Sports
Mens DI College Lacrosse
Shaw's tough break came just as he was breaking through

May 8, 2008

An injury cut Tim Shaw (Virginia Class of 2008) down as his senior season was just gearing up for tournament play this month.

When Tim Shaw left Darien, recruited to play big time college lacrosse at the University of Virginia four years ago, it was the prospect of performing for the very highly regarded Cavaliers’ bench boss — Dom Starsia — that made his eyes light up like a pair of thousand-watt fireflies.

An entire career down the pike, and now Shaw (DHS Class of 2004, Virginia ’08) can be pleased to know that for Starsia the feelings are mutual.

“He was great — the guys that brought it hard to the cage, those were his best moments,” Starsia recalled while mulling what Shaw, a stocky defender showed him over the years. “Because it played to his strengths.”

But unfortunately for Shaw, and the Cavaliers the way he was playing his senior year ever since fall ball, his best moments in the NCAA tournament settled into the dust of what might have been. That was two weeks ago when Shaw, hampered by an injured groin, succumbed to the inevitable several games shy of the big national mens lax ball which begins this week.

“They are not all storybook endings,” Starsia said. “When you get your chance at making an impact, then wind up injured... But I think he has had a great career here.

“It has been fun to watch unfold — it was nice to see earlier this year when he got his chance and made the most of it.”

The Cavaliers received a bid to the 2008 NCAA Mens Lacrosse Championship and will host UMBC in the first round Sunday. The tournament’s second seed, Virginia is 12-3 this season and currently ranked third in the coaches poll.

This is Virginia’s 31st tournament appearance overall, second behind Johns Hopkins with 37. The Cavaliers won the national championship two years ago and has received a bid in 15 of the last 16 seasons.

Virginia was defeated by Duke 11-9 to win the Atlantic Coast Conference championship two weeks ago. And it had to hurt more than his damaged groin when Shaw, needing surgery, missed the ACC playoffs too.

“He developed an issue with his groin — finally it was diagnosed,” Starsia said of Shaw who also had a dinged up shoulder to play through as well this season. “It was a hernia that needed to be fixed, because it was only going to compound a stress fracture.

“He was knocked out (of the playoffs) unfortunately.”

But not before making his mark at the highest level of college competition.
“He’s a great kid, you know, he is one of those guys that started to break into the line-up last year,” Starsia said. “Very versatile athlete, it’s what I saw in high school.”

Speed, and bullish attributes are what sold Shaw to Starsia as a star Wave defender back in 2003, ’04.

“He had great feet — just great athletic ability overall,” Starsia added.

But nothing comes easy in mens Division I.

“It just took him a little while,” Starsia said. “He got here at a time when we were very experienced and talented, and he kind of had to wait his turn.”

Last season Shaw’s number seemed to be up.

“And then last year it broke for him a little bit,” Starsia said. “And frankly, his versatility probably worked against him a little bit. Because we were riddled with injuries early in the year, and we had been playing some smaller games in the
off-season — where I have all of the defensemen play with short sticks.

“And Tim was pretty good at it.”

But his versatility certainly helped the team.

“And so when we got hurt so badly earlier last year, especially in our defensive midfield, I needed to put somebody there,” Starsia said. “And I asked Tim to do it, and he was more than happy to jump in.”

And up jumped the Cavaliers in 2007.

“We went from losing our first game last year, with a very young team, to winning 10 games in a row,” Starsia said. “And going on to being the No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament. And Tim had a lot to do with that.”

Tim Shaw ran riot over both the Blue Wave football and lacrosse fields in his time in Darien in the earliest years of this quick closing out decade.

Certainly too, it seemed Shaw would jump his highest hurdle this spring.

“And going into this year he was back, played long stick the whole  time — and he was in the mix,” Starsia said. “He was playing, he was starting the first 10 games, I think, until he was just hurt.”

Shaw’s injury did not come before showing Starsia all his four-year defender had in him.

“So, it was nice to have him finally kind of get what he wanted,” Starsia said. “The most difficult part of my job is when these guys that come here with such high expectations don’t quite reach those expectations playing-wise.

“And they all don’t. Sometimes they have to wait longer than they like.”

Shaw started in 10 games and played in 13, scooping 15 ground balls this season.

“I give Tim a lot of credit for working hard, continuing to hang in there until his opportunity arose,” Starsia said.

Often, when his star did rise, it was the Cavaliers’ most lethal opponents who found their own dimming.

“He was one of our best 1-on-1 defenders,” Starsia said. “So early in the season I would put him on the best attackman — he may have been our best cover guy, because he just had great feet. And a toughness about playing a guy — that he
could just take someone out.”

It is no wonder Shaw cut up his groin playing the gladiatorial role on the back-line.
“You could put him on a quality offensive player and know that he was going to be covered,” Starsia said. “And until his body broke down on him late in the season, he almost always drew the toughest match-up for us.”

And whomever he was matched up against also found it was going to be some truly tough going.

“He covered the (Dan) Hardy kid for Syracuse, who is at 6-5, 225, and I can still picture him covering the (Grant) Catalino boy from Maryland,” Starsia added. “Who is also probably 6-3, 250, you know.”

Sounds like Shaw got in his best shots when he was able to.

“He is not a big kid — 5-foot-11 (190 pounds) or so, but he is unusually strong,” Starsia said. “And I think attackmen who leaned into him discovered that when they really tried to press the cage.”

What’s Starsia going to remember best about him?

“Guys that brought the ball hard to the cage were his best match-ups,” Starsia said. “They ran into a stump waiting for them at the corner.”



© Copyright 2008 by Hersam Acorn Newspapers