The 2013 season is here and we wanted to work closely with college programs to bring a part of the excitement to you. Throughout the 2013 season we will highlight lacrosse programs on our space for all of our readers to follow. Player blogs serve as a unique outlet for programs to showcase their season as it develops, plus highlight everything they have to offer a student-athlete. In contrast, families and fans get a glimpse into the program’s athletic and academic regimen.
Benjamin Shapiro
Senior – #19 – Midfield
Colgate Lacrosse
Nothing Like Home Cooking
After the tough loss to Cornell we were looking to right the ship against Hobart on Tuesday. The quick turn around gave us the chance to look past our first loss of the season and focus on a new opponent. The Tuesday game left us no opportunity for a day off, as we were back at it on Sunday beginning with a film session and meeting in the afternoon. We capped off the Cornell week with our usual weekly awards, with freshman Tyler Rigo earning practice player of the week honors, and Bobby “rattlesnake” Lawrence being named player of the game. The long film session allowed us to learn from what was a pretty disastrous game, and take a positive out of the loss.
The boys were excited to get back to the practice field and begin preparing for Hobart, as practice was upbeat and filled with energy. Laughter filled the air on Andy Kerr Stadium, as any signs from the loss on Saturday seemed to have vanished. Monday called for a usual pregame practice, with Senior Matt Baker breaking the team down before we headed in from practice. Matt did a good job putting the Cornell game behind us, and getting us pumped up to play the “Hobartians.” The Tuesday game allowed some of the guys to miss out on class, as we had an early lunch at The 7 Oaks Clubhouse, and then headed off to Geneva in the afternoon. We got to Hobart’s athletic complex with plenty of time to warm-up and prepare for the game. Before the game we talked about coming out with a lot of energy and sustaining a strong attack throughout the game. We were able to execute the first part of that plan, as we came out to a quick 2-0 start. Although, rather than putting the Statesman away early in the game, we allowed Hobart to hang around, as the halftime score was 5-3 in favor of Colgate. In what proved to be an exciting second half and overtime period, we lost the game 9-8. Clearly the hangover from the Cornell game did not fade, as we did not play our best and came away with a loss. Hobart simply wanted it more than us and subsequently came away with the win. The close nature of the game and the fact that this was a game we thought we should have won made this loss really hurt. We realized it was time to get back to hard working, hard-nosed Colgate Lacrosse.
Wednesday provided us with a well needed but probably not well deserved day off. Guys took the day off to catch up on school work, get an extra lift or skill session in, and some guys took the extra time to dust off the old jump shots. About 10 of us went up to Huntington Gym to play a pretty casual game of pick up basketball. The game featured a heavyweight matchup of Gordon Santry against Brendan McCann, with some timely three point shooting from Bill Manning. Tim “Big Time Timmy Jim” Cashman showed off his length by slamming one home at the end of the game. Playing basketball gave us a chance to show off our skills outside of the lacrosse field, but most importantly the day off allowed our team to rest up and take our minds off lacrosse for just one day.
We were back to work on Thursday in preparation for our first league game against Holy Cross. Dropping two out of conference games is one thing, but slipping up in our patriot league opener would be inexcusable. Our #1 goal since the fall has been to win the Patriot League, a feat no player in the lockeroom has been able to accomplish. Each day we are reminded of our shortcomings last season as a picture of the Lehigh championship ring hangs on top of the door to our locker room, serving as a reminder to us before each and every time we take the field. We knew it would be pivotal to turn it around and get off to a fast start in Patriot League play. Holy Cross would provide a formidable challenge, as they have been an improving team that was coming off a two game win streak. They were the hot team while we were the cold one, meaning we would have to work that much harder to prepare ourselves to win our patriot league opener. The realization that our second season is upon us seemed to set in with the team, as Thursday was a hard working up tempo practice. Perhaps that hard work can be attributed to Coach Murphy who forced us to run gassers in between each drill. The new conditioning helped convey to the team the extra work it would be take to win these tough Patriot League games. We kept to our usual pregame practice on Friday, where I had the opportunity to break the team down after stretching. I began my speech with a choice quote from Jake Taylor in the movie Major League, to remind our team that our goals are still in front of us, including the most important one of all, which is winning the Patriot League.
Saturday proved to be a Beautiful day to be a raider, as the sun was shining in Hamilton New York. The great weather and home environment proved to be very beneficial as we were amped up and ready to take on Holy Cross. After a slow start we continued to grind and build a strong lead throughout the game. Hat tricks from Baker, Baum, and Walsh carried our team, on top of strong goaltending from Connor Murphy and the first career goal from Sophomore Geoff “Squidsy” Sullivan. Can’t forget to mention very strong face off play from Robbie Grabher, including his first goal of the 2013 season. It was a great to start the Patriot League season 1-0, and to get a win in our first home game. Seems like all the Raiders needed was some sun and a little home cooking. We’ll look to keep the home wins coming with a Tuesday showdown with the Binghamton Bearcats.
-#19