Club Canvas: Biola's State of Grace

by Jac Coyne | Lacrosse Magazine Online Staff | Coyne Archive

Jordan Adams (above) and the rest of the Biola team had a lot of anger last year. But they've found peace with their two-year probabation and are now focusing their energy on Denver. © Silas Cole

Biola wasn't in a good place last spring.

Despite a move from the WCLL to the SLC, the Division II institution, located in the Los Angeles suburb of La Mirada, was still being sanctioned for one of its players falling beneath the league-mandated academic credit limit at the end of the 2008 season.

That transgression initially cost the Eagles an opportunity to attend the '08 nationals even though Biola (prounounced: bye-OH-la) pounded Santa Cruz, 15-3 in the WCLL championship game. The SLC opted to uphold the established ruling, keeping the Eagles out of postseason consideration for a second year last spring.

Not surprisingly, the decision built a lot of anger among the Biola players and staff, who took the field with bad intentions in 2009. They weren't walking out on the field looking to enjoy all of the great aspects of the game. They were marching to the turf with designs of embarrassing the opposition.

Much of the fury was saved for conference rivals.

Concordia was crushed, 17-6 in the SLC opener with extreme prejudice. Cal Lutheran (18-7), Occidental (24-4) and UC-Irvine (17-4) were systematically obliterated. There was nothing that was going to get Biola to Denver, but the eradication of lesser foes managed to soothe the visceral rage held by the collective team.

Midway through the season, however, the team came to an unwanted revelation.

What they were doing wasn't healthy.

"It started taking a toll on us," admitted Aaron Klett, the Eagles head coach. "Instead of playing lacrosse, it became a vendetta against the other teams in the league. I think it was then that we realized it was about playing how we know how to play and not about holding a grudge."

After a bit of soul-searching, Klett understood it was he who was responsible for the scorched-earth mentality that Biola had adopted.

"The players are going to react how you react as the leader of the team from the sidelines," said Klett. "And you could definitely see how my demeanor on the field affected the players. It started from the top down. So once we got everything in order, it kind of fell into place. It became about playing for the fun of the game rather than just beating everyone."

The funny thing is they still beat everyone.

The Eagles posted a 7-0 mark in the conference, including a comfortable, 13-8 victory over Cal State-Fullerton - the eventual nationals representative from the SLC. All told, it was nine consecutive wins to end the season, including triumphs over Western Washington, Fort Lewis and Division I Southern California.

It is with this spiritual tranquility that Biola enters the 2010 campaign. As odd as it may seem, opponents should probably be more concerned about the Eagles now than during their previous pillaging incarnation.

"We can just take off from where we were last year," said Klett. "We know the teams we're playing and we know what we're up against. It's a good fresh start to have the playoffs as a goal instead of knowing that the last game on the regular season schedule in April was our last game. Rather than focusing on the wrongs that were done against us in our eyes, a bigger driving motivation for us is to go further finally."

Adding to the momentum is Biola should be just as talented as last year. They lose Brad Wescott, a 50-goal guy, to graduation, but the McMahan brothers - senior Billy and sophomore Jon - are back fully healthy while Adam Kingston (32g, 7a) and Jordan Adams (24g, 27a) are primed for huge seasons. Jonathan Lowell (7.86 GAA, 63.5 Sv %) gives the Eagles an anchor on the back line.

Resuming their postseason eligibility after the two-year ban has the players naturally looking toward the Promised Land. Klett is keeping them grounded, but still allowing them to establish their objectives.

"I've reminded them that until we make our own league playoffs, Denver isn't a reality, but I think it's okay to have that as a goal," he said. "We want to be in Denver and playing for that trophy. When we get to Denver, we don't want to be a team that puts up a fight for a quarter or two in the first game, and we're done. We want to get there and put up numbers against good teams and move on as far as we can."

With their new healthy outlook on lacrosse, there's no telling how far the Eagles can go.

Colorado Pulls Stevenson Back In
Pete Stevenson thought he was done with lacrosse last year. He had just finished up coaching his younger brother at Orem High School in Utah, and he figured that was it. Despite having an extensive coaching background, including as an assistant with the '07 Brigham Young national championship team, it seemed like the right time to try something new.

Then he received a phone call from a friend, telling him the Colorado job was open.

Stevenson was mildly curious, especially since he thought the Buffaloes had already hired a coach after the resignation of John Galvin in the early summer. The money sounded decent, but he still wasn't sold. The last thing he wanted to do was walk into a situation where the school just wanted to run a nice, fun club and the kids wanted a hobby.

"I needed to hear that they were a team ready to win now," said Stevenson. "I didn't want to come into a situation where the talent or the attitude wasn't right to win right away."

He sat down with the director of club sports at Colorado and was assured of their commitment to the program, as well as receiving the green light to run camps with the school's name - a huge monetary incentive for any coach.

It was clear from the results on the field that the Buffs were legitimate. Stevenson had seen Colorado during the '09 season when it defeated BYU, 10-8, gaining a newfound respect. Stevension was convinced his alma mater was going to rally and win the game despite trailing early, but CU never let up. The Buffs ensuing run to the national semifinals, plus several sit down meetings with the players, assured Stevenson he was getting into the right situation.

"The players and the administration made it clear that they wanted to win now, and were prepared to do what was necessary to win now," said Stevenson.

It certainly helps that Colorado will have most of the cogs in place that helped it roll to its 2009 success. Kevin Moriarty, a first team All-American goalie, is the biggest loss, but all told there were only five seniors, Moriarty included, on last year's semifinal squad.

The offense, led by juniors James Blackburn (46g, 16a) and Darren Hulick (20g, 15a) along with senior Tyler Snyder (20g, 5a), has most of its pieces returning while the defense returns first team All-American defensive middie Mike Britt and his senior classmate, long pole Michael Geocaris.

All of the returners should have no trouble helping Stevenson implement the same style run by his mentor, former BYU coach Jason Lamb.

"I believe in rides and clears, and the power of a cohesive team to win a lot of games," said Stevenson. "We will run and gun with every team we play this year."

Stevenson seems to have the confidence when it comes to guiding the talented group, but the mundane everyday tasks in running a program, which often takes up the bulk of an MCLA coach's time, is where he has the most to learn.

"Lacrosse is something that I know well, and have coached it on a high level already," he said. "I was much more nervous about the administration of the team than the lacrosse."

Stevenson almost hung up the lacrosse stick, but now he's taken hold of a Buffs team seemingly on the rise. Regardless of the outcome, he made the right choice.

Slides & Rides
- It could be a harbinger of things to come, or it might be a case of a coach having more free time than he anticipated, but the Arizona Burn won the top prize at the Adrenaline Challenge in San Diego. Head coach of the Burn? It's Chris Malone, who is also the head coach of the Arizona State team that has spent the last year dormant because of hazing issues. There's no question the Sun Devils are loaded with talent just like the Burn, so this might auger well for ASU's chances this spring. Or it could just be a bunch of Arizona high school kids who will have no bearing on the MCLA season. I report, you decide.

- There was a Bill Harkins testimonial posted on Collegelax.us. It's well-deserved. Many probably assume Florida State has always been a player in the MCLA, but as Harkins said, the program was in "shambles" before he arrived.

- Leading up to the weekend of Feb. 13, I'll be starting my weekly picks. Instead of just picking against thin air as I've done in a past, I've added a wrinkle in order to illustrate my all-knowing MCLA acumen: I'll have competition. A former MCLA All-American who owns a pair of national championship rings has agreed to pick against me all season long, with brief commentary on the five games we select. Stay tuned.