Friday's editions included a Q&A with Notre Dame freshman attackman Mikey Wynne, a Sykesville resident and St. Paul's graduate who leads the No. 1 Fighting Irish in goals with 26. Due to space constraints, here are some answers that didn't make the cut.
What's the key to your shooting percentage of 52.0, which ranks third in Division I?
A lot of people always shoot for the corners, but my philosophy is to shoot for the net. Even if it isn't traditionally a good shot – maybe it's not in the corner or anything – if it is where the goalie isn't, then it doesn't matter how pretty it looks. Every goal counts as one.
Why not shoot for the corners?
I really just wait for the goalie to react to me. I've never been a big guy with big fakes. I do a little shoulder shrug and if the goalie gets off balance, I just put it to where he wasn't or put it to where he would least expect it.
How would you describe playing with junior attackman Matt Kavanagh and senior attackman Conor Doyle (Gilman)?
It's awesome. They want you to elevate your game every single day because when they're making plays, you're making plays. The magnitude and the number of plays they're making every single day in practice makes you want to improve as well so that you can be on the same level as them. So you can say it's a healthy competition between us when we're going out there. Everybody wants to make plays and working together is huge.
Does playing with Kavanagh and Doyle remind you of anyone you've played with in the past?
I would say my brothers [Zach and Nick] back when I played at Glenelg High School. I played there the first two years of my high school career, and both of my brothers were very good dodgers and feeders. Having two guys like that is definitely nice to have because I just have to work off-ball and they're going to get me the ball if I'm open.
What was it like growing up with four brothers?
It was interesting. I was put in my place a lot, to be completely honest. My brothers, if they thought I was acting out and they didn't like it, they'd let me know physically or verbally. I appreciate it now looking back because my brothers made me what I am today, and I love growing up in a big family. It definitely toughened me up to learn that it's not always about you and you need to respect your elders.
Was it difficult to get attention from your parents Brian and Karen?
No. My mom has been awesome. She's my hero. She does everything for us. This speaks to how great a mom she has been. She never missed a single game in any of our high school careers, and that was even with the brothers playing at the same time. Say I had a game at St. Paul's, and my younger brother [Kevin] had a game at Glenelg. She'd go around the Beltway and go to the first half of my game and then drive all the way back around the Beltway to my brother's game just to catch the second half or final quarter. My mom is awesome when it comes to that stuff. She's a warrior. She was always so equal. It was always fair growing up. Nobody ever thought they got the short end of the stick.
Are you an example that making the transition from high school to collegiate lacrosse is not as hard as some say it is?
No, it's definitely difficult. I had to work very hard during the summer – whether it was learning the game or improving physically. It's the little plays like picking up a ground ball and moving it. You could almost be lazy about it in high school and not worry about it, but if you are lazy about any of those little things here, you are going to pay for it. That's the first thing I realized. Even if you throw a pass lackadaisically, here it's going to get tipped. Every little detail is as important as the next one.
What's your best memory so far?
I guess it would have to be the Syracuse game [which Notre Dame won, 13-12, in double overtime on March 28]. To go out there against the No. 1 team, we had a sold-out crowd at Arlotta Stadium. To be able to go out there and get the overtime win with guys you've worked so hard with and seeing how happy everybody was, it was a great experience.
A lot of people outside of Notre Dame are predicting an NCAA championship for your team. Is that the sense among the players?
Among the guys, we don't talk about that. Everybody knows our goal. If you're not playing the game to win a championship, there's no reason to play. So everybody knows that's our goal, but it's just to improve every day and if we continue to do that and the so-called little things that turn out to be a very big deal, there's no reason why we shouldn't be the best team in the country at the end of the year. Everybody in the locker room believes it, and if we keep on working hard, I don't see why there's any reason we won't be.