WILBRAHAM – It has been a wild whirlwind of a sophomore year for Westfield’s John Tierney, a lacrosse wunderkind whose monstrous production during the first half of this season has the Titans of Wilbraham & Monson Academy at a respectable 4-3 record in the always challenging New England Prep School Athletic Conference (NEPSAC).
As if the mini-renaissance of WMA’s once-great boy’s lacrosse program wasn’t story enough, Tierney himself is stealing headlines as well with his recent verbal commitment to the University of Massachusetts-Amherst.
And while Tierney’s status as an underclassmen prevents UMass coach Greg Cannella from commenting on his recruits until they sign a National Letter of Intent with the NCAA, it is pretty safe to say that the Minutemen are excited to be bringing in this type of local talent, especially someone with the potential to elevate a program that is already a power in the Atlantic-10 conference.
In the first seven games of the 2013 campaign, Tierney registered 30 goals and 19 assists, absurd numbers for an absurdly talented player. A midfielder who can also handle faceoffs, Tierney has the speed and tenacity to knife through opposing defenses for scores and the passing ability and unselfishness to find teammates for goals.
And at only 16 years of age, Tierney is only going to get better from here, a scary thought for opposing sides in the NEPSAC and a tantalizing prospect for WMA coach Phil Roland.
A longtime youth coach in Connecticut, Roland’s bond with Tierney goes back a ways. After playing for Roland for several years in youth lacrosse, Tierney then became Roland’s first recruit after accepting the head coaching position two years ago. However,the transition from conference doormat (a 1-13 record in Roland’s first season) to respectability felt far longer than it really was.
“WMA was always a lacrosse power,” Roland said, “but with the introduction of other sports in the spring season, specifically rugby, we lost a lot of quality athletes. But this season we’ve been having, a lot of it has been due to John.”
Coach Roland went on to paint a perfect picture of Tierney’s importance to the Titans. Recently, in a 4-3 overtime win over Suffield Academy, the Titan’s first victory over the Tigers in 17 years, Tierney was masterful, scoring and displaying phenomenal stick work throughout. But it was his assist on a game-winning Devon Salmon goal in overtime that would seal the historic victory for the Titans.
“He’s very unselfish,” Roland said, “he’s a tremendous talent, one of the best in the country. He’s the real deal.”
High praise for sure, but the subject of said praise hasn’t let it get to his head, almost as impressive a feat as anything he’s accomplished thus far for the Titans.
“(Playing for WMA) has given me the opportunity to excel on the field and to become a great individual,” said Tierney in a voice that is undeniably sixteen, despite the sage-like words that belie his age, “I’m just trying to keep working and improving.”
On the subject of improving, when asked of what his team needs to do better in the second half of the season, Tierney pondered with a pregnant pause before replying.
“We have to bring it together for four full quarters,” he said, “in the Hopkins win, we came close, but we have to do that each game.”
Regarding his commitment to UMass, who defeated over 30 division one programs including regional foes Providence, Fairfield, Vermont and Harvard to win the Tierney sweepstakes, the prize of the Minutemen’s 2015 recruiting class is ecstatic about his decision.
“Coach (Cannella) is great, as is the program,” Tierney said, “the Eisenberg school (of business), the chance to compete for a national title, UMass is a great school.”
When asked of what aspects of the game he likes most, the stud midfielder responded with working with teammates, dodging, shooting and “changing things from the wing.”
From the looks of it, John Tierney has already changed quite a bit from the wing in Wilbraham and will almost certainly do the same in Amherst two years from now.
