Lacrosse Finishes Tough Season

Spring 2021 brought Wabash sports back in one of the most academically-draining semesters. With the difficulty of the lacrosse conference Wabash is in and the lack of a Spring break, the Little Giants have had one of the best season openings, where they have had, for the first time, two away wins in one season.

The season began with three consecutive wins, out of a total of 4: two against the Anderson University Ravens, one against the Mount St. Joseph Lions, and one against the Earlham University Quakers. However, the Little Giants have had no wins during the month of April. Considering the challenge of the semester and how those losses affected the team morale, every goal defended and scored was a feat of grit and perseverance indicative of the strong Wabash Always Fights spirit of Wabash Lacrosse.

This year’s freshman class has had a strong presence on the field, with Artie Rogers ‘24 and Anthony Nguyen ‘24 leading in goals, assists, and shots. The team’s last semester goalkeeper graduated, so the new one had large shoes to fill. Yet, Stephen Krajcir ‘23 is starting to live up to the challenge, with a 0.309 save rate.

The team has two seniors graduating, Joseph LaRue ‘21 and AJ Shaheen ‘21, so the team chemistry that was born this year can continue evolving next year. On the other hand, Wabash Lacrosse has also had a mid-season transition when Coach Tim O’Shea left Wabash. In April, Coach Justin Dionne stepped up to become interim head coach for the young program. Dionne has been the assistant coach for Wabash Lacrosse since December 2019.

Come the 2022 season, the team will be able to use the lessons learned during this unique season to become a stronger presence in the conference and beyond. Regardless of what the next semester will bring, the team has shown great resilience and adaptability to all the changes that came their way, and they will likely bring the same attitude to the opening of the next season.