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08/04/2023 04:27 PMWhen he first picked up a lacrosse stick, Eli Defaranos was not all too keen on the idea of playing the game, yet he changed his tune after being drawn to the entertainment and challenge of fine-tuning his skills. Years later, he emerged as a blockbuster hit and leader for the Thunderbirds boys’ lacrosse team.
The North Branford Class of 2023 member played various sports of soccer, baseball, basketball, and football growing up–the latter of which he additionally played in high school. After his sisters played the sport, Eli was encouraged to try lacrosse during his 5th grade year.
After some initial apprehension, he stuck it out and concluded his North Branford career this past spring by being a senior captain and midfielder who earned First Team All-Shoreline accolades and led the Thunderbirds back to the Shoreline Conference Tournament final.
“I was against playing lacrosse at first, but I fell in love with it instantly. [North Branford Head Coach Dave Carpenter] was my coach through my whole career, so I developed a good connection with him. I loved the way the sport was played, and I had a lot of fun building my skills up during my youth career with drills,” says Eli. “Eric Izzo and I kept hyping up this lacrosse season back in the winter. We tried to organize outdoor lax workouts after football season ended. I just kept hitting the ball against the wall, and my shooting improved a lot this year. I got power behind my shot, and my offseason training helped me out.”
Even through the icy cold days of winter, Eli was laser-focused on warming up his body for the spring by sprinting across the school track and additionally learning the benefits of teamwork and keeping an even-keel persona in the moment.
“Before the season started, we had condition training on the track for weeks,” Eli says. “We had long-distance and short-distance days while also having team-building exercises. Mentally, I learned you have to be prepared to fail in order to succeed. If you keep working on things, you will succeed. You also have to trust your teammates to build your skill set. You must also stay calm and, if you mess up, then you must have a short-term memory and move on.”
As a midfielder, Eli served as a medium between both sides of the ball on the turf. He explained that while North Branford was sometimes under personnel at that position, the hustle and bustle was more than worth it in improving his stature across the Shoreline and state.
“I love going on both offense and defense and getting a feel of how the offense is moving, but then also being able to go on defense and get the ball back for us,” says Eli. “We were short-staffed at the midfield line, so there was a lot of running back and forth without substitutions. It can kill your stamina, but that is why offseason training is so important. It all made me a better player, though.”
For Eli’s high school scholastic experience, it came full circle as he became the stellar senior role model to underclassmen that he wanted to emulate when he was in their shoes as a young and wide-eyed freshman rookie.
“Being a senior captain here was one of the best things I had in high school. It was great being a person everyone looked up to,” Eli says. “I was able to freshen up on my basic skills through working on them with the freshmen. As a freshman, I looked up to the seniors, and so I answer any questions the underclassmen players have and help them out if they are doing something wrong.”
As he embarks on a journey to the University of Hartford to study mechanical engineering, Eli has not yet closed the chapter on his lax life in looking to join the NCAA Division III Hawks’ squad while maintaining a sound work-study-life balance.
“I need to focus on getting things done on time but also having down time for myself,” says Eli. “I want to maintain a good grade-point average and ask the questions that need to be asked to my professors. I will try to walk on to the lacrosse team there; it is another pace at the college level of the game, but I look forward to it.”
Carpenter conveys that Eli garnered the ultimate respect from his peers, teachers, and opponents, thanks to his diligence in all facets of his life, along with his shiftiness and elusiveness on the turf.
“Eli is a great student-athlete. He always does well in school and works hard on and off the field,” says Carpenter. “He was our go-to guy when we needed a dodger and did a great job commanding the offense. He would often get matched up against a team’s long stick midfielder, as many teams recognized he was one of our most dangerous players. He is respected by all of his teammates, too.”
While unlocking the true meaning and benefits behind synergy, Eli now reflects back upon his tenure with the T-birds with great pride, following several signature victories and terrific ceremonies after the final horns of contests.
“North Branford lacrosse has been the best thing to happen to me,” Eli says. “I built the best foundation for friendships with my teammates. Winning games and the post-game awards that were given out were great memories. We had a semifinal win against Old Saybrook this year in Shorelines; we had lost to them twice during the regular season, so to battle back and win was great and was a memorable win.”