Lacrosse Eagles hunker down, waiting for spring

By Larry Dressel

Eagles Lacrosse concluded its fall primer with a scream. While the cancellation of the fall tournament was a disappointment to the team, fresh, raw talent got a chance to spread its wings during the fall conditioning sessions. Of the 23 players on the roster this year, nine are incoming freshman. Of the rising stars, look for freshman John Ackerman from Massachusetts and Tyler Falk of Pittsburg to reinforce the already fearsome defense, including the brick wall demeanor of freshman goalie Ethan Waldo. Ethan will allow former goalie senior Larry Dressell to move back to midfield— though his body in net will be missed.

In his first appearance as goalie ever, Dressell became the #1 ranked goalie in division II for 2004. Also, look for freshman Kevin Grevey to show his aggressive skills the other way on an offense led by the fierce Canuuk, junior Bill Wilson and junior captain Dax, the Angry Lax Dwarf. With all the new talent, many of the returning players are just glad to have the certainty in numbers brought by the new incoming class.

After a whirlwind 2004 spring season, there were doubts as to the longevity of lacrosse at Green Mountain. While the season ended up a grand success, the team began spring training ’04 short-handed, with concerns that the team would have to forfeit its season. However, our cheeky community here at GMC refused to let the fastest sport on two feet fall flat on its face. Lacrosse enthusiasts came out of the woodwork ranging in experience from complete newcomers who never held a stick to past high school stars. Among the rag-tag recruits were Brett Foster, Matt Rominger, and Mitch Thompson, all soccer players and overall athletes whose presence proved to be invaluable on the field. Despite the rocky start last season, the Screaming Eagles concluded with a compelling 7-2 record.

Look forward, Eagles fans, to some breakout lacrosse excitement this spring here at GMC. For the first time in many years, Screaming Eagles Lax will have more home games than away, totaling 8 out of 15 appearances at home. As we all know, many changes have occurred in the Athletic Department. As a new Division III school, all of our teams are searching for a conference. This blessing in disguise has allowed the Eagles Lax team to add new schools to their schedule. Among the new schools are Clarks College in Wooster, Dominican of New York, Mitchell, Becker, Mt. St. Vincent, and Kane College in New Jersey. So while we’re an independent team, we get plenty of opportunities to steamroll our opponents. Get ready of our home opener on March 11, fans, and prepare to see the new face of GMC athletics take a bite out of the competition.