Inside the Last Ride: Roll Cavs Forever

It’s kind of fitting that we were one of the last teams off the board on Selection Sunday. We all gathered in our film/team meeting room in the Dixon Center decked out in our new AEC championship gear waiting to see where we would go. Anxiety was through the roof as our fate for the next week was projected onto the whiteboard.

Minute by minute more teams got their spots. The other automatic qualifiers, a couple huge at-larges, all of the biggest names in Division III lacrosse.

Then, finally, we came to the final pool of teams. Christopher Newport would be the host site, and then it all fell into place. Our name popped up and the anxiety was relieved.

“Back to Virginia we go!” I joked.

This would be a new spot, a place our program has never been, as we would officially embark on our farewell tour. While our classroom erupted with claps and cheers seeing the pool we got put in, reality also set in.

We had a tough weekend ahead of us. If we wanted this group to stay together for as long as possible, it was going to take everything we had.

Going into practice Monday-Wednesday, we all had the right mindset. Everyone knew that every day could be our last, and while we were not going down without a fight, we made sure to live in the moment. We battled for three days in the classic spirit of competition. O versus D, blue versus white, me versus you. Our goal was to push each other to be the best version of ourselves heading into the biggest weekend in program history.

After a solid Thursday session cleaning up the details, we packed our bags and loaded the bus for our journey south. The advantage of having a smaller group on a big travel bus is nearly everyone got their own seat. We sprawled out, threw on a few classic movies (shoutout Coach Camp!) and enjoyed the ride. We pulled up to the hotel in Virginia Beach as the clock struck midnight. Room keys were passed out, and exhausted from the drive, we all ran to get a decent night’s sleep. The next few days were going to be a lot on us, both mentally and physically.

We kicked off our Friday meeting in the lobby, where the coaches handed us our brunch money and sent us off to explore. Our hotel was positioned right off the water, and there were plenty of spots for us to check out. After a nice meal at a diner we found a couple blocks from where we were staying, we found a new toy that helped to pass the time.

Cabrini men’s lacrosse discovered the magical world of lime scooters. In the blink of an eye, nearly everyone had hopped on and started riding around the waterfront. That was part of the reason why we decided to come down a day early. Have time to mess around, have fun and take way too many videos of us riding around on scooters. It really is fascinating how easy it is for college kids to find their own entertainment.

Everyone gathered back around noon, and we loaded up the bus to keep the adventure moving. We stopped at an outlet mall in Norfolk, and everyone was given an hour to scavenge and see what deals we could find. It was hilarious as we walked around decked out in our matching Cabrini gear getting question after question about who we were and where we were from. Most everyone found some sort of memento for them to take home (and I was able to snag myself a crazy deal on a new pair of shoes), and we eventually gathered in the middle at a table to just hang out.

That’s what this entire year has always been about. Have our fun, explore new places and come back together to enjoy being where our feet are.

Time kept moving fast, and before we knew it, we were heading out of Norfolk to get our practice in on CNU’s campus. The interesting thing about practicing in the NCAA tournament is everyone gets exactly an hour and a half at the host site’s field to practice. Not a minute more, not a minute less. At 4:30, our 90-minute timer began counting down, and we went right into pregame practice mode. We tried to keep everything the same as we usually did before games. Group stick work, positional drills, a couple competition drills and other scheme things we wanted to work on. But we also had another tradition that we couldn’t forget about.

Early in the year, we started a new pregame tradition at the end of practice where Coach DeLuca launches three lacrosse balls as high as he can in the air and someone tries to catch them. “Skyball,” is what it became known as, and nearly everyone had taken part in being the center of attention trying to catch as many as possible. Some caught one, some caught two and somebody might’ve somehow dropped four (no name dropping but you know who you are). A couple lucky contestants were able to catch all three.

With about two minutes remaining in our practice period, Gerry Ulatowski stepped forward as the Skyball contestant. DeLuca ran to the other side of the field and one-by-one sent the balls into the cloudy Newport News sky. With the clock winding down, Gerry cleanly secured all three balls, and we retreated from the field as the buzzer sounded.

In a poetic way, we used every second of that clock in what ended up being our last practice as a program.

We wrapped up the day with a team meal close by our hotel, and the rest of the night was spent doing typical hotel shenanigans. Bouncing around to different rooms, talking about anything that comes to mind and trying not to annoy any of the non-lacrosse players in our hotel.

Before we knew it, it was game day. We relaxed and enjoyed watching other tournament games around the country through the early afternoon before arriving at our locker room at CNU. For some reason, they decided to put the smallest team in the tournament in the biggest locker room on campus. The same place where Christopher Newport football would get dialed in for a game is where we got to blast music and prepare for war. Can’t lie, it was pretty awesome.

After I went through my eyeblack routine, I sat down to settle my mind when Nate Mazurek approached me buzzing like a bee. “Get ready for battle; we’re going to war,” he said. I nodded, dapped him up and looked at him with a smirk saying, “Don’t forget to enjoy it, though.”

We ran out onto the field sporting our all-black uniforms and chrome helmets. Hundreds of fans filled the stands on both sides, and unfortunately, it was the last time they would be able to see a Cabrini men’s lacrosse game.

There were a couple moments from the game that stand out as I look back, and they are each emotional for their own unique reason.

The first was arguably the hardest thing for all of us to watch. Midway through the third quarter sophomore LSM Sebastian Tobias was guarding his man when he took a funky step and went down. We all knew what it was right away, and for that to happen in what ended up being our last game was heartbreaking.

But despite this, the moment he popped up we all went ballistic cheering and clapping while he was carried off the field. We promised before this game that we would leave everything on that field, and Seb did just that. Flash-forward to the fourth quarter, and Seb was standing with his crutches on the sideline cheering the rest of the game. He refused to stay seated on the bench and insisted on being with the guys in our final moments. By doing this, he was embodying exactly what we mean when we say we do things together.

