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NCAA MEN’S LACROSSE CHAMPIONSHIPMay 29, 2016Joe BreschiChris CloutierSteve PontrelloPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania THE MODERATOR: Joining us we have Chris Cloutier and Steve Pontrello and Coach Breschi. Coach, a quick opening statement. COACH BRESCHI: We are so thrilled and excited to be here and have the opportunity on Monday to compete for a national championship. But I think more importantly it's a credit to these young men who have worked so hard all year and have battled through early woes in the season and to be in this position is certainly magnificent on their part. And like we've always approached every game, it's really just another game. And we need to bring that energy and emotion as we brought certainly the last half of the season. THE MODERATOR: Questions? Q. (Question off microphone). CHRIS CLOUTIER: I would just say it's not too bad, like, switching roles because you have guys like Steve and Luke who know a little bit what they're doing. Anywhere you go on this team people are going to help you. Once you settle in it just becomes a little bit more, it becomes more and more like easy and it's rare -- it's like Coach said, it's wherever you are put, you just go out and do what you can and just play your role. STEVE PONTRELLO: Definitely it was a learning process for sure. I knew I wanted to switch to attack after last year's loss to Maryland. I had a feeling Chris would do the same. It's more just about six guys working together offensively and we've done a great job of that. Q. For any of you guys, what do you think about the statement that you guys are playing with house money this week, that you're really loose in this tournament? STEVE PONTRELLO: I think people might say that, but I think we are very loose. It's just a great thing to be here. I know I don't feel any pressure. I don't think any of these guys do, and that's just kind of how we play -- one game at a time and just sharing the ball and playing good team defense and excited for Monday. COACH BRESCHI: It's one of those things where maybe in the past the teams have been under a little bit more pressure with higher seeds and so forth and this year, in particular. I think we were all kind of a little bit nervous about the selection show, when it was all coming out. We weren't sure -- we felt good but we weren't sure if we were going to get in. And then we saw the first, that Hopkins and Navy got in the first screen and everybody was kind of, like, uh-ho. And then when we saw our name, the whole room exploded and really it was a relief to get in. We were unseeded. So from there on out we were underdogs. We've taken that mentality of playing free and loose and playing together and playing for each other and that's been the result of where we are now. Q. For any of you, may I ask about Dave Metzbower? This ain't his first rodeo, playing twice in three days on Memorial Day Weekend. What experience has he parlayed to you and how confident are you, the chances tomorrow having him in your corner? COACH BRESCHI: He's such a good looking guy back there. Dave and I have known each other for a long time and it was pretty cool. I had a moment before we got on the bus yesterday to head over and I just, we hugged it out and I said thanks for taking the chance and coming down to Chapel Hill and being a part of this and he's been an enormous part of our success. Obviously the offense has jelled tremendously and it was just so easy going, easy to talk to. His relationship with the players is tremendous, and having been there I think it's relaxed all of us a little bit just with what he brings to the table. And I thought it was pretty cool yesterday up in the suite with Metzy and his family and my family and Coach Tierney was there to support Dave as well. So it's a neat family atmosphere. And to have him come down and be part of the UNC family is pretty special. And I thank him for coming down to Chapel Hill. CHRIS CLOUTIER: I would just say just knowing with how much experience he has, all of us, especially on offense, have complete trust in what he says and that really helps us like take a little bit off our shoulders and just knowing that he just knows what we have to do and we just go out and do it. Q. I want to build off the earlier question about the offense and the number of different pieces and places, and the guys that emerged this year that didn't necessarily have larger roles. What was it like constructing that in the fall, even into the early portion of this season? And just not just the willingness of guys to embrace the idea of everybody playing their part, but just what was it like kind of starting anew in a lot of ways after where you guys were last year? COACH BRESCHI: I thought it was -- it's always exciting. It's a little nerve racking. You get a little anxious about who is going to play what role in the offense, but a lot of conversations with Coach Metz about who fits wear and it's been a process. In the fall everybody kind of floated around in different spots. And even in the early part of the season you could see these two guys, Steve and Chris, who were midfielders previously, going down to attack, and almost everybody was kind of looking around for guys to make plays and finally I think after the 3-3 start we all kind of just laid it on the table and said, everybody's got to make plays because there's not a guy we can turn to and say, hey, take over a game. Now, what's happened there is we're pretty tough to cover if everybody does their job to the best of their ability. And I think that's what's kind of unfolded the second half of the year, is that everybody's done -- played their role very well and played to the best to their ability. And that builds confidence as they start to say, hey, you know what, we don't have to rely on Steve or Chris or Luke to make plays all the time, but we can collectively -- sometimes, you look at our scores, sometimes it's the midfielders have most of the goals and like yesterday it was the attack. It's just fun to see these guys all working together. And they really share the credit very well. And the second midfield, the development of that group has just been really special. Timmy Kelly, consistency of Will McBride who is kind of a workhorse for us, plays a little bit of defense, offense. Brian Cannon, who, a guy who started on the scout team earlier in the year, and I kept looking at him and looking at him saying, this guy's gotta go down to