Lee Zink
A Calming Force
In three months, the biggest event in lacrosse history will descend on Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, a 25-minute drive from
Lee Zink’s home in Colorado.
Zink, a quiet, polite sort, takes his hosting role seriously as a member of Team USA. He’s among 30 players in the running for the final 23 spots for a U.S. team that will defend its gold medal at the Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) World Championship July 10-19 in Commerce City, Colo. A record 38 countries will compete in front of a fan base that has set a plethora of professional lacrosse attendance records with the National Lacrosse League’s Colorado Mammoth and Zink’s Denver Outlaws of Major League Lacrosse. Zink, 32, gets better with age. The two-time reigning MLL Defensive Player of the Year now stands on the threshold of making the U.S. team in his third attempt. After missing the cut in 2006, Zink traveled with the team to England as an alternate in 2010.
As the second-oldest member of
Team USA (he’s two months younger than Kevin Leveille), Zink admits he has lost a step. But his rigid and relentless position defense — helped by his massive wingspan and 6-foot-4 frame — is viewed as the antidote for Team Canada legend John Grant Jr.
In two MLL encounters last summer, Zink held Grant to one goal and one assist. Grant, who starred in the
62 LACROSSE MAGAZINE April 2014>> A Publication of US Lacrosse
Chesapeake Bayhakws’ run to the 2013 MLL title, was traded to Outlaws and also plays for the Mammoth. The Ontario native now lives fulltime in Denver. So Zink will get a teammate’s perspective on a potential rival. “One of the biggest challenges when you face Canada is how do you stop one of their main offensive threats?’’ Zink said. “I’m not stronger. I’m not bigger. I’m not going to muscle him. He and I have both lost a step. But when you get older, you get smarter.”
Jesse Schwartzman, one of three goalies vying likely for two spots on the U.S. team, enjoys a bird’s-eye view of Zink’s lockdown abilities as a six-time MLL All-Star with the Outlaws. “He’s neither the biggest nor the strongest, but he’s versatile. He can play a speedy player. He can play behind the net or in front of the net,” Schwartzman said. “He doesn’t get too many highs and he doesn’t get too many lows. He is a calming force. He leads by example. He’s not a screamer. If you give up a goal, he makes sure you know what’s wrong, and we fix it.’’
Those attributes were enough to convince Team USA defensive coordinator Dave Pietramala that Zink deserved the chance to move one step closer to a dream he has pursued for the last nine years. “It’s hard to turn your back on his experience,” said Pietramala, who tried to get Zink to play for him at Johns Hopkins before Zink landed at rival Maryland. “I said to him, ‘I recruited the heck out of you, and I’m glad to have a chance to coach you.’”
A brief episode of phone tag betwen Pietramala and Zink delayed the good news. When Zink finally heard it, he texted his wife, Kiera, then called his parents, waiting a few hours because his father was in Australia. Schwartzman said Zink’s call came four years too late, insisting that he belonged on the 2010 U.S. team. But Zink was diplomatic.
“Going into those 2010 tryouts, the coaches had an outline of exactly what they need on their team and what role they want people to fill,’’ he said. “If you fit those roles, it’s great. If you don’t fit those roles, or if you’re not able to adapt to assume those roles, it’s harder.”
©SCOTT MCCALL
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