Berger, Leveille, Zink Have 2014 in Mind
by Matt DaSilva | Lacrosse Magazine Online Staff
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Kevin Leveille leads the U.S. men's national team onto the field for its preliminary game against Germany in the FIL World Championships in July. Leveille, an alternate on that team, will be in uniform Sunday at Champion Challenge. © John Strohsacker/LaxPhotos.com |
Perhaps nothing speaks to the evolution of the U.S. men's national team better than the fact that, just six months after its cathartic gold-medal performance in the 2010 Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) World Championships, the journey to 2014 has already commenced.
Champion Challenge, a US Lacrosse event this weekend at ESPN Wide World of Sports in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., represents different things to different players.
For Doug Shanahan, a Fort Lauderdale resident, it represents a blast from the past, as he will rejoin the Team USA ranks for the first time since 2006.
For Matt Striebel, a symbol of stability in the program, it marks the potential for him or his best friend Ryan Boyle -- one of several 2010 team members that could not commit to Champion Challenge due to the NLL season -- to eventually join the exclusive four-time Team USA member club. (Vinnie Sombrotto and John DeTommaso are the only other players to make four U.S. teams.)
For several Team USA neophytes, Sunday's game against Notre Dame will be an audition, including goalkeeper Scott Rodgers facing his former college team.
Then there's Stephen Berger, Kevin Leveille and Lee Zink, three players linked to the program's past, but significantly invested in its future. All three were members of the 40-man training team before they were cut in November 2009.
Berger's day job as the men's division associate for US Lacrosse kept him close to the U.S. team, but not in the way he wanted.
"The only way I was going to make the team was because of my talents being displayed on the field and come game time," said Berger, an all-star midfielder for the MLL's Long Island Lizards. "It was different being behind the scenes. I could offer some insight as to, 'Yeah, we would like chicken parmesan rather than spaghetti and meatballs,' but I more or less tried to stay out of it as much as I could."
Leveille, an attackman, and Zink, a defenseman, were alternates on the 2010 team, making the trip to Manchester but never suiting up for games. Neither bore resentment.
"They ended up putting the best product on the field," Leveille said. "It shows in the results."
While Zink returned to his home and work in Denver shortly after the world games began, Leveille remained with the team to help it prepare and to accompany his brother, Mike, who became a key swingman in Team USA's offense. Players responded by choosing Kevin to carry the U.S. flag and lead them onto the field in the preliminary round against Canada.
"When Lee and I were there, we were included as if we were out there playing," Leveille said. "Our role became being positive, just kind of keeping the vibe up and being another voice in the air that's not a coach."
Said Zink: "Everyone in that organization made me feel part of the team, even though I was an alternate. Just because you weren't wearing the jersey on game days doesn't mean you weren't part of the team."
Though none of the players felt snubbed, their proximity to the 2010 U.S. team and familiarity with personnel only fueled their desire to play in 2014, when US Lacrosse will host the world championships in Denver.
Leveille, who ranks in the top 10 of all MLL players in career goals (227, fifth) and points (291, ninth), recently announced he would not play in the league in 2011. He had been selected by the Hamilton Nationals in a supplemental draft.
"Just a personal decision," he said Thursday. "I have a handful of weddings this summer and, beyond that, I've played eight years now and consumed eight summers in a row since graduating college (UMass).
"I'm definitely not retiring by any means. I'll reevaluate next year."
Asked if he had the 2014 U.S. team in mind, Leveille replied, "Oh yeah, a lot really. Having been close to it, you realize it doesn't matter who's necessarily the best on the field or going to have the most goals, most assists. It's about who can be a good piece of the puzzle. I'm focused on giving it a go again, and I'd really like to make it happen. Competing in Champion Challenge and events like it, I'll always stay in tune with that."
Zink, who plays for the Denver Outlaws, has the added incentive of playing at home in 2014.
"It's in the back of my mind, yes," he said. "Representing your hometown in something, as well as your country, would be a huge honor."
Said Berger: "I can't throw it out the window. I've been so close, in 2006 being an alternate and this past year making the 40 and being right on the brink of that squad."
Leveille and Zink both turn 30 this year. Berger will be 29.
"I still try to think of myself as a 21-year-old," Berger said. "Age in our sport hasn't been a huge factor."
Persistence is a factor, however, when it comes to the U.S. men's national team -- a factor that keeps hope alive in three players who won't take Sunday's game for granted.
Champion Challenge, a US Lacrosse event featuring the U.S. men's and women's national teams against top college programs, returns to ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., Jan. 29-30, 2011. Click here for more information, including game and clinic schedules.
