For every program, the proverbial step up from dark house candidate to expected national championship contender is difficult to make. Since reaching the Final Four in 1997, Duke men's lacrosse has been so close to joining the NCAA elite.
Last season the Blue Devils fell 10-9 to eventual national champion Syracuse, one of many NCAA quarterfinal losses to leave the Blue Devils clawing at the door to championship glory.
"For me it's always the body of your work--what did you accomplish in the end?" Pressler said. "We've been six years in a row to the NCAA Tournament. We've been to two ACC finals the last two years, winning them both. We've been right there. We've been so close to the ultimate goal, and that's why these kids are here."
The morale in Durham is high, to say the least. Coaches and players alike speak earnestly about a national title in the team's realistic goals.
However, the Blue Devils have many intermediate focuses--particularly staving off temporary funks, like regular season defeats to inferior schools, that have held back previous Duke teams from truly dominant seasons.
Another attention area has been the Blue Devils' conditioning style. Once known throughout NCAA lacrosse for its hulking size, Duke has had to adjust its conditioning style to combat the speed and quickness of rival opponents. Speed coach Joe Hauser has aided that transition.
"We're at the top of our sport when it comes to conditioning and lifting and all the aspects that you need," Cassese said. "But, granted, they're only steps. The biggest thing you have to do is put them all together."
A two-time team captain and 2002 NCAA midfielder of the year, Cassese will be a major factor in that process. The 2003 preseason first team All-America heads up what has the potential to be an extremely lethal offensive unit. He is joined by fellow preseason All-America attackman Kevin Brennan, midfielder Matt Rewkowski and others.
"On a whole I'd say we're a smaller team," Brennan said. "We're placing more emphasis on stick work, but we're not taking anything away from lifting because that's always been our M.O."
The attack quintet will also feature returnees Matt Monfett, Ben Fenton and Mack Hardaker, along with freshman Dan Flannery. Primary among the offensive unit's tasks is to improve their scoring output against zone defenses.
At times unstoppable against teams willing to man up against them, the Blue Devils offense grinds to a halt sometimes against zone coverages.
"We have to improve our outside shot," Brennan said. "Man-to-man, there are not too many teams that can match up with us--We have so many weapons on offense. But when a zone comes, it's going to be executing our plays in the zone to get guys the right shots."
If the offense shines as expected, Duke might be able to build tremendous leads as fifth-year senior A.J. Kincel returns for a final year in net. A second-team preseason All-America, Kincel is an anchor in for the Blue Devil defense.
"On thing about A.J. that I love is he's got a short memory," Pressler said. "If one goes in, it don't bother him any. If he makes a great save, he wants to make another one. So, he doesn't get caught up in the moment."
Pressler and company will need the reliable Kincel a great deal this season--particularly early on as the Blue Devils adjust to graduation losses along the defensive backfront. Gone are defensemen Dan Hauber and Michael Ferrari, as well as valued contributor Jon Enberg.
Replacing them will be Paul Jepsen, Bill Gerrish and converted midfielder Taylor Wray.
"We always have a tenacious mentality, and we're emphasizing that as usual," Gerrish said. "We have two sets of large shoes to fill in Ferrari and Hauber, and myself, Jepson and T-Wray-We're up for the challenge."
All in all, the attitude is extremely positive as the Blue Devils attack preseason drills out on the astroturf fields next to Koskinen Stadium. The expectations are once again high, as is Duke's confidence that it can be among the last two teams standing in Baltimore this coming May, playing for the national title.
"We were certainly disappointed in losing to Syracuse in the quarterfinals, but I knew the day we left that field that we had a hell of a team coming back," Pressler said. "I waited eight months to coach this team knowing that the class of 2003, these 11 guys--we're going to be something else."
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