Bennett Matthews Named USA Lacrosse High School Boys' Northeast Player of the Year

Bennett Matthews was Duke’s No. 1 midfield target in the Class of 2026. And it doesn’t take long to see why.

The five-star Bedford (N.H.) senior is an elite, dominant athlete, a 6-foot-2, 195-pound beast with his combination of speed and size. A downhill physical dodger, Matthews excels with sweeps and alley dodges and is a dynamic on-the-run shooter with multiple release points.

A two-way midfielder with the elite vision and IQ of an attackman, the four-year starter made teammates better because of the attention he drew. And he was absolutely unstoppable in the open field.

Matthews is the USA Lacrosse High School Boys’ Northeast Region Player and Midfielder of the Year.

Bedford coach Steve Gaudreau saw what caught the Duke coaches’ eyes early on.

“I live in town and saw him play quite a bit as a youth player,” he said. “It was obvious early on that he was a special player.”

The USA Lacrosse All-American graduated as Bedford’s all-time leading scorer, with 235 goals and 140 assists. The two-time New Hampshire Offensive Player of the Year had 71 goals and 50 assists this season, helping lead the Bulldogs to the Division I state final — a 17-16 loss to Pinkerton Academy in a game in which Matthews had six goals and two assists.

The No. 3 recruit in the Class of 2026 by Inside Lacrosse and a two-year captain, Matthews was named first-team All-State and was selected to the New Balance All-American games.

That comes on the heels of a spectacular fall when Matthews was named Gatorade Football Player of the Year in New Hampshire with 38 touchdowns as a quarterback. He rushed for 173 yards and accounted for all five of Bedford’s touchdowns in a 35-7 win over Pinkerton in the state final.

Matthews completed 71 percent of his passes for 1,334 yards and 17 touchdowns against just one interception.

“Bennett’s greatest impact goes far beyond the record book. His work ethic and leadership made everyone around him better—his teammates, our program, and even me as a coach. The standard he set will be his lasting legacy,” Gaudreau said. “Championships, records and awards will always be part of Bennett’s story, but what I’ll remember most is the way he represented our program every day. His commitment to doing things the right way left a lasting mark on everyone who had the opportunity to coach or play alongside him.”

— Dylan Butler

Boys’ All-Northeast Team

Attackman of the Year: Danny Rooney, Sr., St. Anthony’s (N.Y.)

Need a feeder, need a shooter, an athlete who doesn’t have an off switch? Meet Rooney. The Maryland commit and two-year starter was a driving force in St. Anthony’s seventh straight NSCHSAA championship. In 15 games, the All-American had 28 goals and 35 assists, two of those helpers on overtime-winning goals against Episcopal (Pa.) and Malvern (Pa.), to go along with 24 ground balls and three caused turnovers. Rooney was selected to the New Balance All-American games.

Midfielder of the Year: Bennett Matthews, Sr., Bedford (N.H.)

See above.

Defender of the Year: AJ Theodorakakos, Sr., Penfield (N.Y.)

A two-time captain and two-time All-American, Theodorakakos is a “generational talent,” according to Penfield head coach John Schembri, a player lauded as much for his physical strength and skill on the field as his ability to lead by example. The Army commit was the No. 1-ranked defenseman in the Class of 2026 by Inside Lacrosse. Theodorakakos, who was selected to the New Balance All-American games, had four goals and two assists, while scooping up 21 ground balls.

Goalie of the Year: Jack Crowell, Jr., New Canaan (Conn.)

The plan was to split time with Cam Lyden, but when the Michigan commit missed the season with a back injury, Crowell became New Canaan’s full-time starter and thrived with the added responsibility. The All-American Princeton commit, an excellent shot stopper, made 15 saves in a 9-8 overtime win against Staples (Conn.) in the CIAC Class LL semifinals, booking the Rams’ spot back in the state final for the first time in nine years..

Specialist of the Year: Remi Zeitlin, Sr., Deerfield (Mass.)

Zeitlin is a problem, a menace with a short stick. The uber-athletic Princeton-bound senior short-stick midfielder played a critical role in Deerfield’s stellar season, which resulted in a spot in the Prep Nationals final. A lockdown one-v-one defender, the All-American forced opponents to go to a Plan B on attack. Selected to the New Balance All-American games, the 6-foot-2, 190-pound Zeitlin was also nearly automatic in the clearing game. Ivy League, consider yourself warned.

