Putnam Valley wants to get back.
The Tigers, who have enjoyed success almost from the outset since launching a varsity boys lacrosse program in 2003, last made it to the New York State tournament in 2010.
But in the two years since then, Bronxville has won back-to-back Section 1 Class C titles.
If PV is to challenge the Broncos this season, one of the players leading that charge will undoubtedly be John van de Veerdonk.
The senior attackman, who is headed to Georgetown University, is one of the leading returnees in the Hudson Valley.
The 5-foot-10 right-hander, who has excellent quickness and stick skills, is a strong dodger.
Now, here are John’s perspectives on the upcoming season.
What have you been doing to get ready for the season?
Our team has been working very hard in the weight room and doing wall ball after school everyday. We also have been meeting on Sundays to work on all aspects of our game in our gym. In the fall we went to many tournaments and tried to improve our team play and create good chemistry so we are ready to go when the season starts.
How does your schedule look, what games are you looking forward to most, and who are some of your scrimmages against?
Our schedule looks very challenging as always. We are facing big teams like Yorktown, Bronxville and Somers. The games that I am looking forward to the most is Bronxville and Hen Hud.
What player or players on your team do you think will surprise some people this season?
A player that I think will surprise people this season is Anthony Muratore. He has been working hard on facing off and think he will come up big at the face off X.
Another player that I think who will surprise people this season is Paul Sacco at LSM. He has great stick skills and will be able to defend top midfielders.
What do you think the strength of your team will be this year?
I think that our team is strong throughout. Are defense is going to be very hard to score on consisting of Alex Bronzo, who recently committed to Rutgers, Kyle Kelvas and Garret Ayling. We also have Kyle Christopher in goal who is a great goalie.
On the offensive side, we are going to be a major threat. We have many kids this year that can score like Mikey Walsh, and Anthony Muratore at midfield. Also Richie Denike, Mike Adamski and Kevin Fitzsimmons at attack are going to be great feeders and finishers for our team.
How do you view the race in your league and who do you think some of the contending teams will be?
The race in our league is always very competitive. Hen Hud always seems to compete with us. We also have Arlington and Brewster competing for the league this year who will be challenging to beat.
* LaxLessons.com story on John’s commitment to Georgetown
* For more info on John, check out his player profile by clicking here
If you’re a player from the NY/NJ/CT tristate region and would like to share your perspectives on the 2012 season, send an email to info@laxlessons.com.
Player’s perspective archive
You can check out the more than 100 stories by clicking here.
Schedules scanner
Links to 2013 men’s and women’s collegiate and boys and girls high school schedules.
Have a recruiting commitment to report? Email us at info@laxlessons.com.
LAXLESSONS Links
Recruiting coverage
* 2012 Fall Signing Week story/photo archive
* Updated tristate recruiting review and commitment rundown (for classes of 2013, ’14 and ’15)
* Class of 2012 commitment rundown
* For a list of committed players with their profiles up, click here.
* To get your profile up, click here.
Connect with us
* Follow LaxLessons on Twitter by clicking here.
* Become a Fan of LaxLessons on Facebook now by clicking here.
Get in the game
Cast your vote in our latest poll
To vote, go to the right panel of this page. Then, scroll past the “New Comments” and “Popular” tabs and click on “Poll.” You will then see the poll questions and can cast your vote from the multiples choices, or, write in your choice if it’s not one of the choices.
Posted In: Player's perspective, Section 1
Love this kid’s game. He keeps getting better.
Yeh Johnnyyyy
PV is always gonna be a threat with Kuczma. John V. is as good a player on offense as you’ll find.
John good job sizing up the team.
Good job John.