Bluegrass Blue Blood Preview: St. Xavier Tigers

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2025 marks the beginning of a new era in the Commonwealth of Kentucky as lacrosse will be played under the umbrella of the Kentucky High School Athletic Association (KHSAA) for the first time ever.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While it may be a new era in the Bluegrass State, it's blue bloods programs enter the year with the same championship expectations as always.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>St. Xavier High School in Louisville, Kentucky has over 160 years of history and over that time has amassed an enormous amount of trophies and accolades within athletics. Over the past 25 years, the Tigers have been adding to their success and doing so on the lacrosse field with St. X being the winningest program in Kentucky.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Tigers have a state record 16 championships to their name with all having been won under program-founder Scott Howe. The last of those titles came in 2023 which completed a five-peat for the Tigers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>St. X enters the KHSAA era with second-year head coach Kevin Doherty at the helm of the program. And after leading the Tigers to a 12-9 record and KSLL semifinals appearance last season, they will be looking to reach greater heights on Poplar Level Road this spring. And that the Tigers could very well do as Doherty's squad returns a ton of talent from a team a year ago that was, in many ways, on the younger side. This 2025 St. X program features a trio of DI commits in midfielder [player_tooltip player_id='20802' first='Thomas' last='Andriole'], attackman Kaiden Sullivan, and two-way midfielder Devin Ryan. The latter two of which have committed to play for the hometown Bellarmine Knights.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here is a look at some of those key Tigers to watch this spring:&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["23188"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-679d81a6f23c2"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Committed to play for the hometown Bellarmine Knights, Sullivan is coming off a very strong sophomore campaign where he helped lead a formidable Tigers' attack unit with 87 points off 37 goals and 50 assists. Sullivan is a natural X attackman who works well as a dodger and distributor from behind the cage. His presence above the cage as a scorer and off-ball threat should continue to grow, as well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["20802"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-679d81a6f246c"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Having signed with Marquette, Andriole is one of the most physicality-gifted athletes in the Bluegrass. At 6-foot-4, 200 pounds, he brings a ton of size to the field but also has a good amount of speed to compliment. He is at his best when working from up top as a dodger as he can get downhill and make opposing defense pay on a regular basis.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["31919"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-679d81a6f2507"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mayer is a very well-rounded offensive threat who can seemingly make an impact nearly anywhere on the field. Coming off a junior campaign where he netted 34 goals and dished out 18 assists, Mayer has showed to be especially strong as an off-ball threat who knows how to put himself in the right spots.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Devin Ryan","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2025","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"5'8u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_weight":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_weight":"field_65b288425ecf6","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"143","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"St. Xavier","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"L4 Lacrosse","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-679d81a6f2643"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Maybe the most versatile player for the Tigers, Ryan has made an impact both at the faceoff dot and as a short-stick defensive midfielder throughout his high school career. The Bellarmine signee showcased his ability to be a very effective defender as well as a transition threat last spring as a junior.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["24498"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-679d81a6f26d9"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Entering his junior season, Pinkston could very well emerge as the Tigers' top pole this spring. A dual-sport athlete who also plays football, Pinkston has shown to be a very solid on-ball defender and knows how to create chaos for his matchups both with his physicality and technicality throwing checks.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["24502"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-679d81a6f2755"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">A dual-sport athlete who also plays safety in football, the senior pole packs a ton of speed and athleticism. That fact alone helps make him such versatile player at the LSM position. Dobson has show to be a consistent pest for opposing offenses, being able to create havoc both on-ball as a cover man and off-ball as someone who can clog passing lanes. Dobson can also help start early offense when needed.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block -->