The Moore League boys’ lacrosse season is getting started and Millikan is looking to continue their reign at the top as they look for a second straight title and third in the past four years.
“We graduated a few key seniors this past year and we’re having a few guys step up into big roles for us,” Millikan coach Jared Weckerly said.
The Rams expect juniors Dylen Balis and Cameron Whitcomb to step into key roles for Millikan while Jude Moore and Derek Nickell are standouts for the team.
“Jude has worked so hard for this opportunity, and this is the year he’s going to put it all together,” Wecklerly said. “Derek is going to be himself, he’s been doing it since he was a freshman. Extremely talented, huge, athletic and he definitely makes you feel his presence. Both will be playing at the college level next year.”
The Rams have been focused on continuing their success that they had last season.
“We’ve maintained the focus of being back-to-back champions,” Weckerly said. “So we’re taking this season one game at a time knowing what the goal is and playing each game with a level of understanding and urgency that our ultimate goal can not be reached unless we take care of business day in and day out.”
At Wilson, the Bruins are looking to compete with Millikan for the league title after finishing second last year.
Jackson Vannatta is looking to be a leader for the team after being on varsity all four years. Along with Vannatta, Diego De La Mora will look to anchor the Wilson defense.
On the offensive side, Owen Keller will be a key contributor as Wilson looks to build on their playoff appearance last season.
At Long Beach Poly, the Jackrabbits will look to a strong senior class as they look to compete for the league title.
“I’d say this is our year to try and compete for a Moore League title,” said Poly coach John Gabriel.
Gabriel says he’s enjoyed watching lacrosse grow in the city of Long Beach and expects a few of the current Jackrabbits to play in college. Poly will look to flip some of the tough losses they had last season into wins this year, with the hope to contend for their second league title.
“To see the team develop and go through some hardships, I think these boys are hungry and now they’ve got experience and the skill to really put it all together.”
The Jackrabbits will lean on their seniors, including Zeth Gonzalez, Nathan Friedman, Mason Peterson, Lincoln King, Noel Gutierrez, Deon Hymes and Francisco Reynoso. Poly will also look to junior Rayjen Rodriguez to be a key contributor this season.
In Compton, coach Keith Parkman and the Tarbabes are looking to continue to grow as they develop the team throughout the season.
“We’re young, which is a good and bad thing,” Parkman said. “We have a lot of guys who’ve come up that played lacrosse in middle school. But, just adapting to high school lacrosse is a little bit different. But it also makes it bright for the future especially as this year progresses. We also have a lot of leadership from our juniors that are really going to carry us.”
The Tarbabes are going to lean on their defense this year led by junior Victor Garcia and Noe Perez.
With a fresh crop of athletes, Lakewood will use the season to develop and learn who they are as a team that has just six returners and 14 newcomers.
Coach Fernando Viramontes says they will need to grow and improve each game and they should compete with the rest of the Moore League.
The Lancers will lean on Caleb Arnaldo, Jordan Correa, Asher Wilder, Ricky Ahumada and Caleb Gillett to lead the team.
In addition to those traditional Moore League schools, Downey remains in the Moore League for lacrosse this season, with Lynwood joining as a member for the first time in 2025. That brings the total number of Moore League teams up to seven this season.
