You never know what to expect early in the lacrosse season. While we can make predictions and guesses on paper, the games are played on the field. While some teams have performed as expected, there have been some early season surprises that have raised eyebrows. We have highlighted a couple of the biggest early season surprises this season.

Benet’s Slow Start

Benet started their season beating #16 Naperville North. Tommy Bartenhagen played a
pivotal role in beating the Huskies 12-8 by scoring 9 goals. Benet was looking great
after their first game, and looking forward to playing #17 Downers Grove. Unfortunately,
Benet’s glory would be short-lived, losing to the Mustangs. The game started
slow for Benet, getting shut out in the first half before scoring three goals in the second half but ultimately still losing 10-3. The loss came as a surprise for Benet, who is historically a top performer in the state. Benet’s woes continued dropping a game to the surprise Mt. Carmel Caravan, which saw them ultimately tumble six spots in the rankings and looking for answers.

Rise of Downers Grove South

Downers Grove started their season with a strong win against Wheaton North. They beat them
14-5, setting a tone for their season. They were then matched up against Minooka
beating them 15-1, setting their record at 2-0. Downers Grove played Benet for their next
game. The result of the game was a 10-3 win. The Mustangs dug a hole too deep for
Benet to get out of. They’re now sitting at a strong 3-0 coming into a game against
Naperville North. As expected with their recent momentum, they ended up beating the
Huskies 17-5. The Stangs are looking to play Kimberly for their 5th game of the season,
and Kimberly’s second. We should be looking at a win for Downers Grove. They’re
sitting at #12 after week 3. After starting the season at #17 in the rankings, the Mustangs are knocking on the door of the top 10.

Mt. Carmel’s Climb to the Top

Mt. Carmel started the season strong against ICCP winning 13-2. After their blowout win, they were put up against St. Francis, where they came out with another victory 8-4.
The Caravan followed that up with a win against Benet in a game in which they were viewed as the underdogs. Mt. Carmel followed that up with an impressive upset win over the top 10 ranked Maine South, cementing their spot as one of the exciting early season stories in Illinois lacrosse. The Caravan sit at 5-0 and will look to move to 6-0 against OPRF.

St. Charles East Newfound Glory

St. Charles was up against Naperville North for their first game of the season. St.
Charles East carried the #30 ranking on ILN preseason rankings while the Huskies
were #16 in the preseason rankings. Going into the game, Naperville was the expected
winner, but the game concluded with a 13-3 victory for the Fighting Saints. Their next
matchup was against a very strong Hinsdale Central team. This was another expected
loss for St. Charles, but once again they came out with a victory from a very hard-fought game with a final score of 9-8. St. Charles is looking forward to a game against
Lake Park on 4/7. Their current ILN ranking after week 3 is #18 with a perfect 2-0 record.