Freshman Jungers adapts to lacrosse at the college level

Recently, 'Prince' staff writer Tyler Woulfe sat down with freshman defenseman Zac Jungers of the men's lacrosse team. They discussed the challenges of starting as a freshman for the fifth-ranked team in the nation and being a part of the biggest recruiting class the team has had in years.

'Prince': How long have you been playing lacrosse?

Zac Jungers: Oh, pretty much forever. Probably since I was 6 or 7, at least.

P: How much has your lacrosse game improved since coming to Princeton?

ZJ: Oh, it's improved a tremendous amount. I'm in much better shape now; the level of conditioning is much more intense than in high school. Also, I've improved in a lot of mental aspects of the game, just because [head coach Bill] Tierney is such a good coach. He's taught me things — defenses — that I had never even heard of in high school.

P: What's one thing that you can still improve on, both individually and for the team as a whole?

ZJ: Well, I can always get into better shape. I can keep working out, getting stronger and adjusting to the higher intensity of the college game. As a team, I think we're on the right track, you know, we're doing well, and we're really gelling. Especially over the past two weeks of practice we've started to come together as a team.

P: What's been the biggest difference between high school and college lacrosse for you?

ZJ: Speed. Speed and size, but more so speed. Everyone's much faster, and you throw the ball harder, and you have to think quicker because everyone responds much faster to what you do.

P: Did you know any of the players on the team at Princeton before you came?

ZJ: I knew a few of the other players from Maryland — Ricky Schultz, a senior defenseman, and two other freshmen, Scott Sowanick from Bullis and Micheal Biles from Severn [School].

P: What do you like the most about the sport of lacrosse?

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ZJ: Well, winning! Let me think about this, I don't want to say something that cheesy... I guess I like that it's a very physical game, but there's also a high level of skill involved, and it's not just start-stop like football. You just play for four quarters. I like the fact that it's a very original game, too.

P: Though wildly popular in some places, lacrosse is still somewhat of a regional game. Have you met anyone here at Princeton who had never even heard of lacrosse?

ZJ: Yeah, well actually, two of my roommates had never even seen a lacrosse game before they came here. And I meet kids who have heard of it, but don't really know what it is. They say, "That's the one with the sticks, right?" A lot of people don't really understand what the game is.

P: How does it feel to be part of a class of 14 freshmen on the team?

ZJ: I like it a lot. I don't think many classes have been that big. It's just real awesome to, you know, fraternize with them. It's like we were launched into our own group of friends as soon as we got here. It's pretty amazing, but all 14 of us get along, and every single one of us [is] really good friends, and we all hang out a lot off the field.

P: Did you expect to start as a freshman?

ZJ: I didn't expect anything. I just came in not even thinking about it that way. Of course that's always in the back of your mind that you want to — you always want to play on the field. But as far as expectations, I didn't get my hopes up for anything. I just came out, played as hard as I could and listened to what the coach said, and it worked out.

P: Do you mind that defense doesn't tend to get as much coverage as some other positions with more dramatic statistics?

ZJ: No, I don't mind it. That's just how it is in a lot of sports. I always played goalie in soccer, and defense is just what I've always done, and so I'm used to it.