The second moment came at the end, as the clock got closer and closer to the inevitable buzzer. A buzzer on the game, on our season and on a program that meant so much to so many people. With CNU holding the ball in their own zone, claps came in from the crowd and out of nowhere one of our parents stood up and yelled, “Roll Cavs forever!”

That was the instant when the floodgates opened up for me. I immediately began embracing everyone around me and reminiscing on all the great times. Because when I heard that, “Roll Cavs forever,” I knew that as our institution and program ceases to exist, the memories and people will tell these stories for years to come. And as we ran onto the field one last time, cried in each other’s arms and closed this chapter, I could only be thankful. I went down the line giving everyone in sight a hug and a simple thank you. From our trainer, to athletics administrators, to coaches and to my brothers. It will always be Roll Cavs forever.

The final moment from this game that I’ll never forget is after the handshake line, while we were still taking everything in and letting out all of our emotions. I turned around and noticed that CNU didn’t walk completely off of the field. They formed a funnel with their players and parents ready to give us a final sendoff.

I’ll be completely honest, in the moment I was less than excited to see this, as I had just stopped crying and thought I was gonna make it off the field clean. I wanted to make a beeline to the locker room and have some time to myself as everything sunk in. But looking back at this, it was such an incredible gesture from CNU that showed how awesome the lacrosse community is. The entire lacrosse community had our back throughout this whirlwind of a season. So for us to walk off that field with the love of not only our families but the rest of the lacrosse world, it was special to say the least.

If you’ve ever been a part of a season-ending loss, you know how brutal the postgame locker room is. That was no exception for us. I sat leaning against my locker for a solid five minutes without taking a single piece of gear off. I knew that this would be the last time I would take everything off as a college lacrosse player, so I took my time.

With my stick in my hand, I stared at the three letters that I have written in big bold letters — EGF, the initials of my grandfather, Edwin George Fridge. My grandfather is the one who got my family playing lacrosse. He’s a Canadian Lacrosse Hall of Famer for his instrumental work growing the game around British Columbia. I never got to know him, as he passed away when I was young. He never got to watch me play in person, but I know he always had a front row seat my entire career.

Before every single game I would look at those three letters. I would think about how happy he would be to watch me play the sport he fell in love with. So, as I sat there at the end of my college career looking at those initials, I again could only be thankful. Without him, the last 14 years of my playing career wouldn’t be possible. And it came full circle when I finally took off my pads for the last time.

The postgame talk was emotional for everyone, but as we broke down our huddle, the only thing we could do was be grateful for going through this together. We walked out of the locker room greeted by our families, who also expressed how awesome of an experience this whole year was. We said our goodbyes, packed the bus and started our journey back home.

The five-hour trip was filled with plenty of stories, laughs and an obnoxious karaoke session (shoutout Gerry on the aux!). It was something that I wanted to bottle up and live in forever.

A couple days later, we returned for the annual cleaning out of the locker room. Except this year, instead of meeting up in the locker room, we all gathered on Edith Robb Dixon Field to hang out. We sat down, chopped it up and then Coach DeLuca brought out two pairs of scissors that we were using to cut off pieces of our game net. I picked out my 3x3 piece of that nylon and immediately threw it in my hat like we had just won the national championship. This was the closest I would get to that feeling of cutting down the nets on Championship Weekend. And while we were doing it a little sooner than we wished, it was so special to be able to take a unique piece of Cabrini with us forever.

We moved back inside with our pieces of net in hand and packed up our lockers for the final time. It seems like such a simple thing, but I spent so much time the last three years in that room. We all lived there part-time, and despite us not paying rent, it always felt like our home. Whether we were watching the TV, lounging around in bean bag chairs or just catching up after a long day of classes. It was a special place that we all are going to miss.

We took our name tags, packed up our bags and came in to break it down. Usually, it’s tradition to go around the room and say goodbye to all of the seniors that won’t be returning, but this year we were all seniors. And instead of saying our goodbyes in there, Coach made us reservations at a restaurant so that we could enjoy one last meal together. It’s appropriate that we broke from tradition and celebrated an unbelievable year in our own special way.

After we finished eating, we met outside and said our goodbyes. Instead of the hugs and tears that were shared on the field Saturday, this time, it was all smiles. The bonds that our group made are exponentially tighter than any other Cabrini lacrosse team. While our time together is up, I have no doubts in my mind that we will always be a part of each other’s lives. We continued to mingle for a couple extra minutes trying to avoid when we had to walk our separate ways, and then finally it came time.

I walked back to my car, and the only thing that I could do was smile.

I committed to Cabrini University on September 29, 2020. Standing in my high school’s parking lot, I called the coaching staff and said, “I want to spend my next four years in Radnor, Pa.”

On June 23, 2023, I found out that I wasn’t going to get a fourth year at Cabrini. I didn’t even know if I would get a third at that exact moment, as the questions filled my head. Would the school feel the same? Can we even field a team? Is it worth going back?

Those questions were answered on July 5 when I texted Coach DeLuca: “Couldn’t be happier to say I’m on board for the last ride. Fired up to get back east and ready to send this program out with a bang!”

Unfortunately, the last ride has arrived at its final destination. But as I sit here wiping tears off my keyboard, I can’t help but think about how lucky I was to be a part of this journey.

And if you told me back in September 2020 that my Cabrini lacrosse career would end after only three years, I don’t think I would bat an eye. Knowing the things that I did, the moments I was a part of, the people that I met along the way, I wouldn’t change a thing.

I would still make that phone call in a heartbeat so I could forever be a Cabrini Cavalier.