If familiarity breeds contempt, then the Book of Cliches never encountered lacrosse.
With the hiring of Dave Pietramala at Johns Hopkins last June, what was already an insular game in Baltimore and beyond is cozier than ever before.
When Pietramala did two stints as a Blue Jays assistant, his boss was Tony Seaman, who moved up Charles Street to Towson. "Petro" also spent a season at Loyola, so he has learned from Dave Cottle.
FOR THE RECORD - In yesterday's Sports section, a statement by Princeton lacrosse coach Bill Tierney appeared in a caption with a photo of Johns Hopkins men's lacrosse coach Dave Pietramala, mistakenly attributing the quote to Pietramala. The Sun regrets the error.
Pietramala's coach when he played for Hopkins was Don Zimmerman, who's now the boss at UMBC. A new Blue Jays assistant is Seth Tierney, whose uncle built the Princeton dynasty. When Bill Tierney was the defensive coordinator at Hopkins, who was his star pupil?
Pietramala.
"It does get a little bit incestuous," said Tierney, the Princeton coach, who recruits against his friends in Baltimore. "Good, young coaches grow from their experiences. With good, older coaches as mentors, they become good coaches themselves. It is interesting, though. The one that's always on the outside is Syracuse, yet it's the most successful of all."
The chase to catch defending NCAA champion Syracuse begins in earnest tomorrow. With only 55 programs in Division I, there's a good chance that a guy will spend a week or three preparing to beat someone with whom he's played, coached or staffed a camp.
"Lacrosse is an interesting sport," Pietramala said. "It's a pretty small community, and we do a lot of talking. I've been very fortunate that people shared their thoughts and opinions with me. I'm not so dumb that I don't realize you can't learn a lot. We're talking about some pretty important people, and they always had time for me."
It's not as if Pietramala was one of the little people when he knocked on doors to talk tactics.
Pietramala, 33, is already in the Blue Jays' Hall of Fame. He is regarded as one of the best defensemen ever, combining a rock-hard athleticism and an inquisitiveness that made him a sponge. What has he absorbed along the way?
Start with Zimmerman.
"I learned more from Don Zimmerman than I ever thought," Pietramala said. "I was a typical college guy who wondered, `Why are we doing this, why are doing that?' He taught me that the little things are what make the difference and the discipline to take care of the little things."
And Tierney?
"I learned a lot about life from Bill," Pietramala said. "I'm sure that a lot of what we believe is similar. Recruiting is the most important thing. You want great players, but not at the sacrifice of the right kind of people."
