By Jodie Ng, News Correspondent
Ever since the Huskies’ first win of the season against Texas State University on March 16, the Northeastern men’s club lacrosse team had racked up enough wins for a four-game winning streak until it was snapped by the University of Connecticut last night.
“I think getting that first win was crucial for us,” junior long stick midfielder Chris Haffenreffer said. “Once we get one, we remember the feeling of winning and that gave us the drive. It was a mentality shift thinking ‘We can do this. Let’s keep doing this.’”
The team played the University of Pittsburgh last Friday and Ohio University Saturday. Northeastern was initially down 7-3 against the Pittsburgh Panthers but the momentum of the game continued to rock back and forth. Ultimately, that momentum switched so much that the game resulted in triple overtime and the Huskies prevailed with a 9-8 win.
While attackers junior Daniel Brockwell and co-captain junior Christopher Tecca led the offense, it was the Huskies’ defense that led them to victory. According to Haffenreffer, the defense didn’t allow any easy goals from the Panthers.
“When we were on the field, we just had the confidence that they weren’t going to score again,” Haffenreffer said. “The momentum was going back and forth but when we’re on and we’re playing with some confidence, we’re a strong team.”
Northeastern, which now has a 4-4 overall record, then defeated the Ohio Bobcats, 8-6, the following day to advance to a 4-3 overall record. Even though the team had another win, Haffenreffer said the game was not played to the team’s full potential. With that said, he commended his team’s improvement of skills.
“Our goalies have been playing really well. [The offense] definitely stepped it up big time,” Haffenreffer said. “I think between California [a three-game road trip resulting in three losses] and now, there have been a lot less turnovers and they’ve sharpened up their stick skills a lot.”
The men’s club lacrosse team has certainly turned the season around. From the beginning of the season until now, these Huskies came out with a changed outlook and the coaching staff’s ability has made that possible.
“They’re a great group of guys,” Haffenreffer said of the coaching staff. “They all played in college so they know what they’re doing but most of all, they’re just really good motivators.”
Haffenreffer described the team as hardworking and passionate. Their dedication and efforts are translated well into their performance, especially in their game against the Panthers.
“Another word would be brotherhood,” Haffenreffer said. “We do it for the love of the game but we also do it for each other.”
Unfortunately for the Huskies, UConn snapped the four-game streak by scoring 7 unanswered goals for an 8-3 final after the Huskies led 3-1 at the end of the first quarter.
The Huskies will return to action for their second home game this Saturday at 7 p.m. against Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Their next big conference matchup is against the Boston University Terriers as the Huskies attempt to climb the Pioneer Collegiate Lacrosse League standings.
