We Above Me

They knew coming in that they had a nucleus of seasoned veterans who were capable of great performances and that eight of them planned to compete in college.

 

They knew they had some serious offensive firepower. They knew their guys had lofty visions swirling in their heads.

 

They knew, though, that they’d never achieve their goals and realize their dreams without a team-first mindset and the performances of the players new to the varsity, the ones who had bided their time on the sideline waiting for their chance, and the scrappers and clawers who showed up each day, donned their hard hats, and pushed themselves and their teammates to become better.

 

“I told the team early in the year that we weren’t going to win with our superstars,” said Schroeder. “Our depth is going to win us games.”

 

With a 13-9 victory over St. Anne’s-Belfield this past Tuesday, the Cougars finished their regular season 14-2 and won their first Prep League title since 2015. They’re seeded second in the VISAA tournament and host No. 7 Potomac (12-8) Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. in the quarterfinal round.

 

“Going into the year, we had basically a brand-new defense,” said Schroeder, the Prep League coach of the year. “We had new face-off guys (Charlie Spraker and Grayson McNeely). We were young in some positions, but we play an average of 22 or 23 guys a game. If every one of those guys isn’t doing his job, we couldn’t have gone as far as we have.

        

“Our depth has carried us, especially when we’ve played teams that only run three offensive middies or two D-middies. We’re running six or seven offensive middies and four D-middies, so we’ve been able to be fresh in the fourth quarter.”

 

The Cougars have scored 202 goals (121 of which came off assists) and allowed 124.

 

Attackmen Randolph Campbell and Warner Lewis, the Prep League co-players of the year, have contributed 69 points (42 goals, 27 assists) and 63 points (46 goals, 17 assists) respectively.

 

Midfielder Ben Heidt (54 points on 44 goals and 10 assists), goalie John Seevers (135 saves), defenseman Adam Sulanke (32 ground balls, 18 caused turnovers, three goals, two assists), and short stick defensive midfielder Charlie Miller (27 ground balls, eight caused turnovers, two goals, three assists) joined them on the All-Prep team.

 

Campbell (Providence), Lewis (VMI), Miller (Bucknell), Heidt (Air Force), Seevers (University of Denver), Sulanke (Army), Jackson O’Keefe (Marist), and Fitz Stanley (Randolph-Macon) have made college commitments.

 

 “I knew we were good,” Schroeder said. “I thought we could make a deep run into the (state) tournament, but in some areas, this team has exceeded my expectations. They’ve impressed me in a lot of ways. It’s our strong senior-and-captain-led culture. They’ve taken the bull by the horns and run with it.”

 

Which fostered what has become a rock-solid, one-for-all, all-for-one mindset.

 

“The starters really embraced the importance of the guys who aren’t playing a full 48 minutes but are getting four or five minutes a game,” Schroeder said. “They’ve done a great job keeping everyone involved and feeling connected. This is a tight-knit group. They do a lot of things outside practice. They have a lot of team dinners. They spend a lot of time together.”

 

As the season progressed, the bonds became stronger and the mission crystal clear.

 

“We rely on each other,” said Rhodes Sinnott, a senior midfielder and, with Campbell, Lewis, and Sulanke, a team captain. “We have each other’s back. When it gets to the nitty-gritty, we’re always there for one another on and off the field.”

 

With a week to go, there’s unfinished business, for sure.

        

“We’ve been a first or second round exit (in the state tournament) the past few years,” Sinnott said. “We know what it feels like to lose. Now that we’ve winning, we don’t want to have that feeling (of losing) again.”

 

In the days since the Cougars’ final regular-season victory, which assured them an undefeated league record, the focus of Schroeder and assistant coaches Jake McDonald, Michael Jarvis, Bart Farinholt, and Kevin Mahon has been more the intangibles than shoring up the X’s and O’s, which are well-honed and competition-tested.

 

“We’ve preached to the team to keep doing what we’re doing,” he said. “It’s working. There’s no need to change our routine. Our approach is to make the next play. We’re continuing that approach and not treating one day any differently than any other day that we show up to a practice or game.”

 

What’s the secret sauce as the Cougars head into the single-elimination, championship phase of their season?

 

“Our unselfishness,” Schroeder said. “In the beginning of the year, we had a lot of egos on our team, which is OK, but the egos needed to work together to become a collective ego. We’ve literally preached that all season. It’s on every pre-game sheet. In my pre-game talks, we preach about being unselfish.

        

“When guys bought into being unselfish, making the extra pass, doing what the team needed rather than what they wanted, that’s when we started to click.”

~Weldon Bradshaw