Spring is in the air, and for Chaminade lacrosse, a new era begins.

With the retirement of head coach Jack Moran after 45 years at the helm, the Flyers turn to first-year head coach Gregory Kay '98, an assistant for the past nine seasons, to lead the laxers.

"It's an incredible honor to be the head coach at Chaminade because of who Jack Moran is and what he built," said Kay. "It isn't just about me. We are one unit as a coaching staff. All of my assistants make tremendous contributions."

Moran wasn't the only one who departed Chaminade after last season. The Flyers also graduated a talented group of seniors led by the only four-year varsity player in the history of the program, William "Quinn" Ball.

As a result, different players will need to pick up the slack for the Flyers, especially the team's two captains - James Gillis and John Balsamo. Gillis was given the distinguished honor of sporting #19 this season in memory of Gold Star alumnus Sgt. James J. Regan '98. 

Along with the two five-star Inside Lacrosse prospects, Chaminade also brings back Notre Dame signee Kieran Walsh in net, three-year varsity defenseman Gavin Duran, and four second-year varsity players from the Class of 2027 in Hayden Sipress, William Pizzo, Brendan Sim, and Samuel Fox.

With the squad set after a week of tryouts, the Crimson and Gold began its 2026 campaign on March 14 with a battle at Gold Star Stadium against Loyola Blakefield, one of two teams to top Chaminade in 2025. 

In the first frame, the Dons dominated, winning key ground balls and playing lockdown defense en route to establishing a quick 4-0 lead. Despite this deficit, the Flyers were undeterred, and the second quarter told a completely different story. After an ice-breaking tally by Pizzo with 8:13 remaining in the first half, the Crimson and Gold's offense came alive, adding three more goals to even the halftime score at four.

In the third period, it was more of the same from the Flyers. Buoyed by two Balsamo goals and waves of suffocating defense, Chaminade had created a three-goal cushion by the end of the third frame. 

The Flyers closed out their comeback victory with dynamic fourth-quarter defensive play. In goal, Walsh made a number of crucial saves to limit Loyola Blakefield to just one fourth-period goal in securing an 8-6 win, the first as a head coach for Kay, who downplayed the significance of the milestone:

"It's just like any other win that I've been here for," Kay said. "Our group is tough and resilient, and we were able to get a hard win."

"It was a full team effort where everyone contributed," added Balsamo, who registered a hat trick. "We came out slow, but we had a 'next play' mentality that we followed to the win. We came back together, which was the key."

Next up for Inside Lacrosse's #2-ranked Crimson and Gold was a clash with the #3 Malvern Prep Friars on March 17 in Malvern, PA. A blazing beginning was engineered by the visiting Flyers, who flourished in every facet of the game to take a 7-2 lead in the second quarter. Walsh made a number of spectacular, sprawling saves, while both Balsamo and Gillis had two tallies apiece.

While the game initially looked like a runaway for Chaminade, all of a sudden, the Friars made it a tight fight. Malvern Prep's offense powered back with a ferocious surge, scoring four unanswered goals to end the first half and cut the deficit to one.  

The second half was a back-and-forth affair in which neither team could pull away. Every time that Chaminade made a key play, the Friars would respond to undercut their advantage. The Crimson and Gold's largest second-half lead was two, but this relative cushion was quickly pulled out from under them in the final minutes of the fourth quarter.

Behind 10-8 late, Malvern Prep battled back once again. After the Friars' ninth goal made it a one-score contest, Tommy Onderdonk found Jamie McCracken for a game-tying dunk on the doorstep with 2:15 remaining to send the game to overtime. 

In the extra session, both teams had their fair share of opportunities, but despite multiple promising shots, neither side was able to walk it off. As the showdown entered its sixth stanza, it was Notre Dame signee Danny Riely who, off of a turnover by Walsh, pocketed a low-angle shot into the left side of the net, securing Malvern Prep's fifth straight win, 11-10. 

"Lacrosse is a game of runs, and they hit their run at the end," said Kay. "We could've done a better job."

A day later, the Flyers landed in Boca Raton, Florida for two more tough matchups. The first was a March 19 duel with the hometown Saint Andrew's Scots, a showdown which proved to be a barnburner early on. At the end of the first half, the Flyers maintained a 6-4 advantage.

To begin the third quarter, Chaminade's offense went on a tear, powered by sophomore Benjamin Hristoforatos. The Port Washington native netted two third-quarter goals and added another in the fourth as his Flyers' edge ballooned to four late in the fourth quarter.

St. Andrew's appeared to be on the ropes when suddenly, a switch flipped for the Scots.

Much like Malvern Prep, St. Andrew's scored four goals in the latter stages of the fourth quarter to somehow even the scoreline and force the Flyers into another extra session. This time, it was the Scots' Nick Testa who extended the contest, capping off the thrilling fourth when he scored the game-tying goal with just 16 seconds remaining in regulation.

The comeback left the Flyers catatonic, but that didn't stop the star of the show - Hristoforatos - from shining in South Florida this night. In overtime, the only sophomore on the varsity squad slipped behind the defense as Sim let a shot fly from the left wing. Off a sky-high rebound, Hristoforatos caught the ball in his stick's pocket and slipped it into a wide-open net to clinch the OT victory for Chaminade, 13-12.

"Scoring the overtime game-winning goal was unreal. It is hard to put into words how I felt after the ball went in the net. It was just pure excitement," reflected Hristoforatos, who tallied five goals in the contest. "It was a total team effort led by the upperclassmen who were able to put me in a position to have a great night." 

To cap off the Floridian foray, Chaminade returned to St. Andrew's on March 21 to take on Colorado's Valor Christian. Once again, the Flyers' offense took off thanks to another stupendous start, as eight different goal scorers converted in the first half to put the Crimson and Gold ahead, 10-4. 

This time around, there was no comeback coming.

Chaminade closed the contest with excellent defense, limiting the Eagles to just three second-half goals en route to a 12-7 win.

"It was a great overall trip to Florida. We got the job done and went 2-0," reflected Gillis, who netted five goals over the two-game stretch. "Being battle tested against some really great teams in a short time span can only make us better." 

On the heels of this three game road-trip, the Flyers now travel home to Gold Star Stadium for the matchup everyone has been waiting for - St. Anthony's vs. Chaminade - on March 25. The Flyers took down the Friars in April of 2025 for the first time in four years, but in the NSCHSAA championship game later that spring, St. Anthony's flipped the script in a 16-12 victory.

"St. Anthony's vs. Chaminade is the greatest rivalry in high-school lacrosse. We're focused on doing whatever it takes to win," said Balsamo. "Our focus has been on getting one percent better each day - one game at a time."