MILTON, Mass. – Curry College senior captain Zach White (Milford, Conn.) was recently profiled in the New England Lacrosse Journal. Read Mike Zhe's full story on White below:
When Zach White entered Joseph A. Foran High School in Milford, Conn., as a freshman, it didn't have a lacrosse team.
He's since come a long way.
White will open his senior season at Curry College as one of the top face-off specialists in New England. Last year, he won 196-of-289 chances (68 percent) on his way to earning first-team honors in the Commonwealth Coast Conference. The only question is when his 2019 campaign will open.
A two-sport standout (and captain) at Curry, the 5-foot-7 White is currently the leading scorer for a hockey team that finished second in the CCC and will host a conference tournament game on Saturday. When that season concludes, he'll take a brief respite before changing sticks.
"The trainers make me take a week or two off," he said. "I'll take a week or so to get back running on turf rather than skating."
Curry was picked for third in the CCC preseason poll, still perceived as a rung below traditional powers Western New England, defending champions, and Endicott. The Colonels beat Endicott last year and finished third, but faded down the stretch and were ousted by six-seed Roger Williams, 12-10, in the conference quarterfinals. They finished 10-6.
"Maybe we looked too far ahead and didn't take care of business down the stretch the way we should have," said head coach Tim Murphy (Kennebunk, Maine). "We probably let one or two conference games get away that we shouldn't have, and we didn't get it done at the end in the tournament.
"Last year we were kind of under the radar," Murphy continued. "This year we have a little bit of a target on our back. But I think that plays well with our group."
Speaking of groups, the Colonels think their face-off contingent is a strong one. Senior Dylan Cromwell (Fairhaven, Mass.) and junior Matt Lemay (Raynham, Mass.) will handle the chores at least until White joins the team, and the three have developed a camaraderie.
"(Zach) is a self-sacrificing guy," said Murphy. "He'd cut the legs out from underneath himself to give one of those guys an opportunity."
"No matter who's starting, we're always building each other up, helping each other out," said White.
Foran started its lacrosse program when White was a sophomore, and he said it was his coach, Brian Adkins, who motivated him to improve. In the fall he played football, and eventually noticed some of his hockey skills translated well to the lacrosse field.
"In high school I started taking faceoffs for hockey," he said. "My coach said, 'Why don't you try it for lacrosse? You've got quick hands.'"
At Curry, he saw action in 14 games as a freshman, but really carved out his niche as a sophomore. That's when he went 154-for-251 on faceoffs (61 percent), collected 87 ground balls and was named to the All-CCC third team.
Last year, in addition to his faceoffs, he led the team with 148 ground balls. He also chipped in eight goals and six assists.
"You can tell from his hockey background, he's an absolute athlete," said Murphy.
Among those back from an attack that produced 13 goals per game in 2018 are leading scorer Devin Newell of Medford, Mass. (61 points), junior Jake Stebbins of Colchester, Vt. (34 points) and senior MJ Urbano of Wakefield, Mass. (29 goals).
Under Murphy, a former Merrimack player, the Colonels have won 10 games each of the past three seasons, matching the program record for wins. Their opener is Saturday against Norwich.
"We like to play fast," Murphy said. "That's kind of been our bread-and-butter the last couple years."
Fueled by their man for all seasons.
"The sky's the limit for this group, I think," said White.
Click HERE for the story on laxjournal.com.
For the latest on Curry Athletics, follow the Colonels via social media on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
