The final horn sounded at the SUNY Cortland Stadium Complex as the nationally sixth-ranked Tufts Jumbos knocked off the defending champion third-ranked SUNY Cortland Red Dragons, 10-9, in the Division III Semifinals on May 23rd. It was a stunning upset that sent shock ways throughout the collegiate lacrosse community.
“It was devastating. I got goose bumps now just thinking about it. It wasn’t fun and they deserved it. I have to give Tufts credit. It’s just something you never really want to experience. I’m not going to make any guarantees, but we’re working towards winning a national title,” claims senior attack men, Jay DiStefano.
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| (Via cortlandreddragons.com) |
DiStefano is part of a senior class approaching the 2011 season that is hungry to make amends for last season’s semifinals loss. Last season, DiStefano played in all 20 games netting 29 goals along with 21 assists finishing with 50 points overall.
“Something we really want to get back to is being a team. I’ll never forget this when we won the title in 2009, Coach Beville said to us ‘you guys aren’t the most talented team, obviously you’re talented, but you’re the best team I’ve ever coached. The way you guys play and interact on-and-off the field is like none other than I have coached before.’ We want to get back to that this year. I think if we can accomplish that, I think great things are ahead of us.”
The magical 2009 season DiStefano referenced saw the SUNY Cortland Red Dragons steam roll through Division III going 19-2 overall with a 6-1 record in the SUNYAC. DiStefano started in all 21 games scoring 41 points on 16 goals and a team-best 25 assists. The national title aspirations went from a dream to reality when Cortland defeated Gettysburg, 9-7, at Gillette Stadium earning the Red Dragons second NCAA Division III title since 2006.
“It’s honestly tough to put words to describe winning the national championship in 2009. It’s awesome. You work all year and offseason for one goal and that’s to win it all,” says DiStefano.
Experience is an essential element to the 2011 Red Dragons team. Even as a freshmen in 2008, DiStefano saw action in 13 games, scoring 11 points on 5 goals and 6 assists. Cortland went 18-2 overall with a 7-0 SUNYAC record falling in the Division III finals, 19-13, to Salisbury.
DiStefano described his freshmen season, as “The sky was the limit. I was more of a role player in 2009, but I was able to distribute the ball and be a team player. There are a lot of athletes that come to this school and in 4 years that really don’t see the field. I was very fortunate to get some playing time. It was honestly the perfect amount for me because I got into most games and really got to sit back and learn from the veterans.”
Veteran leadership is a sticking point that DiStefano believes will lead the Red Dragons back to national title summit in 2011. In his three years here at Cortland the senior attack men is adamant that leading by example is the key to success as he embarks on his final season of competitive lacrosse.
‘There’s just a buzz in the air this year and a different vibe. We have a great senior class and a lot of quality leaders. You have to lead by example and I think that that a lot of people throw that term around, but it’s not put to work at all times. This year we got that culture that lead us to winning the title before and we have a lot of young guy that can contribute. We have guys who want to come to work this year.”
DiStefano attributes his passion for the game of lacrosse all the way back to the legendary Millon brothers who grew up in his hometown of Huntington, New York while he played his high school career at Harbor Fields.
“It came from the Millon brothers who lived on my block. It first started because Mark Millen and Tony Millen live down the road from me. I started playing in 4th grade and just had a natural ability for it. Lacrosse is like a culture. Now days it’s a serious culture with the ‘lax bros.’ It’s a cult. It’s so much fun and sport you can play all year around.”
Lacrosse has become the fastest growing sports in the United States and DiStefano believes SUNY Cortland has been a big part of that.
“People that know the game of lacrosse do not overlook us and there is a great deal of respect for our program. They know we could compete with most Division I teams and beat a good amount of them.”
It will be a 2011 campaign that has the Red Dragons expecting a Division III Championship or bust. DiStefano relishes this culture, as he wouldn’t have it any other way.
“It’s a culture that people work for and we have created it since I’ve been here the last four years. You can’t come here with the mentality that I’m just going to play Division III to party and play lacrosse. We’re run like a Division I program and people who succeed here understand that.”
For more student athlete interviews tune into Around the Dragon every Friday from 2-4 p.m. with Michael Millstein and Steve Cuce for everything Cortland sports on WSUC 90.5 FM and www.cortland.edu/wsuc.
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