PETOSKEY — Lacrosse is by no means a new sport.
But in the state of Michigan, it’s still only in its early years within the Michigan High School Athletic Association. It’s only been a handful of years since Petoskey adapted the game as a varsity sport.
Some around the area are still getting used to the sport, though Petoskey junior Charlie Thomas has appeared more than well acclimated during his playing days.
It comes with good reason. Thomas moved to Petoskey at a young age from Connecticut, getting an up close look at lacrosse from a young age.
“My older brother played when I was really young,” said Thomas. “He kind of introduced it to me when we moved to Petoskey.”
The East Coast has long been crazy about the sport, so it makes sense Thomas would be drawn to it and fall in love.
“I’ve got the East Coast blood,” Thomas said with a laugh. “The place I was at was a big lacrosse hotbed too.”
That love of the sport is certainly showing for Thomas and it translated to the PHS junior becoming the first-ever Michigan High School Lacrosse Coaches Association All-State selection recently. Thomas earned honorable mention as an attack within Division 1.
He said he was thrilled for the honor, though didn’t check it off as a major goal. After all, nobody had really even done it before at Petoskey.
“It feels good to be the first,” he said. “I didn’t really have any expectations this season. I was hoping we’d win some good games and obviously the points and goals and everything will come. So I didn’t really have expectations for where I’d be at.”
Thomas finished up with 59 goals and 44 assists for the season. He entered the MHSAA record book lists for his 103 points on the season, his 44 assists, 207 career points and the nine-goal game in the postseason.
He credits a lot of what he was able to accomplish this season to those around him, like teammates Brandon Klingelsmith and Will Mastin.
“I had Brandon and Will feeding me, so it was better than I thought it would be,” he said. “I thought it would be harder to get those looks. I thought it would be more one on one dodging, but I had the guys to get those looks. Two years ago I had Zach Jacobs and he was the guy that was feeding me and I was feeding him. So this year I didn’t really know who it would be, but Brandon and Will really stepped up.”
Thomas also took a leap on his own this season, credit to the time he spent on improving in the sport and all the time playing away from the high school game.
“I play year-round and was really working hard in the offseason, so in the summer I was playing a lot of lacrosse, getting out every day to the fields,” Thomas said. “So that’s kind of where I made most of my strides.”
Thomas’ drive in the sport continues on this summer as he competes for Omnia Lacrosse, an elite level club out of the Detroit area. He’ll play the summer with them, then make a decision on where he’ll play beyond his final season with the Northmen.
“I’ll be committing in the fall somewhere," he added on his future. "I’m not really sure where I’ll be going yet, but before 2025 I’d say I’ll know.”
Contact or send game stats/info to Sports Editor Drew Kochanny at dkochanny@petoskeynews.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DrewKochanny, and Instagram, @drewkochanny
Most Popular
Comments / 0