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Duke lacrosse holds first practice

By JACK DALY, The Herald-Sun
September 4, 2006 9:05 pm

DURHAM -- In a nod to its troubled spring, the Duke men's lacrosse team has selected a motto for the upcoming season that its players -- current or otherwise -- can identify with.

Succisa virescit.

Rough translation: What's cut down grows back stronger.

"Last season obviously got cut short," said senior captain Matt Danowski. "I think we realize what a privilege it is and how much we actually miss and love playing lacrosse."

The Blue Devils went through their first on-campus practice on Monday since the remaining portion of their 2006 season was canceled after rape allegations surfaced against three team members following an off-campus party in March. Reade Seligmann, Collin Finnerty and David Evans were eventually indicted by a grand jury on charges of rape, kidnapping and sexual offense. All three await trial.

In the midst of the criminal investigation, Duke suspended the lacrosse program pending the outcome of an internal probe. While longtime coach Mike Pressler resigned on April 5, the school reinstated the program in June.

Duke named John Danowski, the 21-year Hofstra head coach and Matt's father, its new coach on July 21.

Then came Monday, the first preparation for a season that is scheduled to begin on Feb. 24 against Dartmouth at Koskinen Stadium.

On an overcast morning, the team members went through drills on the lacrosse fields behind Koskinen with obvious enthusiasm. The 48 players on the roster -- even with the controversy, there are a high number of students trying to walk on -- generally worked in two groups, with Danowski presiding over the offense.

Even erratic shots didn't dampen the mood. Senior defender Casey Carroll went so far as to thank the media for showing up.

On the back of a couple T-shirts was the Latin motto of the Delbarton School, a prestigious New Jersey prep school that many Duke players attended, including Seligmann and Ryan McFadyen. McFadyen, who was at practice after being reinstated by the school over the summer, was the player who wrote the e-mail -- apparently in jest -- that team members should kill strippers and "cut their skin off" at the next party.

Fred Krom, another Duke player with Delbarton connections, made the suggestion that the Blue Devils embrace his alma mater's motto for their upcoming season.

Whether Duke comes back stronger remains to be seen -- the Blue Devils reached the championship game in 2005. But for now, the players were just happy to be back practicing.

"It felt great," senior defenseman Tony McDevitt said. "There's not too many times you can really appreciate a great sweat. I think everybody appreciated that today."

The younger Danowski hopes that sweat washes away the off-the-field distractions.

"Everybody has their own way of dealing with things, but for me, when I'm on this field, this is it," he said. "It's lacrosse. It's one of the best parts of my day, it's why I came here, it's what got me here.

"I'm thankful for it, and I realize what a privilege it is to be here."

Danowski, who was the 2005 ACC player of the year, will have the added pressure of playing for his father for the first time.

The elder Danowski made a point of not steering his son to Hofstra during the recruiting process, saying that he wanted Matt to get the best possible education.

Now the coach is excited about the opportunity to help shepherd all team members through their college experience, even if it means he'll have to guide players through a potential trial in the spring.

"I took the job to be at Duke University," Danowski said. "The lure of being an educator at one of the top eight, five, 10 schools in the country, that was No. 1. I've always seen myself as an educator first, as a teacher. To be a teacher here? Tremendous opportunity."

The opportunity, of course, wouldn't have come open if it weren't for the rape allegations.

To prevent any further damage to the Duke name, Danowski said he won't rule with an iron fist, although he will hold the players to a high standard, just like he's done at Hofstra his entire career.

"As opposed to setting rules and setting standards, you're trying to get them to understand the consequences of their decision-making," Danowski said. "When you join a team, it's different. It's not like being on campus. Your decisions that you make affect a lot of people."

Of course, any guidelines Danowski puts in place won't help Seligmann, Finnerty or Evans.

Evans graduated with a degree in economics in May. Finnerty and Seligmann are on leaves of absence from the university pending the results of the trial.

All were missed by their former teammates.

"I wish with all my heart that Collin and Reade could be here, but we're going to keep playing lacrosse, and we're going to move on," co-captain Ed Douglas said.

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Duke returns to field