Bay Port sophomore Austin Bailie had a goal and two assists in the Pirates’ 16-6 lacrosse victory over D.C. Everest April 30. 

BY RICH PALZEWIC
CORRESPONDENT

SUAMICO – After the Bay Port lacrosse team won consecutive Bay Valley Conference (BVC) championships in 2014-2015, they took a tiny step back the past two seasons.

The 2018 Pirates hope to return to their conference winning ways and get back on top with an experienced roster. Bay Port, which finished 15-2 overall and 9-1 in the BVC a year ago, lost out to Neenah for the conference championship.

The Pirates are coached by 23-year old Logan Hoffman, who took over three summers ago. Hoffman served as assistant head coach and defensive coordinator in the previous two years before his hire with the team. He is currently a student at UW-Oshkosh but will be graduating soon.

Bay Port is off to a 4-0 start (2-0 BVC) after defeating D.C. Everest 16-6 April 30 at the high school.

Bryce Van Hemelryk and Finn Maloney each had three goals apiece, while goalie Max Moore made 8 saves on 10 shots.

“This was a huge victory for us,” said Hoffman. “Offensively we’ve been working all season to get in sync and I feel like (Monday) we did that. Our defense has always been our rock and Max did great in goal. It’s putting all those pieces together. Even after this game we have yet to put a full 48 minutes together. We know with the late start due to the weather, it’s going to take a while. The other teams down south definitely have an advantage over us with the weather.”

Returning all-conference players from 2017 are seniors Maloney (1st team, attack), Elijah Gash (1st team, defense), Matt Hrubesky (2nd team, attack), Moore (2nd team, goalie) and Max Salscheider (honorable mention, defense).

Hoffman mentions Appleton United, Neenah and Oneida as other teams to watch in the conference, but likes his teams’ chances as well.

“Appleton is a phenomenal team,” he said. “They have an all-state player coming back and also a good core of young kids. Neenah is always a big factor but lost a lot of seniors, and Oneida has a Marquette commit. We are very team oriented and I think we will definitely be in the mix for a conference championship if we play up to our potential.”

Lacrosse at Bay Port is not affiliated with the WIAA and is considered a club sport, but the school provides everything that the team needs on game day – like use of the field and concessions. The game, with Native American roots, will hopefully be sanctioned by the governing athletic body in the state in the next few years.

Other members of the team are seniors Ryan Mcelmurry, Jordan Eggebrecht, Zack Knuth, Cade Zimonick, Ian McMahon, Cameron Steward, Masen Powless, and Clay Gustafson; juniors Byron Mcdougal, Sam Gustafson and Teni Adeniji; and sophomores Ben Storby, Hayden Powless, Austin Bailie, Brycen Thielbar, Jacob Nugent, Zach DeGroot and Braden Hoskyn.

Notes: Green Bay Metro (mainly Ashwaubenon), Green Bay Notre Dame, Green Bay Southwest, Kimberly, Oneida, Neenah, Appleton United, Wausau West, De Pere, Stevens Point and D.C. Everest join Bay Port in the Bay Valley … there are about 40 high-school varsity lacrosse teams currently in the state.