The Massachusetts men’s club lacrosse captain Robert Morsi has high hopes for his team this upcoming spring season. The captain and acting coach held tryouts recently in an attempt to put together another talented team.

While the Minutemen do not officially begin play until the spring, that is not stopping Morsi and the rest of the Minutemen from planning for another successful season.

“I’m really looking forward to see how we play in the spring,” Morsi said.

The Minutemen have had a tremendous start to this year’s season. UMass is comprised of mostly upperclassmen, especially seniors who have played together for all four years.

Despite an early loss to Bridgeton Academy, UMass tested their skills with confidence recently at a club lacrosse tournament held at Bentley University. The Minutemen held their own in the tournament edging out Northeastern, while losing to Falcons.

“This year’s biggest surprise has been our goalie, Julian [Miller]. He’s played really well,” said Morsi.
Miller, a transfer student, showed tremendous poise in the team’s 12-5 victory over URI. However, the game’s real hero was co-captain Brendan Eckhoff.

Eckhoff had three goals, while UMass kept offensive composure with help from senior midfielders John Farquharson and Jay French, while the defensive midfield was led by Pat Townsend and Nick Guarino.

All of the Minutemen’s games up to this point are still considered scrimmages. However, the team refuses to see them as such, and will continue to practice two days a week after fall ball ends.

Currently, UMass is still holding open tryouts when they come closer to a finalized roster for the spring season.

The Minutemen next will take a break until Nov. 6 when they take on Connecticut Valley.

Chris Gardner can be reached at [email protected].