THE PATRIOT: "One of the coolest experiences is to be able to come out trailing the American Flag," writes Johns' Hopkins freshman Tim Donovan (above), a Loyola High school graduate and a member of the USA Under-19 lacrosse team.
Note: Tim Donovan is a 6-foot-3, 220-pound freshman at Johns Hopkins University with a winning reputation.
As a senior at Loyola, Donovan was a receiver and corner back on the Dons' Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference title-winning football team that went a school-record 10-1 in the fall of 2006.
In the spring of 2007, Donovan earned All-Metro honors and was the C. Markland Kelly finalist for the Dons' MIAA A Conference championship lacrosse team.
And as a freshman for Johns' Hopkins, he was a member of that program's NCAA runner-up mens lacrosse team.
Donovan's talents have earned him a berth on the U.S. Under-19 lacrosse team which will compete in the upcoming World Games in Vancouver, from which he has been providing his personal experiences to DigitalSports.
The U.S. Team will play its fifth exhibition game against a squad of local All-Stars on June 29, when it visits Mercer Island High School in Seattle, Washington.
Donovan, below, recounts two recent consecutive exhibition victories over All-Star teams from Pennsylvania, and Maryland, respectively, as the U.S. Team prepares for its July 3-through-July 12, International Lacrosse Federation Tournament title defense to be held next month in Coqutlam, British Columbia, Canada.
By Tim Donovan
as told to DigitalSports
(SEE VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS AND INTERVIEWS BELOW)
Click here for Donovan's first report
Click here for Donovan's second report
Click here for Donovan's third report
Last weekend was a very exciting one for my teammates and I.
We had back-to-back games in Pennsylvania and in Washington D.C, from which we emerged with two, fairly convincing wins against two, very talented teams.
Another positive that came out of last weekend was that our offense was really clicking. Everyone seemed to gain some confidence, because a number of goals were scored, and a number of goals were assisted.
We arrived in Pennsylvania on Saturday, mid-day. Unlike the previous weekends, however, we were just up there to play a game: There were no practices before the exhibition.
So, immediately, there was some adversity to face. Fortunately, we came out and played pretty well -- all things considered -- against a group of very talented Pennsylvania All-Stars.
Something worth mentioning that differed from our previous exhibition is that we have been gradually starting to do things that we will do at the world games.
We emerged from the locker room with Max Schmidt, a University of Maryland freshman, holding the American Flag. That was new and interesting.
Although playing on the East Coast against an American team does not quite carry the intensity of the actual World Games. Nevertheless, one of the coolest experiences is to be able to come out trailing the American Flag.
In fact, the flag we used on Saturday is the exact, same flag that will be used when we come out of the locker room in Canada in less than two weeks.
We ended up beating the Pa. All-stars, 15-7, which, to that point, had been our most convincing win.
In victory, we demonstrated to the coaches that our team was improving and making progress.
More importantly, many different guys were contributing to the scoring -- an important thing to see with the world games rapidly approaching.
Following a post-game autograph session with fans, I drove all the way back to my house in Maryland. I was accompanied by three of my U.S.A teammates -- Maryland freshman, Tony Mendes, Duke freshman, Justin Turri, and Rutgers' freshman Brian Shemesh.
We were in need of some long overdue sleep, the better to play well the next day in our final exhibition game on the East Coast.
The next morning, we all woke up to the feeling of a throbbing pain in our legs from having played in the hard-fought game of a day earlier.
The four of us also, generally, felt the bumps and the bruises prickling on our bodies' extremities -- a result of the Pennsylvania All-Stars' wrath.
Although a bit fatigued upon arriving at Georgetown Prep, we were collectively prepared to play some more lacrosse -- particularly while wearing the letters, U.S.A, on our shirts.
After critiquing some of the mistakes from the game film of a day earlier, we played a pretty solid contest again on Sunday, cruising to a 17-6 win over the Potomac All-Stars.
Again, the coaches were pleased. All of my teammates -- it seamed everyone, in fact -- had contributed to the many goals scored in this exhibition game.
So, in spite of the back-to-back games, and the limited sleep, we had made our weekend a success, yet again.
That's going to give us some confidence going into this weekend's training camp in Seattle, and, hopefully, for the World Games in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Remaining schedule for Team USA
June 29 at Mercer Island High School (Washington State), 4 p.m.
International Lacrosse Federation Under-19 World Championships
(All games in Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada)
July 3 Iroquois Nationals, 4 p.m.
July 4 Austrailia, 4 p.m.
July 5 Japan, 9:30 a.m.
July 6 Canada, 4 p.m.
July 7 England, 12:45 p.m.
July 10 Semifinals, 4 p.m. and 7:15 p.m.
July 12 Championship game, 2:30 p.m.
Follow Team USA on the web at www.uslacross.org/teamusa08 or laxmagazine.com