PATIENCE OF A SAINT: Robby Dowers controls the ball in action this spring during his senior season with the St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team. Former Princeton High standout Dowers, who served as a team captain for St. Lawrence, tallied a goal and an assist with nine ground balls and three caused turnovers in 2015 to help the Saints post a 9-8 record.

Robby Dowers only got into five games in his sophomore season with the St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team but he saw plenty of progress.

“I adjusted to the speed of the game; there were still four or five upperclassmen ahead of me but I was competing with them everyday in practice,” said Dowers, a former Princeton High boys’ lacrosse player who was a four-year starter for the Little Tigers. “I was playing on the man-down unit, anything to get on the field.”

In the fall of his junior year, Dowers put himself in position to see a lot of playing time. “We had a couple of guys graduate and I knew if I worked hard, I was going to start at the end of fall ball,” said Dowers, a 6’3, 195-pound defender. “I had a meeting with coaches and they said if you keep working hard, we see good things.”

Starting every game his junior year in 2014, Dowers did a lot of good things, getting 25 ground balls with 13 caused turnovers to help the Saints go 8-6.

“It was a four-man rotation, then one kid broke his thumb and I was getting on the field. In college, you study a lot of film and you see what a person likes to do and you try to take that away. I tried to do that and it worked sometimes.”

Dowers produced some of his best work that season in a 10-9 win over Nazareth, getting a ground ball and a caused turnover.

“One of my favorite games was against Nazareth; they had beaten us by three the year before,” said Dowers.

“It was an intense game. At one point, I was clearing the ball, I saw an attacker and passed to him and then he threw to another attacker who scored. I thought to myself, I get this.”

Dowers’ play got the respect of his teammates as he was elected as a co-captain for the 2015 season.

“It means a lot, it says a lot about my character,” said Dowers, reflecting on being chosen as a captain.

“I was a captain at PHS and it was cool to be captain both in high school and college. I try to set an example on the field and do the right things.”

Before the team even played a game, Dowers faced a leadership test as teammate and fellow senior Garrett Gagne was killed in a car accident on New Year’s day.

“It happened on January 1, everyone was in shock,” said Dowers, reflecting on the tragedy.

“On January 2, I called each guy on the team to make sure everyone was okay. It was three or four hours on the phone. Guys were thankful that someone was checking on them. It was the toughest thing I had done. It definitely made us closer and realize how we care for everyone on the team.”

Dowers faced a tough situation early in the 2015 season when he was sidelined by a knee injury.

“We were practicing inside, I got caught and fell on my knee,” said Dowers, who had notched his first career goal in a season-opening 19-10 win over Castleton.

“It was swollen, I couldn’t bend it. There was no ligament damage so the trainer said I would be out 10 days to two weeks. Missing two weeks of practice was tough, a lot of things change.”

 Upon returning to action, Dowers felt a special sense of urgency. “When I came back, I had a practice and then a game,” said Dowers, who ended up tallying a goal and an assist with nine ground balls and three caused turnovers in 2015 to help the Saints post a 9-8 record.

“I started every game junior year and every game this season before the injury. I missed two games and sat in a third. I got up to full speed. I started playing lacrosse in third grade and I was thinking this it for organized sports, I may be playing in summer tournaments and things like that but it is not the same.”

Reflecting on his college lacrosse experience, Dowers believes it has gotten him to be more disciplined on and off the field.

“You learn a lot from organized sports; it shaped the way I am as a person,” said Dowers, who majored in economics and minored in math and is looking to get a job in finance.

“It helped me with decision-making. I feel I am good at it, I make the right decisions. It has helped me with time management skills. You have to go to class, eat, sleep and take care of yourself. You know you have practice each day and that it takes three or four hours with lifting, watching film, and meetings.”