The Walter Johnson boys lacrosse team got off to an electric start, starting 3-0, winning each game by one goal. Starting attackman and senior captain JP “OT King” Rakis scored the game winner in each game. Their current record is 6-3 with three games remaining in the regular season.
The Wildcats fell behind by five goals or more in back to back games and the team turned to Rakis and fellow senior captain Graham Rogers to propel them to victory. Rakis and Rogers have accounted for more than half of the team’s goals and assists this season.
After a frustrating 14-11 loss to the rival BCC Barons and another 17-8 loss to the seemingly unstoppable Churchill Bulldogs, the Wildcats rebounded with three straight trounces of Gaithersburg, Clarksburg and Macnamara winning all those games by double digits.
Rakis and Rogers have both played varsity since their freshman year, and they both see something special in this team that they haven’t seen in previous years.
“This is one of our best teams in all the time I’ve been here and even before that, we’re coming in with high expectations, looking to have a really solid record like 9-3 or 8-4 and we want to win in the playoffs, advance past multiple rounds and we want to elevate the standard for WJ lacrosse teams,” Rogers said.
Although this is senior Alejandro Linares’ first year on the team, he feels part of a brotherhood and the team first atmosphere.
“For this being my first year on the team it’s been a great experience. Everyone pushes each other to be the best and we get better individually and as a team everyday, the atmosphere is great, it’s all about the team and everyone has each other’s back and trusts each other,” Linares said.
After a good start to the season Rogers reflected on what has led to the team’s success, “Having camaraderie and having kind of like the band of brothers where you can go out on the field and trust each person around you,” Rogers said.