U14 BOY'S COACHES

Chase has been closely associated with the RedHawks both as a coach and standout player. In addition, he played elite summer ball with the Chauncey Boys where he excelled as a top defensive player, helping COB compete at the highest level against some of the best teams in California. Chase attended Bellarmine Prep in San Jose, where he led his team’s defensive unit, and excelled academically, earning him a spot on the NCAA Div.1 Ohio State team. Chase will be the head coach in 2024 for the U14 Boys’ team. He brings a wealth of experience when it comes to every aspect of the game. In addition, Coach Bunce has been selected to be on the coaching staff of the newly formed tournament team, South Bay United. As part of SBU he will work with high school players who attend schools like Bellarmine Prep, Los Gatos, Saratoga, Mitty and St. Francis. Chase currently works for a Top 5 CPA firm and he hopes to continue his successful coaching commitments for many years to come.

Coach Johnston has been immersed in Lacrosse since the age of 9, when he played for the Santa Cruz Warriors where he was a stand-out goalie in both the field and box games. He led the Warriors defense to a 24-0 season at the then U15 level; and then went on to lead his box team to a Championship in Canadian style box play. At Scotts Valley High School Ryan started for four years as a goalie, and led his team to the Santa Cruz and Monterrey County Championship in 2017. In 2016 the Scotts Valley

team were placed second, falling to Carmel Valley in a classic “shoot out.” Additionally, Ryan played several years with the Chauncey Boys and continued to excel as a goalie, leading the newly started elite program to several tournament Championships. He

attended Cal Poly and played Rugby at the collegiate level, and joined the Red Hawks coaching staff in ’21 and in 2022 he and Coach Cleary led the U14 RedHawks team to a 12-0 undefeated season. Ryan has returned to coach our U14 boys with Coach Bunce, so we’re excited to have him back providing his cumulative Lacrosse experience,

leadership and inspiration for our players.

Coach Freeden hails from Syracuse New York, where he started playing Lacrosse at age 12. He grew up watching Lacrosse all-time greats like Gary Gait and the amazing Powell brothers who played at the Syracuse Dome and competed in several NCAA Div. I Championship tournaments. Jared literally grew up in one of the “hottest areas” when it comes to collegiate Lacrosse, and was exposed to some of the top coaches as a

young player. Jared went on to attend Clarkson University, an NCAA Div. III team, where he excelled as a starting defenseman. He graduated with a degree in Engineering and a minor in Technical Communications.

Additionally, while attending Liverpool High School in Central New York playing as a starting defenseman, Jared spent the off-season fine tuning his Lax skills by participating in full field tournaments like the 1812 Shootout in Sackets Harbor NY. He played throughout the summer and continued his passion for Lacrosse by playing Box Lacrosse in the fall and winter. Box Lacrosse is incredibly popular throughout Canada

and New York State, and is increasingly gaining popularity across the US, and including California. It is our hope to launch a boys’ youth program in the fall of ’24. Field players can benefit immensely given the intense nature of the game—while greatly improving skills applicable to both games like shooting accuracy, dodging, ground balls and improving stick skills. Besides coaching our RedHawks U12 boys team, Jared will serve as a coach with the newly formed South Bay United, a summer program designed to

improve skills for both youth and high school players. Currently Coach Freeden is a Senior Creative Director at LinkedIn, and he resides in Campbell with his wife Tracy and two children, Marshall and Deanna. He’s excited to be part of the RedHawks family

and the contributions that he makes to our ’24 U12 season.

Coach Jessica Whyte grew up in Needham, Massachusetts, where she was a two-time High School All-American and League MVP. Upon graduation from high school she

enrolled at UC Davis on a NCAA Div. I scholarship, where she continued to excel at Lacrosse. Coach Whyte went on to coach at UC Davis and was honored as US Lacrosse’s WCLA Collegiate Coach of the Year in 2011, and the WLL's Coach of the

Year. She has coached youth Lacrosse for a wide a array of Lacrosse programs in Northern California; including the Scorpions (youth boys and girls) and the U11 boys RedHawks team. Jessica has returned in ’24 and is now coaching our boys U8 team.

She’s been a major contributor to the RedHawks and currently is a dedicated teacher in the Santa Clara district. In addition to coaching for the RedHawks, Jessica is a gifted graphic designer and is responsible for the look and feel of our web site and collateral support materials. She is married to Coach Drew Whyte and they have four boys

who have been a part of the RedHawks family. Our club is fortunate to have a coach like Jessica with such impressive credentials and coaching experience.

