It?s easy for the University of Maryland-Baltimore County to get lost in the shuffle when discussing Baltimore area college lacrosse programs.
Johns Hopkins is always in the national title picture. Towson reached the Final Four in 2001, and Loyola always has a rich tradition. But the latter two schools were on the outside looking in at the NCAA tournament last season while UMBC reached the postseason for the first time since 1999.
The Retrievers finished last season 10-5, including a 5-0 record in America East Conference play. UMBC then routed Albany in conference final, 19-10, before losing to Princeton in the opening round of the NCAA tournament. Last season was a great experience for a program that has hovered around .500 the previous six seasons.
“We?ve fallen short the last couple of years,” senior defender Kelvin Moulden said. “Getting to play in the NCAA tournament is something that every college player wants to experience.”
UMBC coach Don Zimmerman sees this season as a great opportunity to build on last year?s success and help lay the groundwork for a solid future. The team, which returns 26 letter-winners from last year, has brought in 21 freshmen this year, giving Zimmerman an extra 13 players to get into the playing rotation.
UMBC opens next Saturday at 1 p.m. against visiting Brown.
“Getting to the NCAA tournament gave us some more visibility than we?ve had in the past, especially with Loyola and Towson not in it last year,” Zimmerman said. “It allowed us to bring in a number of great players, some of which weren?t aware of the great academic institution we have here at UMBC.”
Senior attack Drew Westervelt said he has already seen the added depth make a difference in practice and believes it will help even more later in the season.
“We?re able to get more things done in practice and get more people involved,” Westervelt said. “We were pleased with winning the America East, but we didn?t like how we played against Princeton last year. We?re hoping to go further this year.”
Key dates
» March 6: Visiting UMBC looks for first win against host Johns Hopkins, 7 p.m.
» March 17: Visiting UMBC goes for fifth win in 29 games at Maryland, 1 p.m.
» March 31: UMBC plays at Albany in rematch of 2006 America East final, 1 p.m.
