Duke lacrosse commit Keith Boyer hoping to cap off senior season
YORKTOWN HEIGHTS, N.Y. (BVM) — Even if Keith Boyer is unable to play his final lacrosse season this spring, the Yorktown senior will go down as one of the school’s best lacrosse players.
The Husker senior defenseman comes into the season as the No. 2-ranked lacrosse recruit in the country by Inside Lacrosse.
Heading into his junior year, the Yorktown defenseman could tell the recruiting process was starting to pick up steam as it got closer to the Sept. 1 date where Division I coaches can begin actively recruiting.
“I didn’t really notice it at all until maybe the end of my high school sophomore year,” Boyer said. “I started noticing some schools coming to the games like during the playoffs. It really started picking up towards the summer and obviously with the big club tournaments and showcases… by Sept. 1, it was off and running.”
Boyer would rely on the experience of his older brother, Jose, who had previously gone through the recruiting process before deciding to play lacrosse at the University of Notre Dame. Along with tips throughout the process, Jose has made sure to prepare his younger brother for the next level.
“Definitely having my brother Jose at Notre Dame helps me a lot with everything,” Keith said. “Just telling me what to prepare for with the speed of the game and then just preparing, not just on the lacrosse field, but off the lacrosse field.
“In college, it’s a big jump from high school where you have to be prepared in the classroom, as well as on the field, and you can’t slack in either. He’s helped me with that and [he’s] just given me good advice on what to expect and what is expected of me going forward.”
With many thinking that Keith would follow in his older brother’s footsteps by committing to Notre Dame, the star defenseman decided his best fit was at Duke University.
“When I went down there, I felt like I could really call that place home for the next four years,” Keith said when talking about his visit to Duke. “Just meeting with the coaches and the guys, I really felt like I connected with them and I really felt like that was the place for me, going forward.
“I’m very excited to be able to go down there in the fall. It’s definitely something I’m looking forward to, just trying to prepare for it as best I can.”
Along with his work on the lacrosse field, the Huskers senior has played running back on the Yorktown football team since his freshman year. For Keith, playing football and running track have benefited him for the lacrosse season.
“It was more fun for me,” Keith said of his passion for football. “I feel like all the sports that I do play, lend into how I play lacrosse. I feel like playing football has made me a better lacrosse player. I feel like my main sport has always been lacrosse, but football has always been there for me to provide just the needed aggregation, the grit, needed to play lacrosse.”
With New York pushing back the fall sports season until the spring, Boyer hopes he doesn’t have to make a call between which sport he ends up playing this year.
“We didn’t have a lacrosse season last year, so missing another lacrosse season would be pretty detrimental for me and my other teammates going to college next year,” Keith said. “I definitely don’t want it coming down between the two.”
Even with lacrosse being deemed a “high-risk” sport for the upcoming season, the Yorktown defenseman has continued to stay ready. Keith has remained on the lacrosse field with his club team and is hoping he doesn’t have to miss a second straight high school lacrosse season.
“With everything being on pause right now, I’m just trying to stay in the best physical shape I can at the moment,” Keith said. “[I’m] just trying to work out, trying to maintain the chemistry between me and my teammates, whether it’s football or lacrosse, just trying to go to the field with the guys.”
