July 19, 2007

by Jac Coyne, Lacrosse Magazine Online Staff

Every day Craig Dowd walked onto the Georgetown practice fields this past spring, he knew what awaited him - at some point, Dowd would have to contend with Jerry Lambe.

It was a mismatch. Dowd, a rookie attackman for the Hoyas, had none of the experience or knowledge that Lambe, a two-time All-American long pole and ECAC Defender of the year, possessed.

While some would be daunted by the prospect of being locked down every day, Dowd reveled in it. He knew he was getting better, and it showed as he blossomed late against some of the top collegiate defenders in the nation.

Dowd registered a hat trick in the 2007 season finale against Penn State and then again in an NCAA first-round win over Princeton. His 17 goals and eight assists were good for third on the team in points, and his .447 shooting percentage was best on the Hoyas.

Thus, it was not surprising when Dowd's name appeared last Sunday among the 23 players tabbed to represent the country on the 2008 U.S. men's U-19 team. Few other attackmen trying out have faced what Dowd faced daily as one just two players on the team with college experience.

"My game is a little bit better than some of the high school kids because they haven't gone against the level of competition I go against every day," said Dowd. "We have one of the better defenses in the country, and going against Jerry Lambe isn't an easy task."

Dave Urick, the head coach at Georgetown, knows the type of talent that participates at U.S. team tryouts and admitted he wouldn't have been stunned if Dowd had been cut. There's no question Dowd had a leg up on the competition, though.

"Having a year of college under your belt is huge in terms of the intensity you have to bring to practice every day and obviously the competition," said Urick. "Everyone on the U-19 roster was the best player on his high school team, so in a sense, [Dowd] is in a situation all year long that he was in for that four-day tryout."

The college-level experience was a boon, but Dowd also received advice from his older brother, Kyle Dowd, a member of the 2003 U-19 World Championship team and a 2006 graduate of Duke, who had been through the rigors of the tryouts and knew what the committee was expecting.

"He told me to just make sure I'm hustling the entire time'" said Dowd. "It's a really long tryout process and everyone gets tired, but whoever is hustling on Saturday and Sunday, those last days, definitely gets noticed for that."

While it's not always easy for a rising sophomore, Dowd is hoping to be recognized as a leader of the U.S team. Dowd and James Green, a freshman at Ohio State in the spring, are the only two players on the team with collegiate experience, making it natural they would be viewed as leaders.

"I think the players they were playing with would realize that and look to them for leadership," said Urick. "The coaches would probably want to see that, as well."

"I think the best way to be a leader is to do it by example," said Dowd. "I'll do whatever [Head] Coach [Chuck] Apel needs me to do."

Time will tell what exactly Apel will need from his most experienced attackman. Urick said Dowd combines a pair of skills not all attackmen possess - adding a versatility that will certainly come in handy at the 2008 ILF World Championships in Canada.

"Some guys need the ball in their stick and some guys are more comfortable playing off the ball, but he seemed to be able to do both," said Urick.

"I think I can do a little bit of everything," said Dowd. "It also depends on who I'm playing with and what they need me to do. If they need me to feed, that's what I'll do. And if they need me to score, I can do that, as well."

When Team USA arrives in Coquitlam, British Columbia, next summer, Dowd won't have to worry about going against the likes of Lambe. It will be the U-19 defensemen from elsewhere around the world who will have to worry about Dowd.