Men's Lacrosse

Syracuse’s most dangerous weapon: Brendan Bomberry around the crease

Evan Jenkins | Staff Photographer

Brendan Bomberry, a junior midfielder who transferred from Denver, leads SU in goals (13).

All Brendan Bomberry needs is a few inches. Give him a split-second to pick up a loose ball in a scrum or get his stick — any part of it, for any duration — on the ball and it’s too late. The room near the 18-foot diameter circle around the net is his safe haven, the fertile ground in which he completes both nonchalant darts and acrobatic maneuvers in traffic.

Most of his team-high 13 goals have come from right in front of the crease. He’s a natural right-hander but can finish with his left equally as well. He redirects and twists his stick as defenders’ poles try to bat the ball away. Many times, Bomberry emerges from the crowd with his hands up, ball in net. Even as defenses change up their slide packages to counter it, the situation has replayed on a loop through six games.

The midfielder scored the biggest goal of his young Syracuse career there on Saturday afternoon at Johns Hopkins, an overtime game-winner off a Sergio Salcido roll-back flick from a left alley dodge. Credit much of No. 6 SU’s (5-1, 1-0 Atlantic Coast) offensive success this year to Bomberry’s knack for scoring in traffic.

“The kid will catch anything,” said Salcido, a senior midfielder. “You put the ball inside to him or you throw a pass that’s even somewhat catchable, he’s going to make a play. If he doesn’t, he’s going to find a way to get it into the net or get the ball back out.”

It starts with Bomberry’s knowledge for the game and his ability to finish. The latter comes from box lacrosse, a modified version of the game on a smaller field with cement instead of grass. He and his cousin, sophomore defender Tyson Bomberry, played indoors with a downsized net since they turned 3. The box experience gave Brendan a gift of catching passes in tight spaces and delivering goals, the trademarks of his style of play.



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Ally Moreo | Photo Editor

Albany’s Thompson trio, which torched Syracuse in 2013, grew up playing a form of box lacrosse with wooden sticks and a wooden box, about two feet wide, with a round hole in the middle barely bigger than the ball itself. All three earned All-American honors. In box lacrosse, a smaller goal conditions more accurate shooting. When Bomberry transitioned to field lacrosse, a bigger goal gives him more space to shoot. As a result, he thrives in tight corners and scrums in front of the goal.

“Bomberry gives them an added dimension to finish without the ball,” Army head coach Joe Alberici said. “He creates a lot of plays without the ball in his stick. It’s obvious they look to him. They know he’ll catch it.”

Sometimes, he works on the outside and looks to dodge or facilitate. Mostly, he sets up shop inside. A Syracuse attack or midfielder will look to play a two-man game with Bomberry, whose mere presence forces defenses not to slide or miss. Some defenses are too preoccupied with him, leaving shooting lanes for others. When he’s not given enough attention, Bomberry uses what few inches he gets to catch and shoot in a split-second.

Limited time and space doesn’t faze him. Throughout high school, little pockets of air were all he needed. His coach, Brodie Merrill, said the team’s go-to play involved an attack who would run toward the cage then hit a cutting Bomberry, who flashed his stick, caught the ball and scored.

“A lot of things that are high-skill, tough to pull off for other players is second-nature to him,” Merrill said. “That’s what always stood out — really high level lacrosse instinct, stellar stick skills and a love for the game.”

Bomberry, who transferred from Denver to be closer to his son, is a natural goal scorer who seems to welcome contact. About half of his goals have come after he got bruised in some form. When all else fails, he resorts back to the stick skills he developed in box lacrosse. Tyson said those are what translate most from box to the field. The way he turns his stick to shoot, Brendan can deceive the goalie by making him think he’s coming short side when he’s actually going far side. The twist makes a hard read for goalies.

“They’re following his hands,” Tyson said, “but his shots come out different.”

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Larry French | SU Athletics

Inside, the attention he commands opens up lanes for others. His 6-foot, 219-pound frame enables him to reach high for passes. He’s flexible enough to reach low and match up with stronger defenders.

Bomberry, whose 85.7 percent shot-on-goal percentage is best on the team among players with 10 or more shots on goal, said he tries not to work around the crease in his free practice time. He wants to grow into a more capable dodger and create a little more. Yet he often appears from behind the cage to sneak up on close defenders to the front of the net, where he’s most lethal.

“He’s a terrific complement to those other guys,” Johns Hopkins head coach Dave Pietramala said. “Everybody tends to look for him on the interior. He’s got a real knack for finding the gray area, making a cut and slipping down the back side for a score.”

In games, senior attack Jordan Evans tells Bomberry to keep his stick up. When there’s a defender with a stick on his chest or double-teamed, Evans still wants to feed him in the box. Jamming it inside and trusting a player in that manner is a luxury few teams possess.

“When I’m wide open in front of the net, I just try to put it in the net,” Bomberry said. “It’s my one job.”





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