Lacrosse Senior Spotlight

Grace Brethren Lacrosse was jumping into their fourth season as a program when the Shelter in Place order came down. Under the direction of Head Coach Dustin Marvin and Assistant Coach Dylan Suchomel, the new program has grown and consists of Junior Varsity and Varsity teams, amassing over thirty athletes. 

Tristen Lambert, the first senior in school history to accept a lacrosse scholarship, will be attending Dominican University of California.His favorite subject is history and his favorite teacher is Mrs. Behrens. He credits Dwayne Wade and Kobe Bryant as his greatest influence on and off of the court. Like Justin Hill, his favorite memory is defeating Royal on a last second goal. If he had the opportunity to sit and talk with anyone, he chose Kobe Byant, to discuss his work ethic. Tristen’s greatest accomplishment is going from a freshman lacrosse player to an All-County award winner and college commit in 3 years. He hopes to be either playing or coaching lacrosse in ten years, while traveling the world doing photography in his down time. 

Senior Kyle Hilbert plans on attending the University of Redlands in the fall and continuing his work in football filming. Over the years, the many coaches he has had, including Coach Dobbs and Coach Henderson, have had the greatest influence in his life by teaching him perseverance, creative ways to complete tasks, and to trust himself. Kyle changed the face of our technology department in the football program.  As a young athlete, Kyle was drawn to Mike Trout because, “He is the type of player that is always respectful and supporting his teammates and not trying to be all about himself.” History has been Kyle’s favorite subject, but overall his favorite teacher has been his English teacher, Mr. Carter. 

Senior Spencer Hillner is a jack-of-all-trades type of athlete. His senior year he played football, soccer and lacrosse, excelling in each sport. Spencer had a unique opportunity throughout high school; he was homeschooled and credits his mom as his favorite teacher. Spencer will be attending Oxnard College in the fall to study Fire Science and hopes to continue his athletic career on the soccer field. His greatest influence was his dad, who is still active on the soccer field and refereeing. Spencer has many significant relationships with his family, including his grandmother who he credits with never being too busy to hear him out. Spencer may have played three sports but his biggest accomplishment was making the premier soccer team, which translated over to his hat trick vs St. Bonaventure this season. In 10 years, Spencer hopes to be settled into his career and starting a family. 

Justin Hill has plans to continue his education at a university and play lacrosse. Like many of his teammates, Justin’s favorite teacher at Grace Brethren has been Mr. Carter, and his favorite subject has been English. On the field, his favorite memory was a win in the final seconds against Royal High this season. He also marks winning State in football his junior year as another remarkable moment. Along with family and friends, Coach Josh Henderson has had a tremendous impact on Justin. Coach Henderson is one of a kind and has taught Justin how to play with character and be tough. 

While at Grace Brethren, Enrike Llamas found a love for both sports and theater. Enrike played football and lacrosse and participated in many capacities in fine arts. Enrike credits Terry Gourley as his greatest influence, “he’s the reason why I really started getting into the gym. He coached me for years and we had a lot of winning seasons together. I don’t know what my life would be like if it wasn’t for his influence.” His fondest memory of high school is winning a CIF Championship in football. If he had the opportunity to sit and talk with anyone, he would choose Kobe Bryant. Enrike looked up to Kobe growing up, as an athlete he could turn to Kobe for immediate motivation. “It would be awesome to see all the things I could learn from him in that short amount of time and get to know who he was off the court. Rip Mamba and Gigi.” Enrike’s biggest accomplishment so far is getting into college with the hopes of becoming a psychologist. 

Steven Merlo, another multi-sport athlete, will be attending Santa Barbara City College in the fall. He credits Mr. Carter as his favorite teacher and sports medicine was his favorite subject. Coach Henderson played a major role in shaping Steven. He credits Coach Henderson with helping him become a better man. Like many others, Steven played on some of the most successful football teams in school history and his favorite memory was winning the State Championship as a junior. Steven would like to sit down and talk to Kobe Bryant, share stories and let Kobe know that he was a constant reminder to be better. “He has inspired and motivated me to be a better version of myself.” Steven’s biggest accomplishment was earning the offensive MVP award for lacrosse. 

Cody White, a multi-sport athlete will be attending the University of Redlands to become an engineer and play football. His favorite subjects in school are math and science but credits Mrs. Behrens as his favorite teacher because she made history fun and engaging. He credits his football coaches as his inspiration, giving him the assertion that nothing is too difficult. Cody’s father is his biggest influence, “he has shown me how to be selfless and hardworking.” Cody’s favorite memory is winning a State Championship as a junior and beating La Habra in football this past season, a win that came in the final seconds. Cody would like to converse with Bo Jackson, growing up a Raiders fan, this is a given. His greatest accomplishment is either winning State or going to college, a dream of his since he was a child. In ten years, Cody hopes to be an engineer or helping with his father's glass business.

Thomas Snedaker, played major roles in the Lancer lacrosse program throughout his career at Grace. His favorite teacher is Mrs. Behrens, “she was always positive and encouraging in class.”  As a young athlete, Thomas was inspired by the calmness and ability to perform under pressure and was the hardest worker day in and day out. Thomas credits his teammates and friends for pushing him to be a better version of himself, always keeping him accountable. His favorite athletic memory is going to the State Championship football game his sophomore year, “even though I was injured, it was a great experience.” His greatest accomplishment is graduating high school, “from here on out, I am solely responsible for the decision I make.”

Lucas Lasecla, who boasts a 4.1 GPA, played major roles in the success of the team. Luca plans on studying computer science in college but is undecided where he will be attending in the fall. Like many others, Lucas enjoys being in Mr. Carters class and his favorite subject is english. Lucas looks up to his older brother Hunter, a grace alum and standout student athlete on campus. His favorite memory at Grace was beating hart High School his freshman year of lacrosse. His greatest accomplishment was being the first D pole player to score a goal in Grace brethren history.

Tommy Earle, our final senior for lacrosse, will be heading to Cal State Channel Islands. Tommy’s favorite subject is history and his favorite teacher is Mrs. Behrens. His family continues to play significant roles in his life. Tommy looks up to his brother; they have many of the same aspirations and dreams. Tommy’s favorite memory was placing second at the annual Ontario Christian Soccer tournament that the varsity soccer team competes in yearly. When asked, where do you see yourself in ten years, either a doctor or officer in the Navy. 

Seniors, we look forward to following you this fall as you embark on your next journey. Thank you for the endless hours of time and commitment you put into this growing program!