Matt DaSilva is the editor in chief of US Lacrosse Magazine. This article appears in the December edition. Join US Lacrosse today to start your subscription.
Most of my favorite memories from 15 years of covering U.S. national teams have materialized as a result of the privileged access we get as representatives of US Lacrosse.
Jay Jalbert’s ominous remark while watching “Miracle” that we were the Russians, Josie Owen spinning a Rubik’s cube to perfection, Brian Dougherty’s glistening bald head and nervous rocking before the final game of his glorious career, the circle of blue Adirondack chairs outside of a kibbutz in Israel — all of these moments occurred behind the scenes.
And yet at the Fall Classic, a first-of-its-kind event featuring both senior teams and the debut of USA Select U17 and U15 squads, the two memories that popped into my brain were things that happened in plain view of every spectator. Both involved the 2008 U.S. U19 men’s team.
On the third day of tryouts in the dog days of August, I sat slack-jawed in the stands at UMBC watching a young goalie from West Genesee (N.Y.) named John Galloway make sprawling, rapid-fire saves and command the defense in front of him. I’m still stunned Galloway did not make that team, but I guess you can’t complain when the goalies that did were Adam Ghitelman and Tyler Fiorito.
The other vision that came back was of a young long pole from Cortland (N.Y.) named Joel White spooling tape around the handle of his stick rhythmically before the gold-medal game in Coquitlam, British Columbia — a simple motor skill that seemed to quiet his mind while the beats blared through his headphones.
Galloway and White would go on to become forever teammates at Syracuse and in the pros. They were leaders of the 2018 U.S. senior team after both fell short of the 2014 squad. You won’t find two more impressive individuals in our sport.
Which is why it made me smile to see them on the sidelines together at US Lacrosse in October, coaching up the next generation of U.S. stars with USA Select. The scope of the U.S. program has broadened so much in the last decade, and the breadth of activity here from June through January has me wondering if there really is such a thing as an offseason.
Right on cue, the Spring Premiere Jan 3-5 in San Antonio will feature the U19 and senior men’s teams, the former preparing for the 2020 world championship in Ireland and the latter beginning the evaluation process for 2021 and 2022 — more memories to be made.