Boys Lacrosse: Huestis finding a groove for Strath Haven

MIDDLETOWN >> Strath Haven’s season has been full of firsts — a Central League title, a PIAA tournament berth. But that success overshadows the dividing line that splits the Panthers’ season into two distinct halves.
Jef Hewlings’ team has played two seasons in 2016: An 11-game run with attackman Jack Borbee and 12 games without the junior.
The reason why the difference has been so unnoticed is thanks largely to the emergence of Will Huestis, a transitional midfielder who’s become an offensive force as the Panthers (17-6) enter the PIAA tournament Wednesday with a trip to Northampton High School to meet District 11 champ Southern Lehigh. Borbee began the season as one of the Central League’s top offensive threats. Through 11 games, he scored 10 goals and 24 assists, second on the team in points behind Jeffrey Conner (even with his extended absence, Borbee’s assist total remains second only to Conner on the team). Strath Haven was 10-1 when Borbee went down with a concussion. Someone had to fill that offensive void, and while Huestis wasn’t the least likely candidate, his extreme level of production since has been remarkable.
In the first nine games of the season, Huestis scored six goals to go with two assists, many of them accompanying the transition game at which Haven is so adept thanks to faceoff man Hunter Mazur and the groundball ability of long-stick midfielder Noah Frantz. After 23 games, Huestis sits at 40 and 18, a tremendous outburst for an undeniably athletic player who figured to work into Hewlings’ rotation mostly as a transitional player, using his speed to grab GBs on the wings and help clear the zone.
“Definitely since Jack went down, I don’t know if I had to step up, but people saw me and I kind of filled the void,” Huestis said last week after the Panthers fell to Springfield, 5-4, in the District One third-place game. “I’m definitely trying now to be more offensive-minded and get another offensive-minded player on there to try to take the pressure off Jeff and our attackmen.”

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