Jamie Hubbard didn't forget the frustration of his sophomore season, when Friends couldn't generate an offense in a loss to John Carroll in the MIAA B Conference title game.
Now a senior midfielder, Hubbard has made John Carroll pay since then, leading Friends to last year's 13-4 rout of the Patriots in the MIAA B championship and this year's 12-4 regular-season romp over the Patriots.
FOR THE RECORD - The spelling of Brenndan Mohler has been corrected for the archive database. See microfilm for original story.
Last year's win was the fourth B Conference crown for Friends but its first since 1993, ending a three-year skein as runners-up to John Carroll.
Now at 8-1 overall (6-0 in the league), the 11th-ranked Quakers have a 13-game winning streak against conference foes. And coach Jon Garmen holds Hubbard responsible for that success.
"Jamie deserves a lot of credit for taking this program to a higher level. He pushes himself, and he pushes the other players," said Garmen, who likens Hubbard to 1993 Friends graduate Spencer Deering, who was a three-year starting midfielder at the University of North Carolina.
"They're very similar players in their abilities to read the field," Garmen added. "Jamie's scoring, yes, but he also rides well, plays good defense and he's creating and starting things for us."
At 6 feet 1, 195 pounds, Hubbard has benefited from weight lifting, having gained 30 pounds and grown five inches since his sophomore year.
"I'm a real aggressive player, so no question, it's [size] helped me," said Hubbard, who has scored at least a point in every game he's participated in since his sophomore season.
"I like to hit people."
Hubbard began honing his lacrosse skills in the third grade in the Kelly Post Recreation Council. Starting out as an attackman, Hubbard also saw action in the midfield growing up.
Hubbard's youth league experiences, along with those this past summer in the prestigious 205 camp and The National Junior Lacrosse Association (NJLA), often had him rubbing elbows with some of the area's best players, including Conor Gill and Michael Satyshur of St. Paul's, Alex Lieske and Ryan Boyle of Gilman and Brenndan Mohler of Catonsville.
He's sure that will be a benefit when he starts playing for Johns Hopkins next season.
"It was a big help, playing in the NJLA with those guys, but I feel like I can make the jump up to playing at Hopkins and that my best years are ahead of me," said Hubbard, who has 35 points (21 goals, 14 assists) this season and 146 points over three seasons at Friends.
"Being in the B Conference, it's going to be a step up in terms of playing with those kinds of people every day," Hubbard said. "It's a challenge that's only going to make me better."
Mount St. Joseph coach Steve Szlasa considers Hubbard to be among the area's best. After watching Hubbard score two left-handed goals with the Gaels' best defender on him, Szlasa called him "as good a player as we'll see all season."
"Those were two left-handed shots on the run [while going away from the goal.] They expected me to shoot from my right side," the ambidextrous Hubbard said. "My favorite shot is the cranker from the outside, but I've had a couple from behind the back."
But Hubbard mostly eschews the flashiness to involve teammates such as Mike Malim, Brian Valle, Jake Martin, Jesse Swain, Jesse Paulson and Joe Johnston. "We create a lot from the midfield, which I'm most proud of," Hubbard said. "The big thing about this team is that it's still developing."
The same can be said of Hubbard.
Pub Date: 4/26/98
