by Andy Bernardez

The Rochester Institute of Technology Men’s lacrosse team was off to a promising start, beating their first four opponents in the 2020 season by double digits. After their victory over Clarkson University, the Tigers were supposed to travel to Maryland, squaring off against ranked opponents St. Lawrence University and York College. But due to the COVID-19 pandemic, their entire season has been canceled. 

Zach Gagnon, a sophomore defenseman, was disappointed when the news broke. “We had a good shot at making a run to the national championship, so I felt like we got robbed.” When asked how he and his teammates feel about the cancelation of the season, Gagnon stressed that the Tigers play through the season not just to represent RIT — and why this news hits harder amidst the stress of the pandemic. “You form a bond with the guys that’s like a brotherhood, so it definitely sucks when that gets taken away.”

This season was Gagnon’s first run as starting on defense and worked extremely hard to earn that spot. As a freshman last season, he did not see much time on the field. “I just tried to make as many plays as I could during practice to set myself up in a good spot on the depth chart.” Since coming back to the field this past fall, he has fought everyday for a starting spot by working hard in the weight room and during practice.

Gagnon credited the team’s seniors leadership for his success as a starter. “They definitely taught me a lot about working hard and earning everything, and they gave me the confidence to go out there and compete.” For most of the seniors the road stops here; but for younger players like Gagnon, this is just a temporary roadblock moving towards the future college lacrosse seasons.

Gagnon also cites the NCAA’s rulings on shifting eligibility requirements in light of the pandemic as a means to keep most of the team intact for the next season. “Luckily, the NCAA gave back the eligibility from this season to all athletes, so we actually have a lot of them coming back. Also, RIT has a lot of five year programs thankfully.” Since most of the seniors on the team are in five-year programs, coming back to play not only gives them a chance to return to the field, but also to claim what could have been this season’s national championship.  Gagnon said that even though a new team will be coming together in the fall, they are holding on to the same mindset —victory. “I think we’ll be hungrier than ever when we get back to campus in the fall. We had our season cut short just before we had the chance to prove to the whole country what we could do. We definitely have something to prove.”