Nauset Boys Lacrosse Works Through Early Season Gauntlet

NORTH EASTHAM – There are difficult schedules and stretches of formidable matchups.

Then there’s the first several games of Nauset boys lacrosse’s regular season schedule this year. The Warriors are in the midst of an absolute gauntlet early on that — while the results may not be exactly where they want them currently — is likely to set them up nicely for later this spring.

The Warriors — who have been to consecutive Division 3 state tournament semifinals — opened the year with a 20-6 loss to Mansfield, who similarly finished last season in Division 2’s semifinals (with a 17-1 record to boot). After that, Nauset took Norwell, the defending champions of Division 4, to double overtime (where they fell 11-10). Last Saturday, the Warriors lost 20-8 to Scituate, the defending champions of Division 3.

“We're a younger team that's developing, and we're doing it against a tough schedule, which is — the results sometimes can be not what you want, but there's positives in everything, like we're seeing development,” head coach Jesse Peno said.

The challenging set of opponents will continue for the Warriors into mid-April. They faced Division 3 runner-up Falmouth on Tuesday (after The Chronicle’s deadline) in what was a rematch of last season’s semifinal. A few days later, they’ll play Westwood, who were Division 2 semifinalists in 2025. The following week, Nauset will take on Nantucket, who were just Division 4 semifinalists. 

“It's a run for sure,” Peno said.

The road to the playoffs starts to lighten up a little bit at that point, though the competitive Cape and Islands League means that there’s no true extended breathers all season. And the rigorous first few weeks are all by design anyway. For one, iron sharpens iron. But also, with how the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association develops power rankings using strength of schedule, teams that face better opponents are rewarded, regardless of the result. 

Peno recalled how during one of his first seasons coaching Nauset boys lacrosse, the Warriors had a good record with a not-so-tough schedule. The team earned a seed closer to the middle of the bracket. As a result, they had to face another school in the second round who went on to the state tournament semifinals. The Warriors played them tight, but it was the type of game that, if they were a higher seed, would have been a quarterfinal or semifinal matchup rather than an away game in the second round.

“We learned from that, and we said, ‘we're going to try to get as many home games as possible in the playoffs, and we're going to beef our schedule up.’ Do you sacrifice a win here or there? Sometimes, yeah,” Peno said. “But it's worth it at the end of the day, if you're hosting playoff games, it’s a huge advantage.”

 Due to a significant amount of roster turnover, this season’s team is different from the crew that went 14-4 to grab a No. 2 seed last year. A lot of spots needed replacing. Through three games, the Warriors have been identifying the areas they want to tweak, being intentional about who initiates their offense and finding the best roles for players, according to Peno.

“It's exciting when you have guys stepping up into different roles,” Peno said. “We want to make sure we're putting them in a position to succeed.”

Two players that have and will continue to be significant contributors for Nauset as the year progresses are Peno’s sons: senior long-stick midfielder Brendan and sophomore attackman Jack. 

Brendan’s five goals (as a defensive player no less) are second-most on the Warriors after three games. Jack leads the team with nine goals, while also drawing much attention to open the field up for other offensive players.

“When we go into the game, we feel that no matter who we play, we have the best offensive player and the best defensive player, which is a great place to start,” Peno said. “They're just real critical to what we do. The ball is in their stick a lot.”

A number of other players form the rest of Nauset’s core. Senior attackman Oscar Escher is coming off a 36-goal campaign last year. He, Brendan and senior midfielder Jake Eldredge are the team’s captains. Junior midfielder Sam Mayhew, a three-year starter, has a pair of assists and a goal.

Key players on defense include juniors Colin Sullivan and Boone Scalcione. Nine different players have scored for the Warriors thus far, like freshman midfielder Eli Hill, who recorded his first career goal against Scituate.

While a quick glance at the record makes it seem like the Warriors might be in something of a hole, they’re not wavering, and they have no reason to.

“We know that the record is going to be what it’s going to be, but we'll find a way to win some games,” Peno said. “I think we'll be around there at the end.”