Sports are exciting to watch. Whether it’s in person or on television, athletics has a profound way of drawing viewers in. One aspect that makes sports enticing to watch is an athlete’s competitive drive. However, another innate factor that makes sports such a thriller may surprise many. Fans and their passion for the game intensify bouts between teams and may even affect gameplay in certain circumstances. The Marist men’s lacrosse team hosted Hartford on Tuesday night and had some… unanticipated support from the stands.
One of the Marist parents, who asked to remain anonymous, was undoubtedly the loudest man in the arena who wasn’t scared to express how he felt about the game. His explicit language during the game was a crowd-pleaser, as many spectators laughed at his comments and even encouraged him to continue the lecture that he was giving.
During the first quarter, he shouted at no. 18 on the Marist lacrosse team saying, “You finally woke up from your coma,” referencing that the player hadn’t been playing well. He also commended the team on their stellar defense in the third quarter. At one point, Marist held Hartford scoreless for approximately 30 minutes just as they did to Army the game before.
What seemed to be a tight game at first ended up being another blowout for the Red Foxes. Marist and the Hawks traded goals up until the second quarter. After that, Marist proved to be worthy of their 19 overall national ranking, beating the Hawks 14-6.
Patrick, a dad on the Marist side, was thrilled with the win. “I am very pleased with how the team played tonight,” he said. “We have one of our great players who is out and the rest of the team stepped up to the plate to carry the load.”
Chris Schlappich, a senior on the team, was also excited to get the win after having a losing history against Hartford during his athletic career. Before Tuesday night, the Red Foxes had lost to the Hawks in eight out of 11 meetings. Schlappich said, “It’s definitely a team we struggled with in the past so, to come out here and get a win like that it’s amazing.”
After the game, JT Roselle was asked about Marist’s defense in the third quarter. “In halftime, we made some adjustments and the coach did a great job getting us ready for the 2nd half,” he said. “Our seniors did a great job; we were winning faceoffs, our goalie, Jake MacGregor, was making saves, and our offense was clicking.” Roselle scored four goals Tuesday night, a career-high for the junior. However, it was Joe Tierney that led the Red Foxes with a career-high five goals on nine shot attempts. Marist defeating the Hawks helped propel their record to 3-1 and surged them to the top of the MAAC standings.
When it’s all said and done sports fans and their passion for the game is contagious. But, competitive sports parents are in a category of their own when it comes to ridiculing their children and referees. Yes, they will be the first to uplift their children when they are playing but also be the first to rip them if they are not playing well. The opposing team, referee, and other parents are also well in the insult range when things don’t seem to be going their way.