STEEL CITY SELECT - BLACK: DICK'S SPORTING GOODS TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS TEAM PREVIEW
(October 08, 2008)
Location: Pittsburgh
Head Coach: Kee Joe Song
Established: 2004
Colors: Black & gold
Qualified: Champion, Colonial Cup
by CJ Lane
“We are an underdog because we come from Pittsburgh.”
That’s what Steel City Select - Black senior midfielder Chris White (All-American, committed to Princeton University) said when discussing his team playing in the Dick’s Sporting Goods Tournament of Champions in January.
“When we get to play a team like HeadStrong or Edge, they might overlook us,” continued White. “So we have nothing to lose; they already expect us to. It’s a good position [for us].”
“We can hang with these teams,” says junior goalie Will Round (Mount Lebanon High School). “Don’t take us lightly. We are good lacrosse players and can hold our own.”
While many teams in the national championship elite bracket will be made up of juniors and seniors, Steel City has some sophomores as well. It’s the overall dynamic of the team that Steel City head coach Kee Joe Song raves about.
“[We have] a good core of seniors and a good core of talented sophomores.”
Attackman Dan Roman (all-league, Mount Lebanon H.S.) and White, two of the team’s elder statesmen, believe that the seniors show good leadership on and off the field.
“In a way, we are leading the [younger players] into battle,” said White. “We respect the competition but don’t fear it.”
In January, Steel City’s young and old will face its greatest on-field challenge to-date.
“It is going to be awesome,” says White. “It is literally going to be the tournament of champions.”
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