Canadian lacrosse player Lysyk maturing on and off the field

'I have seen a big change in Zach's game this year,' says Saint Leo coach

Lacrosse player Zach Lysyk poses for a photo outside of the Marion Bowman Center at Saint Leo University. A native of Oshawa, Ont. Lysyk has put up career numbers during his junior season of collegiate lacrosse. Patrick Allen/Toronto Observer

ST. LEO, Fla. – Entering the third season of his collegiate career at Saint Leo University, lacrosse player Zach Lysyk is coming into his own as a student athlete.

A native of Oshawa, Ont., Lysyk attended the athletic powerhouse Monsignor Paul Dwyer Catholic High School, where he was a member of back-to-back OFSAA provincial championship teams in 2012 and 2013.

“Winning those championships was huge, especially back-to-back,” said Lysyk. “I took a lot of what I learned in high school here to Saint Leo.”

Five games into his junior season, Lysyk has already amassed seven goals and nine points, surpassing his combined goal and points totals from his previous two seasons.

“I definitely feel a lot more comfortable,” said Lysyk. “Particularly with the coaches and my teammates and just getting in the groove of balancing work and focusing on our athletic schedule.”

The maturation in Lysyk’s game is not just evident on the scoresheet, but also in the eyes of his head coach Brad Jorgensen.

“I have seen a big change in Zach’s game this year,” said Jorgensen. “He’s really wrapped his mind around utilizing the space that’s out there. It’s great to see.”

In addition to his performance on the field, Lysyk, a marketing major, is just as dedicated to excelling in his performance academically.

In fact, it was the quality of the business department at Saint Leo that was the deciding factor in Lysyk choosing the school after initially committing to attend Robert Morris University in Pennsylvania.

“It was definitely a tough decision choosing between the two, but I felt that Saint Leo offered a better education and just felt more at home,” said Lysyk. “(They offered) smaller school and class sizes, so I could get extra help if i needed, and they had a great business program, which was really important to me.”

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Posted: Mar 15 2017 11:47 am
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Filed under: Amateur Lacrosse Sports
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