Lacrosse Playoffs: Stony Brook at Maryland

May 12, 2013; College Park, MD, USA; Stony Brook Seawolves goalie Frankie Caridi (2) against Maryland Terrapins attack Alex Aust (10) at Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex on campus in College Park, MD.

It was great to work with Stony Brook again, this time they started off my playoff coverage. The Seawolves had a tough task going up against the top-ranked Maryland Terrapins who are undefeated this season. The Terps have been an offensive power-house all year. Stony Brook started out strong getting the first goal and controlled most of the first-half action. A crucial judgement call surrounding Stony Brook possession and a requested timeout late in the first half changed the energy of the game.

Stony Brook fought back in the second half, but the Terps were just too much for them to handle. It was a great season for them, getting their first NCAA Tournament victory on Friday night. Here were some of my favorites from the game.

Hopefully looking forward to more lacrosse action this weekend.

May 12, 2013; College Park, MD, USA; Stony Brook Seawolves head coach Joe Spallina argues with the refs about a timeout call against the Maryland Terrapins at Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex on campus in College Park, MD.

May 12, 2013; College Park, MD, USA; Stony Brook Seawolves midfielder Marina Mestres (25) during introductions before the game against the Maryland Terrapins at Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex on campus in College Park, MD.

May 12, 2013; College Park, MD, USA; Maryland Terrapins midfielder Brooke Griffin (11) gets hit in the face by a Stony Brook Seawolves defender as she scores at Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex on campus in College Park, MD.

Knecht Cup 2013

April 13, 2013; Cherry Hill, NJ, USA; Old Dominion Rowing rowing in the Knecht Cup on the Cooper River in Cherry Hill, NJ.

A few weeks back I went up to cover the Knecht Cup Regatta in Camden, NJ for Old Dominion University again. Unlike last year, this year I was available to cover both days of this fairly huge regatta. Since I had referee boat access last year thanks to the organizers, I secured similar access again this year. I've shot from boats at Clemson covering both the women's rowing team and US Men's National team when they trained and it just makes the photos better. This year instead of riding with the referees, Villanova had one of their support staff team members drive me around the course when needed which worked out much better. It was a huge help and helped me make some awesome images for Old Dominion.

Here are some of my favorites from the weekend.

All Smiles

April 14, 2013; Towson, MD, USA; Old Dominion Monarchs head coach Heather Holt during pre-game introductions against Towson Tigers at Johnny Unitas Stadium in Towson, MD.

It's always awesome to work with Old Dominion. This lacrosse game was the second half of a weekend that included all day coverage of the Knecht Cup in Cherry Hill, NJ. and was a preview of my Penn Relays weekend a few weeks later. Complex enough and a blazing fast car ride down the Jersey Turnpike after covering multiple races the morning of the game.

Old Dominion started all smiles, but the three-time Colonial Athletic Association Champions could not be stopped in a 16-9 victory at home. I like the image above because it was a nice moment right before introductions were started.


I'm a bit behind in posting, but catching up while catching some rays in sunny Florida.

April 14, 2013; Towson, MD, USA; Old Dominion Monarchs against Towson Tigers at Johnny Unitas Stadium in Towson, MD.

April 14, 2013; Towson, MD, USA; Old Dominion Monarchs midfielder Mary Margaret McCaleg (5) scores against Towson Tigers goalie Alyssa Saxon (12) at Johnny Unitas Stadium in Towson, MD

Out at Home

April 2, 2013; Baltimore, MD, USA; Notre Dame of Maryland Gators catcher Cara Cosaro tags out Nuemann Knights runner Allie White at Hartford Community College in Baltimore, MD.

I love baseball; there's nothing better sitting back with a cold beer and enjoying a ball game. That being said, sometimes there's absolutely no action or moments during the game, which makes it very challenging to shoot. You always have to be anticipating the play and be ready to capture it, but sometimes you never get the opportunity. Notre Dame's game against Nuemann was fairly normal until Nuemann loaded the bases with one out. All of that changed after a short-fly ball to center and the runner tagging up at third base. The centerfielder made a great throw giving the catcher time to tag out the runner for a double-play, ending the threat.

