva also figures Cohasset, Scituate, and Dover-Sherborn are contenders in Div. 3. nnn The accolades continue to pour in for the Pingree girls. Sam Taylor, a First Team All-American for U.S. Lacrosse last year, achieved the next level of recognition by being named an Under Armour All-American this season. She got the call late last week, notifying her that she was selected as an All-American and will be playing in the North-South game in July. The selection only solidifies Taylor's standing as one of the top senior lacrosse players in the country. Pingree (9-5) is getting contributions from players other than Taylor, however. Michaela Colbert and Haley Thompson have each been playing very well; both tried out for the Lower New England teams. They were selected to play with the Lower New England 2 team and will compete in nationals over Memorial Day weekend. "Michaela has been very hot. She's on a streak right now and she's doing it defensively, too," Pingree coach Sarah Powers said. "She turned it on about three weeks into the season. Her and Haley making the Lower New Englands is a big deal and has been a boost to their confidence." Taylor, meanwhile, may appear to be having some slow games from time to time, but you can't truly judge her contributions to the Highlanders looking at stats alone. "Philosophically, what we try to do is capitalize on her strengths. She is an excellent feeder. She's doing her job and making everyone else look really good," Powers said. "She's a playmaker and with Brit Mscisz, Michaela, and Haley finishing plays, she's had a great year, especially since she's coming off a broken leg." nnn The Peabody boys found out why Masconomet has a No. 19 state ranking (according to laxpower.com) over the weekend. The Chieftains outslugged a good Tanner squad, pulling off an 12-8 victory. "They're very athletic. They had real good team speed and good size and played very tough defensively, which we knew they would going in," Peabody coach Kevin Houlden said of the Chieftains. "I think we've been playing them the last four years. We won the first two; now they've won the last two." Peabody is 10-4 overall, but 9-0 in the Northeastern Conference with three games remaining. The Tanners play Marblehead today, Gloucester Friday and have the chance to finish a potential championship season with another win over Beverly next week. Lax Lowdown, a column on North Shore high school lacrosse , runs each Tuesday during the spring sports season in The Salem News. Contact staff writer Matt Jenkins at 978-338-2648 or by e-mail at mjenkins@ecnnews.com.
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