(Photo Courtesy of John Michaud Sports Photography)
Welcome to the 2024 KY High School Recap series. Throughout the summer Lacrosse Bucket will be recapping some of the top teams from the 2024 high school lacrosse season in Kentucky.
Rolling on in our 2024 KY High School Recap series, we move on from Jefferson County but stay within the KSLL and take a look at the South Oldham Dragons.
Head Coach: Joe Ritchie
Record: 14-9
League: KSLL
Key Players
Cooper Olson (A, Jr.), Rylan Rogers (M, So.), Blake Dickamore (M, So.), Owen Rupp (FO, Jr.), Samuel Estrada (D, Jr.), Gunnar Winburn (LSM, Jr.), Andrew McDowell (G, Sr.)
Key Graduations
Andrew McDowell (G, Sr.)
2024 Season Summary
It was another really good season for the South Oldham Dragons as they proved to be arguably the third-best team in the Commonwealth and the best public school in the state. The year ended for the Dragons with Joe Ritchie leading his team to a second consecutive KSLL championship game appearance.
Facing multiple injuries late in the year, South Oldham lost 12-2 to Trinity in the KSLL title game. However, that score if no indicator of just how strong the Dragons were in 2024. South Oldham went 14-9 on the season and only three of their losses came to teams from the state of Kentucky. The Dragons fell to both Trinity (15-10) and St. Xavier (14-11) in the regular season before falling to the Shamrocks once more in the title game. That regular season, three-goal loss to the Tigers came in a game where the Dragons led and controlled for much of the contest before a late push from the opposition turned the tide.
South Oldham featured a 90-plus point scorer in Cooper Olson and also had a pair of 60-plus point getters with Blake Dickamore and Rylan Rogers. The trio helped form the backbone of the Dragons offense that averaged 12.4 goals per game. Samuel Estrada proved to be the leader out in front on the other end as the Dragons’ best pole. However, it was the play at the specialist positions that made all the difference for South Oldham.
Faceoff man Owen Rupp and goalie Andrew McDowell were the two that helped to lead the charge in many of the Dragons’ wins this past spring, as well as their postseason run. Rupp was arguably the most valuable player for his team anywhere in the Commonwealth and especially so late in the year due to injuries. Rupp not only was an 80% guy at the faceoff dot most of the year but he was also one of the Dragons’ most feared offensive weapons has he had 45 goals and 20 assists for 65 points. In the case of McDowell, he anchored the South Oldham defense with great ability. He showcased a 60-plus percentage save percentage for most of the season and gave opposing offenses heaps of trouble.
Early Future Outlook
Graduating just four players off the roster from this past season, the Dragons enter the KHSAA era as one of the best and most talented rosters in the Bluegrass.
Replacing McDowell will be tough for sure but he is the only big piece that they lose. Elsewhere, all the top-end talent returns from a year ago. Rupp is back at the faceoff dot while Estrada returns to headline the defense along with LSM Gunnar Winburn. Olson, Rogers, and Dickamore are all back to form an experienced core on offense.
Expectations should remain as high as ever in Crestwood and especially so following the success of this program each of the past two seasons. The Dragons return a ton of experience and will be a top three team in year one of KHSAA play.
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