Combination of youth and experience benefits lax team

After four years of tireless work and dedication, the seniors of the men's lacrosse squad closed out their careers with a historic season. The Jumbos compiled a school-record 12 wins en route to a second place finish in the NESCAC, the best finish for the lacrosse team since it joined the NESCAC three years ago.

The seniors led the team to three more wins this season than it had achieved in any of the past three years, as well as a victory over Bowdoin in its first home NESCAC playoff game ever and a trip to the NESCAC championship game. The marked improvement over the course of the last four years reflects a goal finally reached by the Jumbo seniors.

"Coach always said, 'Leave it better than you found it,'" senior tri-captain Dave Richman-Raphael said. "That's really been the motto of the senior class. The roots have been laid for Tufts as a real competitive program in the NESCAC."

Though the defense entered the season without the help of graduated goalkeeper Kirk Lutwyler, the Jumbos returned a veteran unit and proved effective throughout the season. Along with the surprise emergence of sophomore Luke Chicco between the pipes, Tufts sported a veteran unit on defense, anchored by Richman-Raphael and fellow tri-captain and classmate Mike Morley.

"A big part of it was that Mike [Morley], [junior] Jesse Miller, [junior] Charles Savicki and myself played together for the last three years," Richman-Raphael said. "We didn't have Lutwyler this year and we are very proud of what we were able to do. It was a result of playing together and the talent meshing."

The unit proved to be effective and adaptable. The Jumbos switched between a zone and man-to-man defense all year long that served to confuse opposing offenses.

"Well, I think being able to jump in and out of the zone confused teams a little," Morley said. "We also saw tremendous improvements in our clearing game and unsettled defense."

At the beginning of the season, it appeared that the clearing game would hurt the Jumbos, but as the season progressed the Jumbos effectively refocused their energy in practice to correct the problem. The work ethic exemplified by the senior captains provided an example of how to improve the squad.

"[Tri-captain middie] Alex Kerwin's work ethic really provided an example of the rest of the team," coach Mike Daly said. "You always see him working on his shot. He's out at practice early and often stays late. He showed the younger guys the commitment level that you need."

Kerwin lead the way for a mixture of experienced and younger midfielders. As the season progressed, the developing younger shooters emerged as serious scoring threats. Sophomore Devin Clarke placed third in the team in scoring from the middie position, Kerwin placed fifth, and freshman middie Mike O'Brien added 15 points, putting him at seventh on the list.

Defenseman Morley described the importance of helping out the younger players and supplementing Daly's advice.

"You don't want to sound too authoritative, so coach instructs them about the bigger picture," Morley said. "I'm always trying to tell them some little trick I learned, or when to throw a certain check."

The Jumbos remain confident the effects of this year's season will be felt for years to come. Reflected in its first home playoff win over Bowdoin in NESCAC playoff history, Tufts' level of excitement has risen considerably in the past four years.

"We have recently enjoyed great recruiting, excitement, and a high quality of players," Richman-Raphael said. "It's a cycle: the excitement allows the players to get better, which makes the team better and attracts more players, which improves the recruiting. We're going nowhere but up."

Kerwin believes the program improved relative to the NESCAC competition considerably from the senior class' first year.

"My freshman year, we weren't too competitive in the NESCAC," Kerwin said. "This season we were nationally ranked, second in the NESCAC, and the talent level on the team has improved a ton."

Having paid their dues, the team's eight seniors will graduate today with the reward of a record-breaking season, and the knowledge that they have consistently improved the program throughout the course of their four years at Tufts.

"The captains and all of our seniors played a big role in our run at the NESCACs," Daly said. "They left the program in a better spot than when they came in."