After coming back undefeated from their recent trip to Florida, Clark’s Men’s Varsity Lacrosse team has broken school history with a 5-0 win-loss record. Sophomore Will Mandracchia talked to us about what has brought the team to success.
You were recently nominated NEWMAC’s Offensive Player of the Week and helped bring home 2 consecutive wins during the team’s trip to Florida, what specifically do you think brought the team to success?
None of the other teams could not match our energy going into both of the games we played in Florida, and that is what brought us success. We all came out flying, ready to play and ready to execute our plan. The team as a whole is finally translating all of our training and hard work onto the field when it matters and we are winning because of it.
Clark Men’s Lacrosse is currently undefeated 5-0 for the first time in school history. How do you think you’ve contributed to the team’s success compared to last season? Was it more of an individual endeavor or a team effort?
Last season, I was making some bad mistakes. Overall I was playing pretty selfishly and not in a way that would help the team gain success. This year, I have been sticking to the system that is put into place by our coaches, a system that when executed correctly will be able to break down any team that we face. It is 100% a team effort. When the sideline is getting pumped up and being loud for everyone who is on the field, it helps us bring that intensity and energy that we need to win. As for the players on the field, once we gain the trust in our teammates that they’ll make the smart play every time and with everyone sticking to the system and being on the same page, we are at our best. I think we will be very hard to stop as we move on in our schedule.
What has being part of a sports team done for you and what made you decide to pursue lacrosse in college?
Being part of a sports team truly is like having a second family. You see everyone every single day, whether it is in the locker room, on the field or around campus. Everywhere you look you can see a fellow cougar and you’ll always have someone to talk to, eat with or hang out with. Being on a sports team also made the tough transition from a high school where you have known everybody since Kindergarten, to a college where you know nobody a whole lot easier. It was almost like coming into college with 40 friends from the get-go.
I’ve played lacrosse my whole life, so it was a very easy decision to make that I wanted to continue to play collegiately. My family has been into lacrosse ever since I was in the third grade when my dad started the lacrosse program in my hometown of Melrose, MA. My family and I have a passion for it, so there was no way I could just stop playing competitive lacrosse my senior year of high school. I’d actually like to thank all of my family, as well as all of my high school and youth coaches for helping me get here and pushing me to try and be the best player I can possibly be.
In terms of Clark Athletics in general, how do you feel about fan-turnout at games and school spirit? How does this affect your performance on the field?
I think that the fans’ support this year has been the best it has ever been, even just compared to last year. Seeing all of your friends in those stands when you’re playing adds a completely different element to the game and helps with the intensity and energy more than you would think. We love the support we are getting from everyone at Clark and it drives us as a team to want to do better. So please, keep supporting! It means a lot to us. Roll Cougs.
Thanks, Will!