Matt Johansmeyer takes over in his first season at the helm this spring as Bedford High’s new boys varsity lacrosse head coach.

Johansmeyer got an immediate dose of Division I lacrosse in New Hampshire as the Bulldogs opened the season this week against New Hampshire powerhouse Bishop Guertin.

Ben Abladian scored five goals for the winners, and Sean Cameron of Bedford had four for the Cardinals.

Cameron is stepping to a major offensive role for the Cardinals with his brother Brian graduating and mover on to the University of North Carolina. And Bishop Guertin, under their dad, Chris, remains an elite power in New Hampshire lacrosse.

So at least the measuring stick has been placed on Johansmeyer’s crew.

The new mentor will rely on four returning starters from BHS’ 2018 crew, which went 12-6.

All four battle-tested middies, senior Ryan Toscano, senior Andrew Twite, junior Jon Giroux and senior Lucas Codair will be called on for bigtime performances on a regular basis.

“It’s a young team with a great senior class eager to make an impact,” said

Johansmeyer.

Varsity lettermen back in the fold include seniors Quinn Hutchins, Ryan Fox and Logan Jurnak on the back line, Lucas Codair in the midfield, Luke Barretto, John Ensinger and Dennis Kochanek on the attack and Matt Fox in goal.

Newcomers looking to make their mark at the varsity level include junior attack Alex Troyer, junior midfielder Jack Grogan and sophomore long-stick middie Will Enners.

The Bulldogs are back in action Friday at Londonderry with a 4 p.m. start as they hunt their first win.

Girls Tennis

Coach Chris Bouressa’s Division I defending, unbeaten state champion Bedford High girls tennis team is back at it, off to a 2-0 start after a pair of 9-0 victories.

“We have 21 players this year ( BHS’s largest girls tennis team),” said Bouressa, “with seven new freshman, all dedicated and ambitious. Once again, our strength is in our depth.”

Returning at the top of the ladder is Carley Citron, a sophomore who is ranked No. 1 in the state of New Hampshire.

Seniors Caroline Herz, Sophia Dimos and Caroline Robinson are back, as are juniors Katelyn Hirnak and Abby Tjie and sophomores Taylor Suozzo and Paige Muir.

Newcomers Alisha Juneja, May Zheng and Olivia Parashar are pushing hard to earn a spot and make their teammates better.

Herz and Dimos are the captains for 2019.

The girls are back in action on Friday at Merrimack High School.

Bedford Boys now 2-0

The defending state champion Bedford High boys tennis team is off to a quick start, putting up 9-0 victories over Winnacunnet and Manchester Central to open the year.

Jason Boucher hasn’t surrendered a game yet in the No. 1 spot for Bedford, while Tyler Whitney, Derek Dong, Alex Tjie, Nick Bayer and Bohdan Higley all have gotten off to 2-0 records on the year.

Alex Smith has stepped in to help earn a pair of doubles points in the early going, while Jared Steinberg was sharp in his doubles’ appearance in the opener.