Friday’s edition of The Sun included a brief notebook item on UMBC senior long-stick midfielder Michael Camardo, who leads Division I with 3.4 caused turnovers per game and is on pace to shatter the team record of 32 that he set last spring.

The 6-foot, 190-pound Camardo was actually an offensive midfielder at Guilderland High School, but had also dabbled with the long pole. Midway through his freshman year with the Retrievers, Dan Carmack was injured, and Camardo slid in as the team’s starting long-stick midfielder for the next three seasons.

"It’s definitely not a position you pick if you’re going for the glory," Camardo said. "But it’s an important position because you have to guard their best midfielder. So I don’t think it’s overlooked or ignored."

UMBC coach Don Zimmerman said he has been impressed with Camardo’s knack for pouncing on the right opportunity to attack an opponent’s ball handler.

"He’s a pretty disciplined checker," Zimmerman said. "He doesn’t pull a lot of unnecessary checks. He is just patient and waits for the right opportunity at the right time and is effective in that regard. We don’t ask our defensemen to throw a lot of checks, and he certainly follows that principle. I’ve always believed that one timely check is far better than numerous ill-advised checks. So he’s a disciplined player, and I think that also adds to his effectiveness of being able to wait for the right opportunity and throw a good check."