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NCAA MEN'S LACROSSE CHAMPIONSHIPMay 29, 2017Tom CareyNick MyersTyler PfisterBoston, Massachusetts Maryland - 9, Ohio State - 6 THE MODERATOR: Coach, an opening statement, and then questions for the players. NICK MYERS: I appreciate it. I want to first start by congratulating Maryland. They've had an incredible year. And Coach Tillman and his staff, I think our men would say they certainly brought out, as I said earlier in the week, the best in us. They've got a great group of men, and I know that they've been here a couple times, and just, again, genuinely happy for them and their achievement. That being said, I'd just take this opportunity to thank these men that I have here and thank the Buckeyes that are in that locker room that have really given us everything that they could possibly, that a coach could ask for. They've created a new standard both on the field and off, an expectation, and helped really define what we refer to as the Buckeye way. So as a coach, is there a degree of disappointment? Certainly. But I couldn't be more proud. I've gotten questions all week about how does it feel, and what does this mean for the program? It's really coming together now. To just feel the incredible pride that I have to be up here with these two men is just something I can't even describe. So on behalf of the athletic department, Gene, I see you here, thank you for all you've done to support us. Sheila, our administration, all the Buckeye fans that traveled, and Buckeye Nation that came along for the ride. We're just incredibly proud, and thankful and appreciative. Q. Tom, I know it's early to kind of look back on what this all has been. For you it was a five-year journey throughout college Lacrosse, kind of what has this meant to you and this moment and all of that? TOM CAREY: Yeah, I mean, obviously it hasn't fully set in yet, but it's been a heck of a ride, and I couldn't be more happy and have more pride to finish it out here with these guys. I guess pride is a word that gets thrown around a lot, but if you look in that locker room today, there is just so much of it and there still is. I think to finish this way, and obviously it wasn't the way we wanted, but there is a lot of pride left in that locker room that I know those guys are going to carry on the next couple of years. Q. Tom, I think it seemed that Maryland had dominated the possession in the second and third quarters. How much did that weigh on you guys as a defense? TOM CAREY: Yeah, it goes both ways. We've had games all season where it can be defensive heavy or we can possess the ball for a lot of time. But, yeah, there was pressure on our D, but there was pressure on the O, too, and it goes back and forth. We played with seven on the defensive front, so it's not an offensive-defensive thing. But, yeah, I'm not really sure about that yet. Q. Tyler, if you could just talk about the emotions on the sideline when you guys had pulled within two there towards the end? TYLER PFISTER: Yeah, absolutely. And to kind of echo Tom, I think there is a ton of pride and a ton of belief in that locker room, and I think we've been in that position a couple times before. So being down the way we were and being able to fight back the way we did was something that wasn't necessarily new to us, but it was something that, as we caught fire there for a little bit, that belief was definitely kindled again. We've got the players and we've got the belief. You know, we thought that was something that could continue to take us further. Unfortunately, we just didn't have enough time at the end of the game, for sure. Q. Tyler, was it something offensively that Maryland was doing on defense to keep you guys at bay? TYLER PFISTER: Yeah, you get a lot of respect for Maryland's defense. And I think we put ourselves in some tough positions with the way that we wanted to play and definitely wanted them to play us back. But I don't know if it was anything that they were doing, necessarily. It's just sometimes our inability to execute the scheme and things like that. But definitely credit Maryland and their preparation in it as well. THE MODERATOR: Okay. Questions for Coach. Q. I know it's early for this to sink in, but what about the idea of putting Ohio State on the map Lacrosse-wise, getting to the Final Four and getting to the championship game? Can you address that a little bit? NICK MYERS: Sure. I appreciate the compliment. I think that we've certainly been on the map. This was a big step. The three quarterfinals we've been to, to get back here this year with this group, I just felt like there was this eagerness. There was a feeling that we started the May Lacrosse that we really wanted to extend May. We had that team meeting the first weekend of May after the Big Ten Championship, and the men brought the locker room together, and I met with the seniors. They just said here's what the next three and a half weeks are going to look like. And that first day before the selection show, there was no one in that locker room that didn't think we were going to play another three weeks. When you have locker room that talks that way, and trains that way, and believes that way, to me that's a really special thing. So maybe for me it's more of an inside look at how excited I am to have a group of men, as these men said, that truly believe that we belong here on this stage in the Final Four weekend, and believe that we'll be back. Q. While he's just one player, what has Tom Carey meant to you, and him coming over to Ohio State? He seems like he's really been the backbone of this squad. Talked a little about the pride. What are your thoughts on him over the last couple years? NICK MYERS: Tom has been great. Goalie is such an incredible position as a whole. You have to have someone there that is a leader to a degree. And Tom, although he's not a captain, he's a guy that really rallies our defense. I thought he played incredible today. We were even, 4-4 in the second half, and for the amount -- I think we played the first seven minutes of the third quarter on defense and hung in there, and hung in there and allowed ourselves that chance to make it back, and Tom was a big reason why. You know, Tom's someone that we're going to miss, certainly. He's a guy that's been in a lot of big games. We've won a lot of big games behind Tom and his play, and on a personal level, working with him every day, I just couldn't be prouder of him. He just graduated a couple weeks ago, and he's got a very bright future ahead of him. Q. Nick, you had talked about how this offense wasn't just Rambo-driven, it seemed to come to fruition. How difficult was it to sort of defend all the pieces that they can throw out there? NICK MYERS: Yeah, again, they're the most complete team we've played all season. I like to think that we've played a lot of good Lacrosse teams. They just top to bottom -- especially on the offensive end, they're extremely balanced. They're very well-coached. They're unselfish, and they're going to make you play defense for sometimes two and three minutes. I think for us, especially in that second quarter there is where I felt like the game separated a little bit, where we just had some really long possessions. When they score in the end of a long possession, and you end up back on defense at times, that can be problematic. We both felt like that was what we were trying to do to each other. We did it early to them, and then they got ahold of it. But to your point, they are a very balanced offense and I think that they have five, six guys that right off the bat are guys that you have to really account for. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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