While the great history of the Johns Hopkins men?s lacrosse program is well documented, its present appears to be going nearly as well judging from Saturday?s 7-6 double-overtime win over Princeton.
The future, too, looks promising. In Saturday?s game ? and even in the previous week?s loss to Albany ? Johns Hopkins (1-1) got a glimpse of its potential for years to come. A number of the Blue Jays? 17 freshmen have already seen significant action in the team?s first two games. Most notably are attack Steven Boyle and midfielder Michael Kimmel.
Boyle scored three goals while Kimmel (Loyola Blakefield) had three assists in the win over Princeton. Both are tied for the team lead in points ? Boyle has four goals and an assist, and Kimmel has a goal and four assists.
Kimmel?s lone goal came off a pass from Boyle late in the first half against Albany. That goal brought Hopkins within 5-3 at halftime before it eventually lost, 8-7. Blue Jays coach Dave Pietramala said the Boyle-to-Kimmel connection showed him a combination that could cause opposing defenses trouble for the next four years.
“We brought Steven Boyle here because we thought he could really help our program,” Pietramala said. “He battled a little bit of personal adversity the last two or three weeks, and I?m really proud of how he handled it. He?s really done a great job. He comes to work every day. I thought you got a little preview of what?s to come with him and Michael Kimmel when the two roommates hooked up at a pretty critical time.”
Despite both freshmen coming up with key plays against Princeton in front of 20,180 fans at M&T Bank Stadium, Boyle and Kimmel both admit to still being slightly star-struck playing for a team that boasts eight NCAA titles and 35 straight tournament appearances.
“Last week after the loss, we wanted to come back today,” Boyle said after the Princeton game. “We wanted to come out and play a big role on the team. We didn?t want to play like freshmen. We wanted to be like upperclassmen.”
Kimmel said he credits a lot of his early success to the help he?s received from the more experienced players.
“It?s been a lot easier playing with the older guys, so they take a lot of pressure off of me,” Kimmel said. “Hopefully, we?ll keep working hard and keep getting some wins.”
FRESHMEN NOTES
» Johns Hopkins attack Steven Boyle, a native of Derry, N.H., comes to the Blue Jays after totaling 434 points in his high school career in the Pinkerton Academy. The three-time high school All-American finished his senior year with 50 goals and 72 assists.
» Midfielder Michael Kimmel, a Towson native, scored 84 goals and had 91 assists in three seasons while in high school at Loyola Blakefield. He had 42 goals and 35 assists as a senior.
