By Drew Buono
Hofstra University is not usually considered as one of the best teams in the country in any sport. This year, though, is different, as the men’s lacrosse team has taken the field every game proving they are are worthy of national recognition.
Chris Unterstein, along with other notable seniors such as Brett Moyer, Matt Southard and Ryan Lucas are trying to accomplish something special this season. Unterstein is without a doubt one of the best players in the country and a leader of a team that has the longest winning streak in the country at 16 consecutive games.
Unterstein pointed out a meeting at the beginning of the season where it was decided that, “We, [the seniors], wanted to leave our mark here this year,” he said. “Not just for ourselves, but for the coaching staff. We felt like we needed to do something special this season.” Unterstein wants to go out on top and leave a legacy for future programs.
He and his teammates will have that opportunity starting this weekend when the third-seeded Pride take on Providence in a first round match-up in the NCAA tournament.
This is Hofstra’s first tournament appearance since Unterstein was a freshman, a fact that hasn’t escaped his mind. “It was a little embarrassing,” remarked Unterstein when told that this was only his second trip to the Big Dance.
Unterstein does not have to be embarrassed at all anymore. He is on one of the best teams in the country and is being regarded as one of the best players in the nation. He recently was selected to the Tewaraaton Watch List, a list of the best players in the country, which culminates in the winner being regarded as the nation’s top athlete in lacrosse. Unterstein noted the accomplishment as a “great honor,” especially since he is being “mentioned with all the other great players in the country.”
Unterstein also said that the award would be the “icing on the cake” for a great regular season, but was the least of his worries now as he and the team prepare for the NCAA Tournament.
“The whole team was happy for him,” freshman attacker Tom Dooley said of Unterstein’s national recognition. “[We] knew that it was because the team had come together early on and decided to play as one cohesive unit.”
Unterstein knows this dream season could come to a crashing halt in a blink of eye. Thus, he decided early on in the season “not to get ahead of myself and take each game as it comes.”
The CAA Tournament could have easily resulted in an upset for the Pride. Unterstein remarked that the CAA, as well as opponents now in the NCAA tournament “know our strengths and weaknesses and since you can’t play a perfect game each time, you have to consider every opponent equal to yourself to be mentally prepared.”