Junior Andrew Miller began his journey with lacrosse at a young age.
“Some of my family members were into it,” Miller said. “I would pick up a stick and start passing around with them and then I got the hang of it and I liked it, so I’ve been doing it.”
Miller currently serves as an attacker on Keene State College’s men’s lacrosse team and has been a consistent offensive player when it comes to scoring goals.
“I recruited him a couple years ago and the things that I saw of him as a recruit and what he’s definitely displaying now, is the ability to go to the goal and want to score goals,” coach Mark Theriault said.
On the field, Miller is “a versatile player and sort of leads offense; He’s a player that shoots the ball really hard but also dodges hard to the goal,” Theriault said.
Theriault said that Miller is a player that has the strength to not be afraid of a battle on the turf.
“He’s one of those types of kids that’s willing to get down and dirty to make the goal,” Theriault said. “Sometimes it’s people that are really finesse and guys that just don’t want to be touched… he’s more of a guy that when he gets the ball he’s not afraid to take the contact and put himself maybe in a little harm’s way.”
This season, Miller returned to the turf following a leg injury that benched him for all but five games for 2021-22.
“I messed up my calf in Florida… only played five games,” Miller said. “I was just on the sideline for the rest of the season and then had to work real hard all summer to bget my legs back under me and it was a real setback, but now I’m here.”
Despite his injury, Theriault never doubted Miller’s ability to reach his full potential. “[Since] he’s a kid I recruited it’s not, ‘You’re hurt, see you later, you’re on your own,’ it’s, ‘We know the potential is there,’ Theriault said. “We put him right back into the starting line up to make sure he was comfortable and getting his touches that way… he’s being very productive, that’s exactly what is happening.”
Miller recalled a game that has been a major highlight for his KSC career.
“One of my favorite games I played was the Vassar Game, because it was a long bus ride, like five hours and it was snowing,” Miller said. “We went out to New York and we beat them in overtime which was really fun.” Being a part of the team has shaped Miller’s character by making him a “better leader and discipline wise you gotta have confidence to be out here… It’s pretty ruthless out here,” Miller said.
Teammate and sophomore Brendan DiSilva said that Miller was a great support for the other players on the team. “[He’s] a hard worker for sure, he’s hard working on the field and off the field in the classroom, “DiSilva said. “He’s a good teammate; he doesn’t put anyone down, he is always putting his teammates up, happy for them when they succeed and very happy for him when he succeeds.”
As someone who has faced the ups and downs of being an athlete, Miller advised future athletes to, “work hard and be confident, just show up with confidence and it’ll pay off.”
Nicole Dumont can be contacted at
ndumont@kscequinox.com
“He’s one of those types of kids that’s willing to get down and dirty to make the goal,”
MARK THERIAULT
MEN’S LACROSSE HEAD COACH