Northeast Boys’ Top 10

1. Brunswick (Conn.), 17-3

The Bruins edged Deerfield (Mass.), 8-7, to end their season with a Prep Nationals title for the second time in program history. Goalie Will Connell (Lafayette), an All-NEPSAC selection, played a starring role in the championship, with Lucas Garcia (Virginia) and midfielder Rick Giordano (North Carolina), who were both selected to the New Balance All-American games, and All-American Ryan Baxter (Virginia) also key contributors. While David Bruce will miss those heavy hitters, returning studs like Sawyer Bligh and Hunter Hansford, both rising juniors, help soften the blow. Previous: 1

2. Loomis Chaffee (Conn.), 15-2

Loomis Chaffee completed the Founders League three-peat, beating Choate (Conn.), 10-5. All-Americans Jayden Rodriguez (Penn) and Michael Brennan (Harvard) were critical to the Pelicans’ success. As were faceoff specialist Hayden Goozh (Penn) and Milki Conway-Reppert (Dartmouth), who joins Brennan in the New Balance All-American games. They hand the keys over to goalie Rhett King (Denver), as well as Noah Rodgers (Penn), Ok Ika, Julien Watts (Yale), Brendan Mulderig (Villanova), Hayes Griffin (Notre Dame) and Patrick Bishai (Penn), who should ensure Bill Ball’s squad will continue to be among the nation’s elite. Previous: 2

3. Deerfield (Mass.), 14-4

All-Americans Cooper Brozek (Harvard) and Remi Zeitlin (Princeton), who were both selected to the New Balance All-American games, as well as All-American Griffin Cepiel (Georgetown), helped Deerfield level up this year and return to the nation’s upper echelon, with the Big Green losing to Brunswick by one in the Prep Nationals title game. With Leif Anderson (Notre Dame), Danny Weller (Michigan), Jack Borg (Michigan), Kellar Kelusky (Ohio State), Alasdair McDonough (Holy Cross) and Justin Scalzo (Georgetown) back, Chip Davis’ squad should again be elite. Previous: 3

4. St. Anthony’s (N.Y.), 12-4

All-American Danny Rooney and fellow Maryland commits Ethan Bramoff and Dylan Harrigan, as well as Jake Johnson (Johns Hopkins) and Charlie Cacciabaudo (North Carolina), played starring roles as the Friars made it seven straight NSCHSAA championships, edging rival Chaminade (N.Y.) 13-12, in the final. Five-star rising junior Aiden Dale, Ryan Lasko (Boston University) and Gavin Snyder (Army) will hope to guide St. Anthony’s to an eighth consecutive crown. Previous: 4

5. Choate (Conn.), 10-6

Led by All-American Bryce Privateer (Dartmouth), Paul Wable (North Carolina) and Joey Swan (Colgate), the Wild Boars earned a signature win over Deerfield during the season and reached the Founders League championship game, where they fell to Loomis Chaffee. Rising juniors Mac Privateer and Michael Bruketta, as well as Lucas Knauft (Lafayette), Brad Mallory (Harvard), Gus Markley (Colgate) and Will Lawrence (Harvard) will keep Choate in the mix next spring. Previous: 5

6. Chaminade (N.Y.), 13-5

The dynamic duo of James Gillis (Duke) and John Balsamo (Virginia) have played their final game for the Flyers, as has goalie Kieran Walsh (Notre Dame). That final game was another tough loss to rival St. Anthony’s in the NSCHSAA title game. That means the Cornell-bound tandem of Finn Pizzo and Brendan Sim, who led the Flyers with 39 goals this year, along with rising junior Ben Hristoforatos, will have elevated roles offensively. Previous: 6

7. Holderness (N.H.), 15-0

The Bulls capped an undefeated season with the Lakes Region championship. They’ll sorely miss faceoff specialist AJ Yeung (Princeton), who was selected to the New Balance All-American Games, as well as fellow seniors Trey Neally (Army), Hunter Thompson (Ohio State), Miles McCabe (Colby), James Cassata (Air Force) and Luke Duffield (Air Force), who secured a third title in the last four years. Previous: 7

8. Tabor (Mass.), 18-1

It was a season to remember with Tabor defeating St. Sebastian’s (Mass.), 14-10, to win its first-ever ISL championship. What’s scary is that Tabor returns rising junior Landen O’Neil, who led ISL with 119 points and was named the Ned Herter ISL Player of the Year, goalie Grady Alger (UMass), along with fellow rising seniors Jack Czepiel (Princeton), Chris Tardie and Jayden Walters (Providence), who were all named All-ISL. Previous: 8

9. Avon Old Farms (Conn.), 10-4

The Winged Beavers reached the Founders League semifinals, where they fell to Choate. Faceoff specialist Becker Lippert (Penn State), goalie Tanner Shimko (Johns Hopkins) and James Towers (Denver), who were each named All-NEPSAC, will be tough to replace. TJ Nixon (Army), Brody Root (Villanova) and Aidan Collins (Yale) will help soften the blow a bit. Previous: 9

10. Cold Spring Harbor (N.Y.), 18-3

The Seahawks didn’t look like a team that would capture a fourth NYS Class D title in five years when the season started. But the return of Dylan Reilly (Franklin & Marshall) from injury made the team whole, and Cold Spring Harbor rattled off 17 straight wins en route to the eighth state title in program history. While their catalyst graduates, the Seahawks return key parts in attackman Roy Testa (Johns Hopkins), faceoff specialist Alex Vitale and goalie Matt Kammer (Villanova). Previous: 10