Huntley Raiders Lacrosse Club Says Farewell to Seniors

Huntley Raiders Lacrosse Club seniors have grown up alongside the sport at and now the club is sending them off.

The club recognized its senior players Monday, thanking them for their dedication to the sport.

Fourteen seniors played their last lacrosse game at the high school Monday night and their contribution was treating the sport like any other varsity sport, said club President Tony Nigro.

“It’s not like a typical club,” he said. “They have really bought into the whole sport itself.”

Lacrosse is not a sanctioned sport through Consolidated School District 158 so players must purchase their own equipment, uniforms and transportation to games. The sport has been played for years on the East Coast but is relatively new to the Midwest. However, the high school and students have been very supportive of the club, Nigro said.

The club began in 2008 and many of the seniors have been members since they were freshman, he said. All the seniors are going to college and some will play college level lacrosse in 1 NCAA Division III and MCLA Division 1, Nigro said.

“We are extremely proud of all the seniors who are going onto college,” said Nigro.

The 14 graduating seniors are:

• David Hancock (faceoff), Michigan Tech
• Todd Meyer (attack), University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana
• Lucas Niedbalec (goalie),  Carthage College
• Mason Gennardo (defense), Colorado State University
• Tyler Romeiser (attack), Benedictine University
• Ryan Davenport (defense), University of Iowa
• Andy Nichols (defense), University of Wisconsin
• Kyle Calder (defense), Iowa State University
• Andrew Vasquez (midfield),  Iowa State University
• Scott Robb (midfield), McHenry County College
• Jake Hanetho (midfield), Harper College
• Frank Recchia (midfield), University of Iowa
• Dylan Martin (midfield),  McHenry County College
• Alex Carpenter (defense/long-stick midfielder), University of Nebraska

Meyer, Romeiser, Nichols, Vasquez, Recchia, Carpenter and Gennardo are going on to play college-level lacrosse, Nigro said.

The Raiders went into Monday’s game with a record of 8-4-1 and ranked No. 3 in the Northern Illinois Lacrosse League. There are 15 teams in the league, Nigro said.

“The varsity team has really found their stride and they are playing very well as a team right now,” Nigro said. “They’re coming off of an impressive overtime win against Prairie Ridge, and have some great momentum.”