Matt Danowski plays attack for Duke, a Division I lacrosse program, and that means he spends most of the game being marked by large defenders playing with six-foot poles made from the same material used in fighter jets and dispositions not unlike an angry rottweiler.
The real difficulty for Danowski, though, lies in the fact that those defenders are always the opposition's best. Despite being just a freshmen, Danowski is already the Blue Devils' best offensive player.
And after a blazing start to the season in which he reached the top of the nation's scoring charts, it's been a much different story as of late.
After accumulating 15 goals and 10 assists in the team's first five games, Danowski's been limited to a goal and assist in the team's last four games--all against teams ranked in the top-seven nationally and all Duke losses.
Needless to say, it's been a rough month for the freshman, whose father, John Danowski, is the head coach at Hofstra.
"And the reason being is that Matt is drawing everybody's top defender each week," Duke head coach Mike Pressler said. "He got Maryland's best, North Carolina's best, Georgetown's best, Ohio State's best, and Hopkins' best. And that's a hell of a burden for a freshman."
Indeed, it is a cumbersome burden for a first-year player, but that's what's been expected of Danowski for a long time.
Danowski came to Duke as the top-rated recruit in his class after, among other things, leading New York's Farmingdale High School to the State Championship game his senior year.
He was also the top point getter on the Under-19 National team that won a gold medal at last summer's World Championships. (Fellow Blue Devils sophomores Matt Zash, Bret Thompson, Glenn Nick and freshmen Peter Lamade also played on that team).
And with Duke coming into the 2004 season without its top four scorers from last's year's squad, it was no secret that the freshman was going to immediately be counted upon to be a huge part of the offense.
"Matt's different from a lot of freshmen," Pressler said. "But Matt's been one of the top offensive players for the last two years in lacrosse. His resume backs that up. He's used to carrying that kind of burden. He did in high school for practically the number one team in the nation. He did for the under-19 team, our national team last summer, and he's doing it for Duke."
Watching Danowski play, two things become quite clear rather quickly: he has a lot of talent, and he is still a rookie. High-quality plays are sometimes thwarted by forced passes or hurried decisions.
He has, after all, been matching up against the best defensive players in the country for the last month. Rookie mistakes, which are occasionally followed by a frustrated-jumping-up-and-down-Danowski, happen.
Heck, even Lebron James has bad games with some regularity.
"It's a challenge every week," Danowski said. "I've gone against three or four All-Americans already in my freshmen year. We know we haven't played our best yet, and I haven't played my best yet. It's tough when you draw the number one poll. [Pressler has been] real helpful with me telling me to be patient, tell me not to push things, to let the game come to me, which is something I still need to learn and work on."
When Danowski is playing with patience, it's easy to see why he was the most sought after high school player in the country last year. A lot of his success is due to his natural talent, but a lot of it comes from being a coach's son.
In fact, Danowski almost ended up being his own coach's son as his father's Hofstra team and the Blue Devils were the final two programs he was seriously considering (he also took visits at Syracuse and Princeton).
For Danowski, who also played quarterback in high school, where to go to was surprisingly easy. At his dad's urging, he went to the school that could offer him the best education.
"I sat down with my father after I told him it was going to be either Hofstra or duke," Danowski said. "He basically just told me he wanted me to come to Duke because the academics and he knew coach Pressler is a good guy."
Pressler and John Danowski now speak every week, and Pressler sends Duke's game tapes up to Hofstra as well.
At the moment Duke is in the crucial part of its season. With their backs against the wall (4-5 record, 0-2 in the ACC), the Blue Devils travel to Virginia (3-6, 0-2 in the ACC) this weekend. Even with a win against the defending national champions, an ACC tournament title will probably be the only way Duke gets into the NCAA tournament this year.
But there is good news for Blue Devil fans.
Danowski's lucky t-shirt is back after a long hiatus. It didn't win in its collegiate debut against Hopkins last week, but you never know.
"Hopefully, it will bring us some luck in the coming weeks because we are going to need some, I think," Danowski said."
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.