Here is the third installment of a series taking a look at each of the eight Division III programs in the state, according to their order of finish from last season. This is McDaniel's turn.
Overview: The Green Terror endured a series of stops and starts in 2014, losing their first three games, winning their next three, losing three more, then going 3-1 before wrapping up the season with back-to-back defeats. It was an uneven performance for a program that had hoped to return to the Centennial Conference tournament after qualifying in 2012. But with nine of 10 starters returning this spring, McDaniel has planted seeds of potential the program hopes will bloom this year.
Reason for optimism: Age is not just a number for the Green Terror.
After fielding just two seniors last season, the team has 10 this spring, five of whom are projected to be starters: attackmen Patrick Serio (29 goals and six assists) and Pat Bivons (18, 15), midfielders Sean Brett (21, 9) and Matt Dupras (8, 16) and defenseman Drew Cortese (14 ground balls and 11 caused turnovers).
The veterans have assumed leadership roles and are setting the tone in practice and meetings for their younger teammates, according to coach Matt Hatton.
"I would say our strength is probably our seniors," he said. "We've got 10 or 11 seniors that are going to get minutes. That's not always the case, but it's certainly a lot different from what it was last year. We feel pretty deep because of them."
Reason for pessimism: The only starter McDaniel lost from last season looms as the team's biggest worry.
Goalkeeper Christian Dallmus recorded a 12.11 goals-against average and .496 save percentage in 12 games, winning four. Eventually, he gave way to then-sophomore Eric Ritchie, who posted a 12.23 goals-against average and a .554 save percentage and went 2-1.
Now a junior, Ritchie appears to have the inside track to opening the season Feb. 21 at Mary Washington as the starter. But junior Corey Shaffer and sophomore Brian Ruygrok (Centennial) are making the decision difficult for Hatton.
"We don't have a starter right now," he said. "We're only four days into [the preseason], but we feel pretty confident about the position. I think we can be a little more confident about that position based off the fact that we're pretty confident with our defenders and our defensive midfielders. Hopefully, their plan will be to make the goalie's job easier, because we're a little more seasoned and experienced out in front of him."
Keep an eye on: One of Hatton's favorite terms is "battle-tested," and that label certainly could apply to the Green Terror's defense.
The unit returns its top five defensemen, including three starters in Cortese and sophomores Will Kroppe (35 GB, 18 CT) and Alex Hanna (16 GB, 6 CT), its top two long-stick midfielders in sophomore Emmett Turley (17 GB, 9 CT) and junior Tony Roney (a transfer from Stevenson), and its top two short-stick defensive midfielders in seniors Ryan Weiss (8, 1, 9 GB, 1 CT) and Kevin Nicholas (2, 2, 26 GB, 5 CT).
Hatton acknowledged that there's a certain level of comfort that comes with having a veteran defense.
"It's always good when you have guys that have experience," he said. "We're still moving those pieces around and kind of seeing who fits where. … I couldn't even tell you who our top guy is [on close defense]. From one to five, I don't think there's a whole lot of drop-off. Some guys can do some things better than others, but I think, depending on the matchups and how the other team plays offense and what the personnel looks like, we can kind of approach it like that."
What he said: Serio and Bivons are expected to be joined on the starting attack by sophomore Timothy McNichol. Despite suffering a separated shoulder that sidelined him for two games, McNichol had 20 goals and seven assists last season, including nine goals and four assists in the team's final six games.
"I felt like when he got healthy, we played our best offensive lacrosse down the stretch, and I feel like a big part of that was having some continuity at attack with some certain guys," Hatton said. "So we feel like Tim thus far has really made a nice transition from doing what he did last year as a freshman to being a sophomore and progressing to where we want him to be."