Men’s lax Fisher ready for first Elite 8 appearance

PITTSFORD, N.Y. (WROC) — The St. John Fisher men’s lacrosse team entered the NCAA tournament unranked. In the regular season, they went 0-3 against ranked teams.

Sure, they had won four straight Empire 8 championships, but their run seemed destined to end in the first weekend of the tournament.

Nobody told the Cardinals.

St. John Fisher took the road to Connecticut and knocked off Wesleyan University and St. Lawrence University, both top ten teams in the country.

These victories allowed them to advance to the Elite 8 for the first time in the history of the program.

“It’s amazing,” said senior Matthew Kemmis, the team’s leading scorer. “Making history in this program is something that I think everyone who is in this program dreams of. Doing it was awesome and an incredible experience and I will remember it for the rest of my life.

“This group of guys is a group of guys I’ll never forget,” said senior defenseman Joe Urlacher, a Canandaigua native. “It’s something I’m very proud of, but we’re not happy with where we are and we know we can make a big effort this weekend.”

So how exactly were the Cardinals able to peak at the right time?

“There’s no formula for this,” head coach Dave Dobbins said. “If you had that formula, you’d probably be here every year. »

“It’s something we always knew we had the capabilities of,” Kemmis said. “Just wanting to be together is something that really motivated us. »

The Cardinals are back on the road this weekend and will face sixth-ranked Tufts University on Saturday, May 18. A win would likely set up a clash with No. 1 Salisbury in the semifinals.

An important point in training was to put aside their triumphs and turn the page towards the goal at hand.

“Physically, mentally and emotionally, it’s an exhausting weekend,” Dobbins said. “We talked about the thrill of emptying that tank and starting to fill it again.”

The Cardinals benefit in particular from the support of their honorary captain, Jack Harrison, 12 years old.

Harrison has an inoperable brain tumor, but after numerous chemotherapies, he has entered a phase of long-term survival.

He has been with the team for two seasons. Harrison attends about 4-5 home games a year and a lot of practices, which helps give the team perspective.

“Our guys light up every time they see him. Every game, no matter what it is, they love it when Jack shows up,” Dobbins said. “His eyes light up but our guys’ eyes light up. It’s a source of inspiration. Considering what he’s been through and being here now, maybe that bruise on your knee doesn’t hurt as much as it did when he was going through chemotherapy. He has been a great source of inspiration for our team.

Harrison ended Wednesday by singing karaoke (he’s also in a band). The song was “Country Roads” by John Denver.

The Cardinals hope their road takes them to Philadelphia and the NCAA championship game.