Lincoln Stars 18U defenseman Castro signs NAHL Tender

Patrick Garriepy Photography

The NAPHL’s T1ER League is pleased to announce that the Lincoln Stars 18U defenseman Isaiah Castro has signed a NAHL tender agreement for the 2025-26 season with the North Iowa Bulls of the NAHL’s Central Division.

Castro, 17, is in his second season with the Stars organization as a T1ER player, competing at both the 16U and 18U levels. The ‘07 blueliner has appeared in 17 games over two seasons, averaging more than a point per game with 19 total points (5 goals, 14 assists). During the 2024–25 season, he led all Stars defenseman in scoring, tallying 11 points in 14 games.

One of Castro’s standout performances came at the T1ER / T1EHL Invitational, where he recorded a goal and two assists in a 5–1 win over the Ohio Blue Jackets. The San Jose, CA native’s impressive play earned him spots on both the Dixon Cup Playoff team and the All-T1ER Second Team.

In addition to his success at the T1ER level, Castro was called up to the NAHL’s North Iowa Bulls for 11 games. He is one of five skaters from Lincoln’s 18U squad to sign an NAHL tender for the upcoming season and the third to commit to North Iowa.

Click here to see a list of T1ER tenders for the 2024-25 season

A tender is a contract, of sorts, a player signs announcing his intentions to play for that particular NAHL team and that NAHL team only. Once a player signs a tender with an NAHL team, his playing rights belong to that team within the NAHL and he may not be recruited by any other NAHL team. Each team is granted ten (10) tenders, which include two (2) tenders exclusively used on players from the T1ER - plus or minus any trades - which became active on November 1st. Tendered players are not eligible for the 2025 NAHL Draft.