Over the years we’ve noted that coaches are in actuality teachers, and Jess Whyte continues to prove that great teachers make extraordinary coaches. We’re looking

forward to an exciting and memorable 2024 season for our U8 boys.

Coach Cleary was one of the founding members of the West Valley RedHawks

Lacrosse Club, along with AJ O’Brien 20 years ago. He and AJ together co-founded the Chauncey Boys in 2015 with the help of an all-volunteer coaching staff headed up by Logan Lichorowic and Zach Kowitz. Bill began his lacrosse career on Long Island,

playing for one of the top high school teams at the time—the Uniondale High School Black Knights. After high school he played for Nassau College (two years) before going on to Box Lacrosse in Western New York. While attending graduate school (SUNY/Buffalo) Coach Cleary learned the box game, playing with the Seneca Indians (Golden Eagles) on the Cattaraugus Indian Reservation. He studied anthropology for four years at the graduate level while teaching at Lake Shore High School in Angola, New York for five years. In ’81 Bill joined Apple Computer and got involved with the local lacrosse scene in Northern California. He has coached youth lacrosse at every

level; including U9, U11, U13A and U15B as well as high school. Later on, those teams are aligned with today’s U8, U10, U12 and U14 teams as once high school teams emerged the League at the time (NCJLA} opted to forgo having high school freshmen play.

Coach Cleary’s philosophical approach is that Lacrosse is a team sport with a long and proud tradition that dates back to the 1500’s and the Iroquois (Haudenosaunee) Indians.

Great youth lacrosse teams require committed parents and players, along with dedicated coaches who have a passion for the game. Coach Cleary believes that the role of a youth lacrosse coach should include the emotional growth and maturation of

each player—by fostering team play, sportsmanship, leadership skills and a passion for the game. Three of Bill’s sons (Dylan, Ian and Tomas) played Lacrosse at the youth level with the Red Hawks. His stepson (Logan Lichorowic) has also been an integral

part of the family’s passion for the game. Coach Cleary has been involved with five undefeated teams as a youth coach; and two Box Lacrosse Championships at the youth

level and one second place at the high school level in tournament play. In 2018 Coach Cleary was the recipient of the “Coach of the Year” award for Santa Cruz and Monterrey counties after a successful year as the head coach for Scotts Valley High School. In

2024 Bill will continue to support the club in the ongoing education of coaches and skill development for the RedHawks players—including clinics and Fall Box Lacrosse.

Ironically, AJ O’Brien is the RedHawks coach with the longest tenure, as he coached the Palo Alto Tomahawks a year before the formation of the RedHawks. AJ grew up in Colorado when he became completely engrossed with the sport. He cofounded the RedHawks with long-time friend Bill Cleary 20-years ago, and continues to serve on the Board as well as our team Treasurer. He later joined Coach Cleary in the formation of

the Chauncey Boys, the summer travel team that won numerous summer tournaments at the high school and youth levels. He has been involved in every aspect of the ongoing success of the club; including fund raising, player recruitment, coaching and the all-important recruitment and retention of coaches. He resides in Los Gatos with his wife Tracy, who has been a supporter of the club over the years by hosting several events.

Rob has been with the Red Hawks since the 2008 season. He served as the club’s president for several years where he managed every aspect of the program. He had 3 sons, Austin, Scotty and Carson, who were all former Red Hawks. Austin played lacrosse at Los Gatos High School and Scotty was an outstanding middy at Los Gatos

High and as a member of the Chauncey Boys high school team for several seasons. Rob comes from an extensive coaching background in multiple sports

including—lacrosse, football, soccer, baseball and basketball. Rob has coached Red Hawks teams from U9 through the high school level, and currently works as our boys’ director and remains heavily involved with training and guidelines for both players and

coaches. In 2014, he took the Red Hawks’ first ever U11A team to the Northern California Junior Lacrosse Association playoffs, and repeated that again in 2015—finishing the season ranked 5th in Northern California.  For a couple of years, Rob ran his own South Bay Red Riders travel team that competed in major tournaments

throughout California. He has also coached with All-West Lacrosse and headed Chauncey Boys teams that

won championships in 4 of the 5 tournaments that they participated in during the inaugural season in 2015-16. When not on the field coaching, Rob is an attorney helping people affected by serious injuries. He enjoys skiing, boating, sports photography, travel and going to the beach.  Rob’s coaching philosophy is to play hard, smart and tough within the rules—win with humility, lose honorably and always remember to have fun along the way.

