O
n a drizzly Saturday morning in late March on the lacrosse field at Charlotte Country Day (N.C.) School, Charlotte Hounds’ attackman Devan Spilker tried to call out instructions to a
teammate. But Spilker hesitated. “Hey, 12, what’s your name?” Spilker asked attackman Craig Dowd, who was wearing jersey No 12. “Craig!” Dowd shouted back. That’s probably how it is going to be for a while for the expansion Hounds, one of two new Major League Lacrosse franchises this season. They had little time and a lot of ground to cover before their season opener April 28 against the Denver Outlaws in Charlotte’s Memorial Stadium. Hounds midfielder Stephen Berger showed enthusiasm for his new teammates and surroundings. Like most of them, Berger doesn’t live in Charlotte. They flew into town from various geographic outposts March 30 for their first weekend of practice, team-building and conditioning. “I love it here,” said Berger, a five-time MLL all-star who was acquired by the Hounds along with attackman Matt Danowski from the Long Island Lizards. “We’ve come in
here in shape because we love this game. Now it’s just getting out there and getting to know each other. We’ve played against each other in a lot of cases, too, so we know each other’s behaviors. And things aren’t going to be as stale here as with a lot of other teams. After taking physicals on a Friday, the Hounds’ long weekend began in earnest that night at a Charlotte training center, where about 30 prospective players went through an NFL-style combine of drills that measured strength, agility and speed. Defenseman Ryan Flanagan watched his new teammates work out at the combine and counted several whom he played with and against in college at North Carolina – and more that he knew even before that. “I had to cover Danowski at Duke,” Flanagan said. “He’s a really good guy and it will be great playing with him. Although I still hate Duke. The [Virginia] and Maryland guys, I know all of them. I played little league football with [rookie midfielder] Justin Turri. He was quarterback; I was center.” Flanagan is one of a few Hounds players who will live in Charlotte fulltime, and he is anxious to get back on the field. He played his final two seasons at North Carolina with
Jovan Miller
Billy Bitter
A Publication of US Lacrosse
May 2012 >> LACROSSE MAGAZINE 61
©PEYTON WILLIAMS
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