that end of the field and we've got to find a spot for him. And I think these guys mentioned it, the belief and trust in Coach Metz and putting these guys in a great position for success all builds everybody's confidence. Q. Steve and Chris, along similar lines, you obviously have seen the Maryland defense before. What are kind of the pluses and minuses of maybe getting another crack at them and things you can do different this time? STEVE PONTRELLO: I mean, the first game we played them, they're a very good defense. They took us out of what we wanted to do. And I think watching film and regrouping, I think, just getting another shot at them is offense. But like I said they're a very good defense. If we share the rock and everybody plays and does their role, I think we'll be fine. CHRIS CLOUTIER: I mean, there's not too much more to say after what Steve just said. But all I'm going to say is they're obviously very good. And earlier in the year, when we played them, we weren't -- we hadn't really settled into what we're doing now. And if we -- right now we're continuously sharing the rock and moving the ball faster than we ever have been before and I think that will help us. Q. You guys played Maryland about two months ago, lost to them by three goals. You have another crack at them. Do you see any differences between the Maryland team you faced in late March and now, if any? COACH BRESCHI: With them in particular? They're the number one team in the country for a reason. They have talent at midfield. Their attack is special. Defensively they're sound. Their goalie is exceptional. They're deep all the way across the board. So they're the number one team in the country and we're just the unseeded group that's here crashing the party. So I have all the -- I'm trying to think -- I just think the world of their coaching staff and team. And we look forward -- we're just excited to be here, really, and look forward to the opportunity to play Monday. Q. You said you guys are excited to be here. I think the alumni is, too. Could you describe the connection of being able to get this program back to championship weekend? COACH BRESCHI: One of the alums asked -- I talked to Dan Levy, actually, whose wife is playing in the national championship game, Jenny, today, against Maryland. And I said: Sorry it took so long to get back to the Final Four in the eight years that we've tried to build the program back to where we feel as an alum myself where the program should be. And he said: Well, better this year than last year with the '91 team being back here to celebrate their silver anniversary. So it's really special to come back at this time. I was fortunate enough to be assistant for Dave Klarmann back in '91 when we won the national championship and to be able to celebrate them at halftime here is great. And hopefully we'll have a few more fans in the process. Q. Steve, can you go back to post 3-3 start, the team meeting and everything and it's not like this thing just got fixed after that meeting. I mean, you were zigging and zagging there for a few more weeks. When does this team kind of breathe it in and say this thing is turning? Was it all about that fourth quarter against Notre Dame, that crazy comeback, or was it building to that with a lot of good stuff that maybe we didn't see? STEVE PONTRELLO: Definitely that 3-3 was a crossroads for this team. I think when we started playing the second half of our schedule, it was better teams. We kind of knew how good we could be. I think in the beginning we were kind of playing down our competition, taking teams lightly because the parity in college lacrosse is very good. I think once starting playing those better teams beating Richmond, beating Duke, we knew what we were capable of and we all believed in each other. And obviously you want to be playing your best lacrosse towards the end of the year. That's what this team did. And listening to our coaching staff they really prepared us well, and after that we really were a team after that. Q. Joe, I think you were the only ACC team to continue the rivalry with Maryland before they left for the Big Ten. Why was it important for you to keep playing them? COACH BRESCHI: We certainly have a good relationship and a respect for Coach Tillman and know how talented he is as a recruiter and coach and for us to continue to come to the Maryland area and play a quality team, you know it's going to help your RPI and vice versa. We've had great conversations about that as well. We feel like if we play one of the toughest schedules in the country every year it's going to give you, whether you're 8-6, as we were heading into this tournament or 10-4, you're going to increase your chances of getting into the tournament or increasing your seed for both of us. So we had those conversations that it's helpful for recruiting, it's helpful for NCAA Tournament possibilities and just an overall respect I think we both have for one another's programs and staffs and players. It was just so great at the banquet the other night to see childhood friends Rambo and Pifani hang out together the entire night and just reliving the dream of playing for the Duke's lacrosse club. And I think the interaction between the players, everybody knows everybody on each team, and it's kind of a cool thing, there's that mutual respect between programs and staffs that allows us to keep this tradition going. So I think they'll come to us next year and I think we're going to go after California the year after that. We hope to, yeah. Q. First meeting you had with Maryland, Matt Rambo scored four goals and a little bit of a heater in the NCAA Tournament. What strategy do you have against a guy like him? COACH BRESCHI: He's a tough cover, obviously an exceptional player. He loves to get top side for his left hand. It was funny at the banquet, too -- and I said: You looked over at me after you scored your fourth goal. And he said: Yeah, I was wondering when you were going to start doubling me. So it was all in fun because we recruited him as well. But he's an exceptional player. So I think just having a couple different looks to throw at him will be hopefully to get him off balance but he's a great player. And he's surrounded by five other really talented players on the field. So we have to play great team defense in order to not just stop him but to hopefully to slow down their offense. THE MODERATOR: Thank you. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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