Graduation cigar saga involving HS lacrosse team boils over as school officials, family attorney trade barbs

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A Massachusetts high school boys lacrosse team forfeited its state semifinal game earlier this week after photos surfaced online of six members of the team allegedly smoking cigars after their graduation, breaking a rule in the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic’s Association tobacco policy.

One of the students involved spoke to Fox News Digital on Wednesday, claiming the cigars were fake. The student said the cigars were made of tea leaves because they were aware of the rule and didn’t want to jeopardize the team going into their "Final Four" game.

But in a statement obtained by Fox News Digital on Friday, Ipswich High School superintendent Brian Blake and Principal Jonathan Mitchell refuted those claims, adding that they wanted to ensure that an "accurate account" of what transpired was being presented to the public.

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Members of the Ipswich High School boys lacrosse team smoke cigars after their graduation in Ipswich, Massachusetts, on June 7, 2026. (Courtesy of a student involved)

On Monday morning, June 8, a day after the high school’s graduation, the school became aware of two photographs on the Internet of six lacrosse players who appeared to be smoking cigars. The statement claimed only one of two photos had been presented to the media.

"The second photograph – which apparently was not provided to the media - showed the cigars smoked down significantly; a cloud of smoke surrounding one of the students; and a torch-type lighter visible in the hand of another of the students," the statement read.

"Shortly after reviewing the photographs, the District learned that the