Mids’ midfielders step up
Production from different sources key in Patriot win
Navy men’s lacrosse coach Joe Amplo had two important goals during this past week of practice.
In the wake of a sloppy, low-scoring performance against Lehigh, Amplo made two elements of the game a priority: ball-handling and midfield production. He implemented what he termed a “back-tobasics camp” that called for players to meet at 6 a.m. inside Halsey Field House to sharpen their passing and catching skills.
Also, Amplo and offensive coordinator Brad Ross challenged the midfielders to become more of a factor in the offense.
Consider it mission accomplished. The Midshipmen looked much sharper offensively Saturday and that led directly to increased scoring, with much of it coming from the midfield.
Junior attackman Tyler Perreten scored a career-high five goals and also dished off two assists to lead an impressive offensive performance as Navy captured a shootout against Colgate, 16-14, on a sunny but brisk afternoon at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.
Sophomore attackman Nick Cole scored a goal and added a career-best four assists for Navy (3-2, 1-1 Patriot League). Junior attackman Christian Daniel contributed two goals and two assists for the Midshipmen, who used a three-goal run in the final five minutes of the first half to take the lead for good.
Senior goalkeeper Ryan Kern stood tall in the face of a whopping 57 shots from Colgate, recording 15 saves to preserve the narrow victory in the high-scoring affair.
Navy’s offensive explosion came one week after it managed only six goals in a lopsided loss to Lehigh. Amplo came away concerned about the trend he’d been seeing all season of the attack doing all the scoring.
Sophomore Augie Fratt and freshman Patrick Skalniak both contributed two goals and an assist as the midfield was much more involved against Colgate. Freshman Sam Dracobly added a goal and assist as that unit provided a total of 12 points (eight goals, four assists).
“We went to lacrosse camp this week,” Amplo said. “After the Lehigh game, we felt we weren’t fundamentally where we needed to be. We had to get back to the basics of the game.
“We gave these guys a free voucher for lacrosse camp this week and they took us up on it. We just did skills for about an hour each morning. We probably spent eight hours this week on catching and throwing.
“At the end of the day, in a lacrosse game you have to catch, throw and scoop. If you do those three things well, you have a good chance to win. We can never let that be a reason why we lose a game.”
Players could have grumbled about getting up at 5:30 in order to put on lacrosse gear and collect equipment but chose instead to take a positive attitude.
“Everyone was excited to be there and the energy was good,” Perreten said. “We knew we had to do it in order to get better. I think you saw the results today.”
Perreten appeared in just five games and played very few meaningful minutes his first two seasons at Navy. The Severn School product was given a new lease on life with the hiring of Amplo, who took a liking to the 5-foot-8, 194-pounder.
“I couldn’t be prouder of Tyler and I’m not shocked,” Amplo said. “From day one, he has probably been the most consistent guy in terms of personality and attitude.
“[Perreten] just comes to the field with joy every day, and all he’s done is get better. To have him perform in a Patriot League game like this and be the guy for us today is no shock for me.”
Perreten has rewarded the first-year head coach for showing faith in him, with Saturday’s output bringing his season point total to 15. The Crofton resident has a knack for finding open spaces and has scored all his goals from within about 5 yards of the cage.
“It’s exciting to be on the field with all my friends, just a real good feeling,” Perreten said. “I’m an end-of-the-rainbow guy. Everyone else does the work and I get to be there on the crease and put it in.”
Senior attackman Griffin Brown scored four goals — all off cannon crank shots — to lead Colgate (0-6, 0-2), which might be the best winless team in Division I. The Red Raiders played a pair of Top 10 opponents (North Carolina and Syracuse) and a perennial Ivy League contender (Princeton) on the road during the nonconference portion of the schedule and have now lost a couple Patriot League games by a total of three goals.
Junior midfielder Mike Hawkins totaled three goals and two assists for Colgate, which led 5-2 early in the second quarter. Daniel scored two goals and assisted another as Navy used a 4-1 run to take a 7-6 lead. There would be two ties and two lead changes before before an unassisted tally by Fratt put the Midshipmen ahead to stay.
“Offensively, they’re a problem,” Amplo said. “They’ve got some really good goal scorers. Griffin Brown can shoot the heck out of it and [Hawkins] is very confident with the ball in his stick.
“Colgate took 57 shots, and I didn’t feel like they dominated time of possession. We knew going in they were a very aggressive offense and were going to shoot the ball.”
Skalniak and Dracobly are part of an all-freshman midfield that includes Henry Rentz (Severn School), who chipped in an assist.
“I was so proud of that freshmen midfield,” Amplo said. “In the fourth quarter, it was a two-goal game, and you look out on the field and you have three freshmen running the show and just doing their jobs. Sam Dracobly scores a big goal, but I think the best play he made was going to the goal at the end and drawing the foul.”
Amplo, who picked up his first Patriot League win, was pleased the Midshipmen had the ball-handling skills, shooting accuracy and overall firepower to outscore the Red Raiders.
“We were much sharper [than last Saturday],” he said. “We had nine different goal scorers and that’s something we have to build on. Hopefully, through the work, these guys will gain confidence.
“I do believe we’re a team that can be in that 10-to-14 goal range when we’re playing confidently. It feels good that we’re capable of winning a shootout like we had today.”