Bolles boys lacrosse fueled by painful memories entering FHSAA final four

Ask Jack Cox what drives him toward a championship, and the answer is one word.

"It's anger," Cox said. "I would say I'm just really mad from last year, just trying not to let that happen again. We've got a lot of special seniors and I don't want them to go out that way."

Fueled by last year's heartbreak, the Bulldogs are battling their way toward what would be a historic boys lacrosse title, taking on Palm Beach Gardens Benjamin at noon Thursday in the Florida High School Athletic Association Class 1A state semifinal at Paradise Coast Sports Complex in Naples.

Victory would mean a chance to play for a state championship Saturday, which would be the first for Bolles or for any other Duval County school. Ponte Vedra won the title for St. Johns County in 2019.

That's what they almost achieved last May. The Bulldogs clawed back from a four-goal hole, only to lose to a late Boca Raton St. Andrew's goal, 9-8.

A year on, the pain lingers. But for the Bulldogs, anger is far from the only emotion -- or even the main one -- to characterize the 2024 team.

"We're always connected," Cox said. "I think this is the best bonded team that I've been with at Bolles. We just stay together, and we build each other up."

How they got here: Bolles boys win epic; Episcopal, BT girls qualify for final four

SENIORS LEAD THE WAY

For Bolles, that bond starts with the seniors, and there are a lot of them.

Bolles coach Tom West, who steered Ponte Vedra to that 2019 championship before making the move to Bolles three years ago, says there's something special about the 2024 Bulldogs.

"These guys just have a different juice to them," West said.

More than a dozen seniors help lead the charge, from high scorers like Daylin John-Hill (52 goals, 51 assists), Parker Kane (55 goals, 13 assists) and Lee Krotee (48 goals, 17 assists) to key defensive standouts like Bryce Hogan, JD Matson and David Carroll.

Their lacrosse road doesn't end at Bolles, either. Most of the Bulldogs seniors are committed to college lacrosse, with All-American attacker John-Hill staying on the First Coast to play at Jacksonville University, and by now, their example has spread through the team.

"It's not even just from the seniors," Hogan said. "There's an eighth-grader on this team, there's freshmen on this team that lead, everyone leads."

TEAMWORK HELPS TIP BALANCE

Since that state final loss last year against St. Andrew's, this year's Bulldogs are unbeaten against Florida opposition.

"We've been there before and we don't want to lose again," Cox said. "We've been having that in the back of the mind the entire year."

Gainesville Oak Hall came close to ending the Bulldogs' run last week, holding a 7-5 lead with eight minutes to go. Once again, the Bolles teamwork came through.

"[Bolles assistant] Coach [Matt] Rambo brought the guys in and said this isn't the way we're going to end our season," West said. "We have too many seniors on this team that have been in this situation before, and they wanted to fight for each other."

Against Oak Hall, they also had to overcome the loss of sophomore faceoff specialist Greer Boree, who fell to the turf with an apparent non-contact knee or lower leg injury while lining up an attempt on goal in the second quarter. Into the gap stepped senior Hogan, winning several key faceoffs, including the one at the start of overtime that paved the way for Cox's game-winner barely 20 seconds later.

For the seniors, Thursday is another shot at lacrosse revenge. Benjamin knocked Bolles out in the final four two years ago, riding a 15-game winning streak.

"We've got to dig deep," Hogan said. "They're good down there, but I think I like our guys a little bit more."

CLASS 1A BOYS LACROSSE SEMIFINAL

Who: Bolles (21-2) vs. Palm Beach Gardens Benjamin (19-1).

When: 12 p.m. Thursday.

Where: Paradise Coast Sports Complex, Naples.

Winner faces: St. Andrew's or Community School of Naples, 7 p.m. Saturday.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Bolles boys lacrosse 2024: Loss fuels Bulldogs for FHSAA final four