Evan Anastas was a marked player throughout the 2025 boys lacrosse season.

It didn’t matter. The York senior still had a standout year, scoring 45 goals and adding 30 assists while leading his team to a third consecutive Class B state final appearance. The three-time All-State selection was chosen as the 2025 Varsity Maine Boys Lacrosse Player of the Year.

“He’s a big, strong kid, he runs well, and when he’s on a lacrosse field, he shoots the heck out of the ball,” York coach Bill McNamara said. “He definitely passes the eye test and looks like (an NCAA) Division I lacrosse player. He’s got the skill set to dodge a guy and shoot. He’s got the lacrosse IQ and savviness to move without the ball. He’s a great passer and a hard kid to stop if you’re another team. He can beat you every way in the book, and he makes his teammates better, too. He’s a special player.”

Anastas, a 6-2, 190-pound midfielder, was a model of consistency throughout his high school career. This spring, he was part of a strong attack, along with fellow senior Quinn Walenta (45 goals, 47 assists), that led the Wildcats to the Class B final on June 21, but they fell 14-13 to Yarmouth in overtime. It was the second straight year the Wildcats entered the state final as the No. 1 seed but lost to Yarmouth in overtime.

“I felt we had a really good season,” Anastas said. “We went through a lot. We had a couple of losses (during the regular season) — we lost to South Portland, and we lost to Yarmouth the first time we played them, by quite a bit. It just kind of showed our resilience. Losing to South Portland, we realized we needed to step it up. We had the chance to play Yarmouth in the last game of the regular season, on senior night, and we ended up beating them (9-6). It showed how hard we had to work to get to where we had to. … I think that’s what got us back to the state championship (game).”

Anastas was such a headache for defenses that opposing coaches made it a point to put their best defensive player on him at all times.

“I would say at least half the games we played, he saw some kind of shut off (defensively), where teams would lock him, deny him the ball,” McNamara said. “His numbers are smaller because of that. But Evan is such an unselfish player and teammate. … Teams would have to pick taking Evan out or letting other guys beat them. Evan was always happy — if it was better for the team, take (the defenders) away from the play.

“He was the best player I’ve ever seen of striking that balance (of being unselfish or taking over a game). He could sense when it was beneficial to the team to back off. When he needed to, he would demand the ball and create offense for us, too. He handled it incredibly well.”

Anastas’ career at York got off to a rough start in 2022 when he broke an ankle three games into his freshman season. He came back strong, scoring 40 goals or more each of the next three seasons. For his career, Anastas tallied 240 career points (153 goals, 87 assists). He’s a two-time USA Lacrosse All-American selection, and a three-time Western Maine Conference all-conference pick.

Anastas was born into a lacrosse family. His father, Mark Anastas — a York assistant coach — was a Division II All-American at Springfield College in Massachusetts, helping the Pride to a 12-2 record and a national title in 1994 under longtime head coach Keith Bugbee. His brother, Jake Anastas, was the first All-American for the York program and plays at Bates College, where he’ll be a senior.

“Being able to play with my brother (growing up), along with having the expertise (of the game) with my dad by my side, that really helps. … We’re always watching lacrosse, talking about lacrosse,” Evan Anastas said. “It’s a huge part of our family.”

Anastas will continue his lacrosse career at Bryant University in Smithfield, Rhode Island. The Bulldogs finished 10-5 this spring, falling to the University of Albany in the America East championship game. Bryant won the America East title in 2024 and qualified for the NCAA Division I tournament for the sixth time since 2013.

“I’m really excited to get right to work, and super excited to see what it brings,” Anastas said. “I wanted to stay in New England (for college), I didn’t want to go far. As soon as I set foot on campus at Bryant, I knew I wanted to go, I don’t really know why. I didn’t really believe in the whole, ‘It’ll feel like home when you see it (vibe),’ but it really did. It’s a hard-working, gritty group.”