By Kim J. Harmon

 

SPRINGFIELD, Massachusetts – Maybe it is only a coincidence that the Western New England College men’s lacrosse team started rising to national prominence when Chris Body of Newtown stepped out onto the field.

Or, then again, maybe it isn’t.

Body was a top drawer goaltender in the South-West Conference (and was the winning goaltender in the 2002 SWC championship) and a member of the Super Juniors lacrosse team … where the Golden Bear coaching staff first noticed the 5-10 netminder and began to recruit him.

“At the time we had had a good amount of success with a freshman in the cage,” said head coach John Klepacki, “and we wanted to get someone who would challenge him. I got a recommendation from another coach who I respected who said if we got this kid it would be a steal.”

Body had his eye on another school at the time, but when things didn’t work out there the opportunity to work his way into at least backup role (at the time, the job belonged to Rob Titus out of Algonquin Regional in Southborough, Massachusetts) at WNEC was perfect. The Golden Bears recruited another freshman goaltender at the same time, James Ells of Cheshire.

“I wasn’t expecting to start at all,” said Body, “but I worked hard and did really well in the fall and got the position.”

It was Body’s first fall scrimmage against Eastern Connecticut which opened the eyes of the coaching staff.

“I was extremely impressed with how much of a leader he was,” said coach Klepacki. “He was nervous, but he really led the defense. He has great poise and a lot of confidence in his ability to be in position to make the save.”

The Golden Bears welcomed about 15 incoming freshmen last year and, like Body, they made an impact right away. Body was 13-5 with an 8.67 goals-against average and a 57.7 save percentage and while playing 907 out of a possible 1,200 minutes in the cage he helped lead WNEC to a 14-6 record and a second consecutive Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III New England championship.

“I was really nervous in the beginning,” said Body, “because it was an upbeat tempo and the shots came a lot faster. But after the first game or two it felt natural.”

The 14 wins tied a school mark set the year before.

“It was kind of surprising how well we did last year because we had so many freshman,” said Body, 20, a marketing major, who made 12 saves against Wheaton last March in his first Pilgrim League contest. “But coach put us right in there and let us play and after the first couple of games it was like we had been doing this forever.”

Currently, the Golden Bears are 5-1-0 overall and 1-0-0 in the Pilgrim League and as of Tuesday were ranked 20th in Division III (19th in the polls) according to laxpower.com.

“It’s real exciting,” said Body. “The team has never been in the top 20 and people have never heard about us or counted us in. We’re starting to send everyone a message.”

WNEC were undefeated and ranked 17th overall last week heading into a showdown with undefeated and eighth-ranked Wesleyan University in Middletown but the Cardinals pinned a 13-5 defeat on Body and the Golden Bears.

The Bears trailed 3-0 at the end of the first period and 5-1 at the half. Body faced 36 shots (25 on the cage) and made 13 saves.

But WNEC recovered last Saturday and defeated Wheaton College, 10-5 in the Pilgrim League opener. The Golden Bears had a narrow, 6-5, lead at the end of three periods before scoring four goals to pin the loss on the Lyons.

Wheaton posted just 20 shots and Body made eight saves while playing the first 42 minutes. Ells picked up the win in relief while recording five saves.

The Bears pounded Union College, 17-3, to open the 2006 season and then pinned losses on Hartwick College (17-9), Wittenberg University (10-1) and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (18-7) before suffering the loss to Wesleyan. And through six games, Body has posted a 7.38 goals-against average while recording 48 saves for a 56.5 save percentage.

“Chris is in a situation now where you really have to challenge him to get a goal,” said coach Klepacki. “Chris has given us the ability to improve; from being a team that was good to a team that is nationally ranked.”

The season is still very young – just like Body’s collegiate career – but he and the Golden Bears have their sights set on some lofty goals.

“This year one of our major goals is to win our conference and get in the NCAA Division III tournament,” he said, “and that’s what we have been working really hard to do. We want that one big NCAA win.”

And stacked with some great young talent, the Golden Bears are not going to be counted out.