HS BOYS
Seattle Starz HS Boys teams are for players and families seeking the highest level of lacrosse competition, coaching, and recruiting support. Our teams bring together some of the best HS lacrosse players in our region under the strong leadership of former NCAA lacrosse players turned working professionals. Each season, our teams dive into individual skill development and college-level team concepts at practice to prepare for competition against some of the most elite club teams in the country at nationally respected events in front of college recruiters. All the while, we provide players with 1:1 support and recruiting resources to ensure that each player is equipped with the tools they need to succeed in the college recruiting process. This comprehensive approach reflects our program’s commitment to the following three objectives, in order of importance:
- Instilling life lessons through sport
- Developing elite lacrosse athletes
- Showcasing and advising potential college recruits
Read on to learn more about our current teams, coaches, schedule, national team partnerships, and upcoming tryouts!
HS BOYS COACHES
JACK PRUITT - HS BOYS DIRECTOR (Starz ’12) played NCAA D1 lacrosse at the University of Denver and graduated in 2016. The defensive midfielder was a member of the 2015 NCAA National Championship team and received the NCAA Elite 89 award that same year in recognition of his academic achievements. Throughout his collegiate career he was recognized for his success in the classroom; he was named to the CoSIDA All-District team in 2016 and earned ECAC All-Academic honors 2013. Pruitt has also been a head coach for Denver Elite in addition to being on the Seattle Starz sidelines.
BRIAN ARCHER grew up in Michigan and after watching his first University of Michigan lacrosse game in 2009, knew that was where he wanted to play. During his senior campaign in 2017, the Wolverines had the highest winning percentage in program history. Brian is currently a Manufacturing Engineer at Microsoft and a volunteer coach for the Skyline lacrosse program.
MIKE BIRNBAUM currently serves as the goalies coach/assistant coach for the University of Washington Men's Lacrosse program. Prior to joining the Huskies, Mike coached for Oxford University (UK) and NXT Lacrosse Club (PA). While serving as the goalie director for NXT, Mike led numerous goalies to all-state and all-conference accolades. He was also involved in running camps, leagues and tournaments for NXT Mike grew up playing goalie for Sparta High School (NJ) and Moravian College (PA).
JACK CERCHIARA JC played attack and midfield for NCAA D3 Kenyon College from 2002 to 2006. JC has been the head coach of the University of Washington Men’s Lacrosse team since 2012 after spending 4 years as the team’s Offensive Coordinator, earning PNCLL Coach of the Year honors in both 2018 and 2019. JC has a PHD from the UW and studies penguins.
AUSTIN GAISS recently graduated from Notre Dame and was a four year member of the men’s lacrosse program.The midfielder was part of a Fighting Irish class who won the ACC Championship in 2018, took the ACC regular season title in 2015 and were NCAA Finalists the year prior. Gaiss moved to Seattle this summer and works as a Financial Analyst for Microsoft.
STEWART KERNS played defense for Kenyon College from 2003 to 2007, captaining the team in his final two seasons. Stewart then spent 4 years as the head coach of the University of Washington Men's Lacrosse team from 2008 to 2012 and currently works in finance at Microsoft.
LARRY MAURER played field and box lacrosse at Cicero-North Syracuse High School in Syracuse, New York. He has coached at every level for the last eight years in the Pacific Northwest for Juanita Lacrosse, Starz youth program, Starz High School program and for Woodinville lacrosse. He played close defense in high school and is a defense focused coach who stresses the importance of the fundamentals. Dr. Maurer is a foot and ankle surgeon who specializes in sports medicine. He also works for the Seahawks as a game day action photographer. His oldest son plays at NCAA D3 McDaniel College and his youngest is a junior attacker at Juanita High school and plays on the 2021 elite Starz team and on the West Coast Starz.
MATT SHANNON was a four time letter winner and two year starter for the Tar Heels from 2011-2015. During his sophomore year he led the long stick midfielder unit in both caused turnovers and ground balls. He was a two time recipient of the Baddour Award for Academic Excellence and a three time member of the All-ACC Academic team. The LSM was also honored as the Athletic Department Scholar of the Year in 2014. Shannon brings a wealth of coaching knowledge to the west coast after being on staff for multiple UNC camps and select DC area travel teams. The Connecticut native recently moved to the Seattle area to take an exciting opportunity with Zillow.
Nick Uhlenhuth grew up playing lacrosse in Louisville, Kentucky where he was a two-time high school captain and State runner-up in 2010. He went on to play defense for the NCAA D3 lacrosse program at MIT. After earning his Computer Science degree, he moved to Seattle to work as a program manager at Microsoft. In the spring he coaches for the Redmond Middle School lacrosse club.
TREY YADON grew up in Nashville, TN where he played for Team Tennessee and The Adidas All-American Southern Team. Yadon was an attacker for NCAA D3 Rochester Institute of Technology men’s lacrosse program. In 2013, the Tigers went undefeated in conference play en route to becoming Liberty League Champions and made an appearance in the D3 National Championship. He dual majored in Computer Engineering and Computer Science and was named an Academic All-American. Trey currently works as a Program Manager for Microsoft and coaches for the Redmond Middle School lacrosse club in the spring.
LEWIS RATCLIFF-CLUB ADVISOR played professional lacrosse in the National Lacrosse League. In his 14 seasons in the NLL he scored over 1,000 points and after his final season was the 6th leading scorer in the league. He was also a member of the Victoria Shamrocks (WLA), on both the junior and senior team, that won the Mann Cup Championship twice. Ratcliff played Division 1 NCAA lacrosse at The Ohio State University.