Falcons team faced tough schedule
By Hector Trujillo
The Scripps Ranch High School mens varsity lacrosse team closes out the regular season against St. Augustine on April 29, hoping to finish the same way they started and that is with a victory as the team gets ready for the postseason.
The Falcons came out with a hard-fought 11-9 victory over Temecula Valley to start play on March 1. They will soon face its third and final league opponent when they take on St. Augustine after already having faced Santa Fe Christian on March 18 and Cathedral Catholic on April 22. “We scheduled a really tough schedule this season,” said head coach Bo Francy. “We need to step it up to get to the next level of lacrosse.”
Despite the Falcons losing 10 players due to graduation, the vast majority of the team, made up of 55 players for both the varsity and junior varsity, have returned for 2024. Among the standouts have been senior midfielder Stephen Bousquet, senior attacker Ryan Stepenosky and sophomore Arjun Wimmer.
“We force a lot of accountability on our kids,” Francy said. “Our goal is not only to create lacrosse players, but also solid young men who can be accountable and responsible. Every year it’s a new team, so you have to coach differently.”
This is Francy’s second year at the helm after taking Scripps Ranch High to a 15-7 overall record last season which included a resounding 18-1 playoff victory over Westview in the first round.
“Ultimately, it’s about getting the word out regarding lacrosse and how exciting the sport is,” Francy said. “Also, getting new players into the program … in order to challenge them both physically and mentally, which is a big push for us.”
The regular season finale against St. Augustine will be the first meeting between the two sides since April 28 of last year when Scripps Ranch came out with a riveting 11-8 home victory.