Coach Logan Lichorowic had his start as a lacrosse player with the Red Hawks when the club was initially founded. He started out as a youth participant, and played JV and High School ball as well. As a JV player he was the top scorer on the team—once tallying 7 goals in a California Championship game (JV level). In 2008 he was the top

middie on the Red Hawks California State Championship team, which defeated the highly ranked SoCal team from Agoura Hills. Logan is well respected by youth players and coaches, and viewed as a driving force behind the success of the many teams that

he’s coached over the past decade. Head Coach Joe Vasold described him as a “natural leader both on and off of the field.” During his tenure with the club as a player, the team was ranked in the top 10 in California (2007), a designation that included all high school teams—including clubs like Bellarmine and Saint Ignatius. After graduating from Saratoga High School, Logan went on to play college ball at ASU, where he

performed impressively as a middy until side lined by a major injury in his senior year. As a head coach for the Red Hawks, Logan completed multiple outstanding seasons, and distinguished himself as one of the top U14 coaches in club history. Under his guidance numerous Red Hawk players have gone on to excel at Bellarmine Prep, Mitty,

Los Gatos and Saratoga High School. He’s been one of the club’s most dedicated coaches, and during the ’14 season was available to Red Hawks players (U14 & U12) five days a week—plus weekend games. He’s a favorite among the boys, and parents

are especially appreciative of his willingness to counsel young men when it comes to academic challenges and personal development. He’s not necessarily the first coach on

the field but generally he’s the last to leave—usually after a challenging, fun practice. His philosophical approach is that great conditioning pays major dividends—and he truly

believes that no competitor can beat one of his teams because the players are out of shape. Logan played an integral role as the head coach of our inaugural Chauncey Boys U19 season, winning four gold medals and two silver awards. He coached some of our top players, and contributed significantly to their overall development and skill level. One of his players—who he coached as a Red Hawk—went on to become a member of the very competitive Ohio State NCAA D1 lacrosse team. Chase Bunce is a player that Logan has influenced and nurtured from his initial days as a Red Hawk, through his

successful participation as a topflight player for Bellarmine Prep. In addition, Logan’ lead attack player (Morgan Koucky) was accepted to the United States Naval Academy prep school at NAPS. Coach Lichorowic will continue to help foster the growth of the

sport and RedHawks players by participating in clinics and assisting as a supporting coach when necessary. In addition, Logan has served on the RedHawks Board for the past five years.

Coach Kowitz began his Lacrosse career as a junior player with the first Redhawks lacrosse team founded in 2004 by Bill Cleary and A.J. O’Brien and headed up by Coach Joe Christie. Studying and playing defense under Coach Christie, Zack served as the team captain for the Redhawks all five years of his pre-college days, and helped lead the team to four consecutive seasons at the top of the NCJLA, and one year (2008) as

the California State Champions in the high school division. After the 2008 season, most area high schools—including Saratoga, Los Gatos and Palo Alto—established CIF teams, which was a major goal realized by the WVLC. While attending the University of

Washington, Coach Kowitz’s knee was injured in football and most of the 2008-9

season was spent in rehab. After making a full recovery, Zack chose to play Lacrosse for the Washington Huskies and joined the team for the 2010 season. He earned a starting spot as a defenseman in his rookie season—playing that position for the balance of his career, making it past the first round in the MCLA D1 playoffs—with notable wins against Stanford and San Diego State. After College, Zach helped coach

Junior Varsity Lacrosse for his Alma Mater, Saratoga High School, as an assistant coach. The program was led by Coach Larry Boehm and remained competitive within the division. Upon returning from another stint in Seattle, Coach Kowitz volunteered as a defensive coach for the initial Chauncey Boys U-19 Elite team headed up by former Red Hawk teammate Logan Lichorowic. That initial team was very successful, having won four tournaments in the inaugural season. Top players on that first COB U19 team came from high schools throughout the Bay Area; including Carmel, Los Gatos, Saratoga, Scotts Valley, Aptos, Bellarmine, Santa Cruz, Soquel and Mitty. Prior to the

expansion of his very successful business, Zach coached collegiate MCLA ball at UC Santa Cruz—ironically working with several players who had competed in tournaments as part of the Chauncey Boys. Coach Kowitz will be available for clinics (players and coaches) throughout the 2024 season. He’s an avid supporter of the team and serves on the RedHawks Board.