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Garrett shines on lacrosse field
Attackman Will Garrett, of Purcellville, went into this spring's lacrosse season knowing his team still had something to prove.
For six straight years, the boys' lacrosse team at Highland School in Warrenton had gone to the state title match, and each year the Hawks lost.
"My primary goal was to win a state championship for the team," Garrett said.
He and nine other senior teammates set a goal – not only getting back to the championship match, but also taking home the trophy. They made 2009 a season to remember.
Highland returned to the state championship final and topped Episcopal School 18-9 to finally secure the title.
"It was one of the greatest moments of my life," Garrett said. “Just to win my senior year seemed really fitting, and it was a great bunch of guys this year. I think it was the best team Highland's ever had."
Although Garrett said the title was the most important achievement of his high school lacrosse career, he earned plenty of individual accolades.
Garrett is a two-time All-American, a three-time first team All-State selection, a three-time Delaney Conference MVP, and a four-time Delaney Conference first-team selection.
Perhaps most striking of all, Garrett's 405 points is the highest career total recorded in the region.
Highland's soccer team also won a state championship in the fall, its first since 2002. Garrett played outside midfielder for soccer team, and said winning both titles made this past school year an especially satisfying one.
"I had this huge sense of accomplishment," Garrett said. “There had been only one state championship ever won in boys' sport at Highland. My senior year, all the boys go out and lead the school to two state championships. That's pretty unheard of in the world of sports in high school."
Team leadership
The Highland School lacrosse team is a tightly knit one, in part because of its annual spring break trip. Every year, the team goes to Disney World together.
"It's just relaxed, and you hang with all the guys," Garrett said.
The camaraderie developed on these trips helps unify the team into a cohesive unit. A large part of the dynamic is the team leadership.
Garrett served as the team captain his senior season, and used that leadership to help Highland reach its state championship potential.
This summer, he has turned his leadership skills into a summer job. Now too old to play club lacrosse, Garrett is coaching alongside his father for the Loudoun-based Fuze Lacrosse Club. As a specialty coach, he works with attackmen.
"I've played for the past eight years, and I've learned all this stuff," Garrett said. "If I can't play in summer tournaments, I'm going to coach in summer tournaments. Teaching kids to do stuff and watching them do what you teach them is pretty rewarding."
Garrett also volunteered at a youth shooting skills camp in Lexington.
"I was a captain this year, and to a certain extent you're a leader and you're helping guys out," Garrett said. "But I've never been a full-fledged coach when kids are looking up to you, asking you everything, so it's a different experience."
Future plans
Having accomplished virtually every goal he set at the high school level, Garrett will begin his transition to college lacrosse next year.
Washington and Lee University in Lexington, which hosted the camp he volunteered at earlier this summer, was one of several schools to recruit him.
Ultimately, Garrett chose the Division III Washington and Lee over some Division I programs because he wanted to have a shot to see playing time as an underclassman. He also wants to play in a program whose regimen wouldn't dominate all of his free time, as a former coach told Garrett a Division I program probably would.
Though he considered it, he won't play soccer for the Generals, instead focusing solely on lacrosse.
Garrett intends to remain involved with lacrosse for a long time and believes the sport will become one of the great American pastimes. He cited the growing interest in college lacrosse as a sign that the sport is on its way up.
"I just can't get away from the sport," Garrett said. "I love being around it."
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