Michelle Berthiaume
Sports Editor
“There is definitely a bitter taste in everyone’s mouth and I can feel it,” Keene State College junior Curtis Serafini said. Serafini is a new member of the KSC men’s lacrosse team. And that bitter taste lingers in the mouths of his teammates because of a 13-10 loss to Eastern Connecticut State University in the Little East Conference championship game last season.
“I wasn’t even here and I can feel it. Every practice, coach says ‘remember that game’ right before we do sprints,” Serafini said.
The Owls hope to redeem that loss in the LEC championship with another successful season but Coach Mark Theriault said that there is a lot of lacrosse left before the team will even meet rival, Eastern Connecticut again.
“No one likes to lose in the championship game. That constant reminder is on everyone’s mind. People are working hard knowing what’s at stake. But that game is a ways down the road. One game at a time,” Theriault said.
Theriault said that there are many games this season that matter. “We are playing Bowdoin College [and] Union College, who is usually top 15 in the country. We just scrimmaged SNHU, who is Division II. We try and play some of the big boys in our out of conference games because those are the ones that get us ready for the playoffs,” he said.
On top of a tough out-of-conference schedule, the Owls will also take a trip to San Diego, Calif. for Spring Break. There, they will face off against Swarthmore College of Penn. and Whittier College of Calif.
Entering his thirteenth season as the head coach of the Owls, Coach Theriault said he certainly feels confident that this year’s squad can do some big things. “We have some key returners that are definitely in a leadership role. I think those guys, combined with a nice recruiting class put us in good shape.”
One of those key returners is senior captain, Taylor Jette. Jette led the team last season in goals (46) and was second on the team for assists (25). He led the LEC in goals per game with 2.88. Jette was also named to the All-LEC first team.
Jette said, “I am just hoping to be the senior leader that I had when I was a freshman. I want to guide the freshmen to play the way Keene State lacrosse has always played. I just hope I can also put the goals away that I need to.”
Theriault said he is very confident in Jette’s ability to lead this team to victory this season. “He’s someone that I can always talk to. He’s a very approachable, likeable kid. He’s doing everything he needs to do. He understands that it’s not just about him. He’s looking at the bigger picture of the whole team,” Coach Theriault said.
One thing Jette doesn’t think will be an issue for this year’s team is unity. “We are like a family out there. It helps us work harder. We want to work just as hard for the guy standing next to us as we do for ourselves,” Jette said.
With a strong returning core that includes nine seniors, and a lot of depth according to Coach Theriault, the team also hopes to find a place for some new members. One of those players being junior transfer, Curt Serafini. Serafini transferred from Western New England College last year. As a new member of the Owls, Serafini said he hopes to make an instant impact with his heavy shot from the right side of the field.
“I’m the rock on the right side with Taylor Jette and Kevin Carey on the left. They do a lot of pick and roll, two man games to draw the defense to them. Then they can dish to me and I can finish the play,” Serafini said.
Serafini added that the KSC lacrosse program is a lot more relaxed than WNEC’s lacrosse program. “Everyone here is happy to be on the field. There was such a pressure to perform high at WNEC and get a starting spot. Kids were telling on each other for doing stuff wrong. There was so much animosity,” he said.
Another player that has opened the eyes of Taylor Jette and Coach Theriault is freshman, Tyler McKelvie.
McKelvie hails from Acton, Mass. At Acton-Boxborough High School, he netted 46 goals during his senior season, according to BostonGlobe.com. Coach Theriault said that he can’t even tell that Tyler McKelvie is a freshman.
“He’s a left-handed attackman that’s doing a fabulous job. He is playing like a returner. You will see a lot of great things from him,” Theriault said.
McKelvie will join that strong core of returners that includes Kevin Carey (sophomore), Taylor Wicke (senior), Billy Ries (senior), Ian Hart (senior), Ryan Hart (sophomore), Tommy Todd (senior), Taylor Jette (senior) and JT Galloway (senior).
Concerning his nine seniors, Coach Theriault said, “I tell them this every day. This is your one and only senior year. I’ll be here next year and the year after that. But for them, they have to be self-motivated because this is something they’ll talk about for the rest of their lives.”
Those nine seniors, along with the rest of the Owls will have a tough road ahead of them as their season opener is just around the corner. On Feb. 27, the Owls open the season at home against Bates College at 4 p.m.
But one date that most every Owl is looking forward to is April 6, 2013: the day they face off against Eastern Connecticut State University for the first time since the LEC championship.
Michelle Berthiaume can be contacted
at mberthiaume@keene-equinox.com
