Washington

WASHINGTON -- When House Speaker Newt Gingrich becomes a private citizen again in January, he might be able to earn a few bucks posing as a poster boy for retirement planning; his congressional career is an advertisement for how not to do it.When the young Turk from Georgia joined the House in 1978, he refused to participate in the congressional pension system, claiming it was too rich a deal. He relented in August 1989, but by then his principle had cost him hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Three months ago, I was in an Ohio college classroom, studying American government and organizational leadership, while my future mentor was in the Washington office of a nonprofit public policy organization. Thanks to a D.C. internship program, we have been brought together for several months to work, collaborate, learn and expand horizons. A college junior, I now spend my days researching issues ranging from public finance to higher education dropout prevention, while making the rounds of Washington think tanks and advocacy groups, going to book receptions and press conferences, and attending events with former presidents and other leaders.

When the 2012 season ends, Washington will look back to Saturday's 13-11 loss to then-No. 17 and Centennial Conference foe Gettysburg as either a minor hiccup or a major spoiler. Falling from No. 15 to No. 17 in Monday's United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association poll, the Shoremen could only wonder what could've been. Coach Jeff Shirk said Monday afternoon that the most significant factor in the setback was the team's low shooting percentage. Washington (8-3 overall and 5-1 in the league)

When No. 4 seed McDaniel and No. 1 seed Washington meet in one semifinal of the Centennial Conference tournament, the visiting Green Terror will have to overcome the opponent and history. The Shoremen have won the last 12 contests in this series and have never lost to McDaniel in the league tourney, winning 19-15 in 2001, 12-8 in 2002 and 13-8 in 2004. Washington earned the top seed in the conference tournament by virtue of a 7-1 league record and is 10-4 overall. The Green Terror secured the fourth seed with a 5-3 conference mark and is 9-6 overall.

No. 17 Washington bounced back from Saturday's 13-11 loss to No. 13 Gettysburg with a 9-5 victory over another Centennial Conference foe in Swarthmore Wednesday night. But coach Jeff Shirk wasn't entirely pleased with the Shoremen's performance. “To be honest with you, I was just happy to get through last night and start to focus on Salisbury,” he said Thursday morning, referring to another installment of the War on the Shore series this Saturday. “We don't have a game left on the schedule that isn't really meaningful.

Washington is 4-0 in the Centennial Conference for the first time in four years and 7-2 overall after registering a 13-8 victory over Muhlenberg Saturday. The Shoremen are a half-game ahead of No. 8 Dickinson and No. 20 Gettysburg - who are both 3-0 in the league - and enjoying their unfamiliar spot atop the standings. “I think it's pretty big because we're all about conference play in terms of qualifying for the conference tournament,” coach Jeff Shirk said last week. “And anything can happen once you qualify for the tournament and the only way you're guaranteed to get to the NCAA Tournament is with that automatic bid. I think with our focus and emphasis on conference play, being able to get a quick start is really big so that you're not always playing from behind.

Last week, coach Jeff Shirk had said that he wanted to see how competitive Washington would be in Saturday's road contest at top-ranked Salisbury. He got his answer as the Shoremen fell heavily, 17-5, in the latest installment of the War on the Shore series. The final score didn't bother Shirk as much as how it developed. “I learned that we still have a group that starts slow sometimes, and that's what happened with Salisbury,” he said Tuesday. “We wanted to start fast.

This season has been a remarkable turnaround for Washington, which endured a 5-9 overall record and a 2-6 mark in the Centennial Conference in its first campaign under coach Jeff Shirk. The Shoremen collected 10 wins for the first time since 2008 and earned the top seed in the conference tournament for the first time since 2004. So which accomplishment is more meaningful? “To be honest, I think they're both huge,” Shirk said. “I know with our offense, we talk about scoring double digits every game, and every time we hit that 10-plus mark, we get excited, and it's the same thing with the wins.

Washington is riding a four-game winning streak and opened its Centennial Conference schedule with a thrilling, come-from-behind 10-9 win against McDaniel Saturday. But the Shoremen (4-2) will find out how far they've come when Haverford visits Roy Kirby Jr. Stadium in Chestertown, Md., Wednesday night. The Fords have qualified for the last six league tournaments and captured the tournament championship in 2010. This season has been much rougher for Haverford, which is off to a 1-5 start, but Washington coach Jeff Shirk said the Fords should not be underestimated or overlooked.

Washington has put 2011 in the rearview mirror, but the gnawing feeling of a missed opportunity lingers. The Shoremen finished last season with a 5-9 overall record and a 2-6 mark in the Centennial Conference, but they dropped four one-goal contests and a two-goal game. In a four-game stretch, the team lost to Franklin & Marshall, 10-9, defeated Muhlenberg, 9-6, and then lost to Ursinus and Dickinson by respective scores of 9-8 and 10-9. Still, coach Jeff Shirk said there were some positives to take from the setbacks.