Hope blooms for UMBC
Smiles were at a premium, but over the last two weeks, there’s been a revived sense of optimism surrounding UMBC
After a 1-7 start, the Retrievers have won back-to-back games for the first time since capturing the America East Conference Tournament last May. Morale in Catonsville is climbing, according to coach Don Zimmerman.
"We didn’t win for six weeks," he said. "So that was six Mondays where our guys came in and to their credit, they hung in there and continued coming to practice ready to work, ready to improve. But we didn’t see any positive results from a won-loss standpoint. Now we’ve got two wins under our belt, and the guys remember what it was like to win. Obviously, they feel good about it, but they also understand that what gets us the win on weekends is what we do in practice during the week. Our practices last week were real good and real sharp, and I expect the same this week."
UMBC has beaten Binghamton, 12-6, and Albany, 12-7, and Zimmerman called the team’s performance against the Great Danes "the best" of the season. Senior attackman Matt Latham scored a career-high six goals, senior long-stick midfielder Michael Camardo caused six turnovers and collected five groundballs, and freshman Adam Cohen made nine saves.
"I think we came out strong, which has been the case in the last two games," Zimmerman said. "I think that has to do with focus and with energy. Guys are starting to play their best lacrosse together, and it’s that time of the year where you’re hoping your team is starting to hit on all cylinders, and it seems like we’re starting to get together. We have a long way to go, but we’re starting to play the way I feel this team can play."
The Retrievers are 2-1 in the America East, which is just one game behind conference leader Stony Brook (3-0). They own the head-to-head tiebreaker over Albany, which is also 2-1 in league play, and meet Vermont (2-1) on Saturday. If UMBC beats Vermont and Hartford on May 1, the team would cement the No. 2 seed and a tournament semifinal game at UMBC Stadium on May 5 – with a shot at capturing the tournament championship and the automatic qualifier to the NCAA Tournament.
"That’s got to be a motivating factor," Zimmerman said. "We were 1-7, but because we’re in the conference, we still have a chance to finish out the season against our conference opponents and if we’re fortunate enough to make it to the conference tournament, we’ll see how far we’ll go. That’s the beauty of the conference. No matter what your record was during the first half of the year, you realize that your conference can be your ticket to the postseason."
Other notes:
*Zimmerman confirmed that senior defenseman Bobby Atwell has left the team, but the coach declined to comment on the Dunkirk native and Southern graduate’s reasons for his departure. Atwell, who missed the 2009 season after tearing an anterior cruciate ligament in his knee, registered 16 groundballs and eight caused turnovers in eight games, including six starts. But after being benched along with seniors Matt Kresse and Lance Ophof for the first quarter in an eventual 10-7 loss to Towson on April 7, Atwell did not play in the games against Binghamton and Albany.
*Sophomores Aaron Verardi and Tim Schaeffer have moved into the starting close defense unit with Kresse since the contest against Towson, and Zimmerman said the pair have played well. "We moved Matt Kresse into that third spot to give us some senior leadership in there, but we’ve got a bunch of guys who we feel can play," he said. "We’re playing some more guys and giving some guys a rest. I think it’s helped us."
*Since giving the starting goaltending duties to freshman Adam Cohen, the Retrievers have gone 2-1. The Arnold native and Severn graduate is beginning to find a rhythm with his defensive teammates, Zimmerman said. "We’ve decided to go with Adam Cohen and now it gives us some stability," he said. "I thought Adam’s had two good games, and I think our entire team is standing behind Adam now. I think it’s helping us in a positive way."