It had been a long time since I had an opportunity to capture a play at the plate. Sometimes you get lucky and sometimes you don't.

Falling Down

March 9, 2013; Baltimore, MD, USA; Notre Dame of Maryland Gators midfielder Katie Johnson (8) falls as she runs into Hiram defenders during the second half at Alumnae Field in Baltimore, MD.

The start of lacrosse is always a good sign. The cold Maryland winter is mostly over and the sun is usually shining. Lacrosse and the spring sports season in general has been a very busy time for me, which is awesome. The game was Notre Dame's first home game of the year and it was an awesome display of offensive power with Dame winning 13-1 over Hiram. Lots of good and different action on both sides of the ball for Dame.

The photo above was my favorite from the game. Like hitting a wall of defenders, you hit walls in life. Sometimes the walls sneak up on you and other times you think they can be scaled easily. Once you run into one, it's just a matter of getting back up and scaling the wall, no matter how high.

A few other favorites below and the gallery is here. Hiram at Notre Dame Lacrosse

March 9, 2013; Baltimore, MD, USA; Notre Dame of Maryland Gators attack Molly Murray (7) makes a run against Hiram in Women's Lacrosse at Alumnae Field in Baltimore, MD.

March 9, 2013; Baltimore, MD, USA; Notre Dame of Maryland Gators attack Katie Donadio (13) makes a run against Hiram in Women's Lacrosse at Alumnae Field in Baltimore, MD.

Quiet Entrance

December 8, 2012; Baltimore, MD, USA; Notre Dame Gators enter the court before the game against Marywood Pacers on campus in Baltimore, MD.

Each team I've ever been a part of or documented has a unique pre-game ritual, sometimes it changes if they are home or away, but it always represents the team. Most are loud and excited, but Notre Dame of Maryland's is quiet. The players rush to hit the court, but there is indifference from fans, an interesting mix that I've never seen before.

The last few months have been packed with assignments, travel and house renovations. A few more posts from recent work with Notre Dame to come, before a busy month of travel in April.

Doubleheader

January 6, 2012; Baltimore, MD, USA; Loyola Maryland Greyhounds enter before the game against the Saint Peter's Peacocks at Reitz Arena in Baltimore, MD.

Last month I had the opportunity to cover a double-header of basketball for Loyola Sports Information against their conference rival St. Peter's Peacocks. Working with Loyola's SID is always fun as they usually only want a bit of stock photos and then let me run wild. Unfortunately the games also coincided with the Colts vs. Raven's playoff games, so the crowd was fairly small and harder to find clean backgrounds. The game also provided a first for me: being the sole photographer at a D1 contest. Both contests were hard-fought with Loyola sweeping the day.

These were some of my favorites from the day.

January 6, 2012; Baltimore, MD, USA; Loyola Maryland Greyhounds forward Anthony Winbush (1) reacts before introductions against the Saint Peter's Peacocks at Reitz Arena in Baltimore, MD.

January 6, 2012; Baltimore, MD, USA; Loyola Maryland Greyhounds forward Erik Etherly (24) defends an inbound pass by Saint Peter's Peacocks guard  Chris Burke (22) in the first half at Reitz Arena in Baltimore, MD.

January 6, 2012; Baltimore, MD, USA; Loyola Maryland Greyhounds guard Dylon Cormier (3) and Saint Peter's Peacocks guard Chris Burke (22) goes for a loose ball in the first half at Reitz Arena in Baltimore, MD.

January 6, 2012; Baltimore, MD, USA; Loyola Maryland Greyhounds forward Anthony Winbush (1) defends Saint Peter's Peacocks guard Chris Burke (23) in the first half at Reitz Arena in Baltimore, MD.

January 6, 2012; Baltimore, MD, USA; Loyola Maryland Greyhounds guard Katie Sheahin (21) blocks Saint Peter's Peacocks forward Kaydine Bent (34) in the second half at Reitz Arena in Baltimore, MD.

January 6, 2012; Baltimore, MD, USA; Loyola Maryland Greyhounds forward Alyssa Sutherland (30) and guard Nai Brown (35) and Saint Peter's Peacocks guard Khadijah Young (24) go for a loose ball in the second half at Reitz Arena in Baltimore, MD.