One of the most detrimental and disheartening things about collegiate athletics, whether from the perspective of the athletes themselves or even the fans, is graduating seniors who leave the team after building a legacy.
So was the delicate situation that freshman David Shaum entered into when he first stepped onto the field with Biola’s lacrosse team this past fall.
“We lost nine seniors this last year, and we’ve had three freshmen come in,” Shaum said. “Any given year could be a growing season, although no player wants to say it’s a growing year because every year you’re supposed to be focused on winning as much as you can.”
Began on a different field
Shaum grew up in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains, and learned at a very young age that he liked to play baseball. Yet unlike many other athletes who leave sports because of injuries or loss of interest, the Colorado native recalls a very distinct reason for walking away from America’s national pastime.
“I started playing in fourth grade,” Shaum said. “I was looking for a new sport because they wouldn’t let me pitch. The coach’s son was the pitcher.”
In search of another activity to occupy his time, Shaum discovered the game of lacrosse.
“I tried almost every sport, and lacrosse really got me and I liked [it] the most,” Shaum said.
Making an immediate impact
In retrospect, for Biola's sake, choosing lacrosse turned out to be an extremely profitable decision. Currently, Shaum leads the team with 30 goals on the year. What is more, he has scored in 10 of the team’s 12 games.
Instead of dwelling only on his individual success though, Shaum wants to help out those around him to strengthen the team as a whole.
“We get people from different sides coming in,” Shaum said. “I think we have half of our team who are playing now, they didn’t play before college, so we have a lot of people who come in new.”
Following a successful 2012 season, which included a perfect 5-0 conference record, the Eagles lost multiple members of the lacrosse team due to graduation.
The difficulty Shaum has faced, despite his individual success, is learning how to be a young leader on team whose record would suggest they have room for improvement.
“I think we all understand that in order to play at the level that we need to, we need to be dedicated as a team,” Shaum said. “Focusing in practice, being focused on game day, we just need to put all of these things together, because we definitely have the talent.”
Preparing for second half of season
Biola lacrosse is currently 3-9 overall, but still holds a positive 2-1 conference record. Shaum says that his team is trying to focus on winning big conference games to put them in a good position going into the post-season. With spring break right around the corner, this gives the team a perfect opportunity to prepare both physically and mentally.
“We’ve had a lot of injuries over the season, so I think the break comes at a really good time for us to rest and refocus,” Shaum said. “Knowing the team, they’ll come back ready to hit practice as hard as they can.”
The Eagles face off next against conference foe Northern Arizona University on April 12. A win would push Biola into sole possession of second place in the Southern Lacrosse Conference.
As for Shaum, he’ll hit the field again in the next few weeks looking to give Biola the edge and lead them to victory. The freshman has proven that experience outweighs class, and leadership outranks performance.
