Spider long-stick middie Sean Menges, a St. Christopher's grad, showcases grit in 'dirty work'
JOHN O'CONNOR·1 hour ago
Sean Menges pulled off a scoop-and-score maneuver late in the University of Richmond's lacrosse game at No. 11 High Point last Saturday. The "scoop" was no surprise. As a long-stick middie, Menges specializes in defending and picking up ground balls.
The "score" was unexpected, maybe a throwback to Menges' time as a St. Christopher's player years ago. The Spiders trailed 14-13 at High Point with about 1:20 left.
"The ball hits the ground and [Menges] outhustles two players, picks it up, and comes down and gets us a four-on-three fast break," said UR coach Dan Chemotti.
Menges (MEN-ghez) completed the sequence by converting a goal, his first of the season. High Point scored with 6.4 seconds remaining to spoil UR's final regular-season game, 15-14. Menges, a 5-foot-11 185-pounder, demonstrated that his lacrosse roots haven't entirely faded.
"Sophomore year of high school, I thought I was going to be an offensive middie," he said.
That changed when Saints coach John Burke projected Menges as a standout defender.
"As a ninth-grader, he played [offense] and he had success. It was good," said Burke. "But his athleticism was so good, and his energy, his motor. To me, I envisioned him just being able to cover anybody all over the field."
Menges was named first team All-Southern Conference Tuesday.
He ran the football and played linebacker at St. Christopher's, a combination of physical positions that prepared Menges for his lacrosse role: defend while causing chaos (he leads UR with 23 caused turnovers), and secure ground balls to maximize the number of Spiders' possessions.
"In football, you've just kind of got to put your nose down, run through somebody if you have to," said Menges. "Same with ground balls. It's just who wants it more. It's just a battle of wills, much like football."
Heading into Thursday's semifinal round of the SoCon tournament, no Spider has picked up more ground balls at Menges (34).
"He's one of the best long-stick middies in our conference and in the country, in my opinion, because he knows one speed. He's going hard all the time," said Chemotti. "He never quits, never gives up, never lets up.
"His 'I'm going to work harder than you' mentality allows him to pick up those ground balls. It's dirty work. ... Every time he sees a ball on the ground, it's an opportunity for him to showcase his personality, his hustle, and he takes full advantage of that."
Richmond is seeded No. 3 in the league tournament, which is being held at High Point's Vert Stadium. The Spiders (8-6, 5-2 SoCon), defending league champions, meet No. 2 Air Force (10-4, 6-1 SoCon) Thursday at 8 p.m. That semifinal follows the 5:30 p.m. semi matching No. 1 High Point (12-2, 6-1 SoCon) and No. 4 Jacksonville (6-8, 5-2 SoCon). The championship game is scheduled for noon Saturday.
On April 13, the Spiders fell at Air Force 14-7.
"I think we didn't show up. We didn't play our best game, didn't put our best foot forward," said Menges.
Richmond is in its sixth year as a Division I program and has advanced to its league tournament title game each previous season. UR won the Atlantic Sun title in 2014, and then played in SoCon championship games in 2015 (lost in double-overtime to High Point), 2016 (lost in overtime to Air Force), 2017 (lost to Air Force), and last year (beat Jacksonville in overtime).
The last four SoCon tournaments were played at UR's Robins Stadium
