ON A MISSION: Princeton Day School boys’ lacrosse player Elon Tuckman heads upfield in a game earlier this spring. Last Monday, senior star Tuckman tallied a goal and an assist in a losing cause as second-seeded PDS fell 8-4 to third-seeded Lawrenceville in the state Prep A semis. The Panthers, now 7-5, will start competition in the Mercer County Tournament this week. PDS, which has won two straight MCT titles, is seeded second and will host a quarterfinal contest on May 5. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

Elon Tuckman has hit some major milestones this spring in his senior season with the Princeton Day School boys’ lacrosse team but he isn’t dwelling on personal stats.

While he is proud to have achieved both 100-goal and 200-point career marks in the 2018 campaign, Tuckman is focused more on collective goals for the Panthers.

“It is a team sport,” said senior attacker Tuckman. “All I have my mind on and all that we have had our minds on since the beginning of the year was to get a championship back to our school and hang another banner.”

Last Thursday against visiting Academy of New Church (Pa.), the Panthers showed championship mettle as they rallied rallied from an early 4-1 deficit to knot the game at 6-6 and force overtime.

“Our team rallies around each other; we have the word ‘together’ on the back of our shirts for a reason,” said Tuckman. “So if it is me, if it is Jake [Bennett], it if is Jack [Konopka] if it is Coby [Auslander], we are always together and we are always working hard. One guy jumpstarts the offense and the other guy backs him up. All six guys on attack are helping each other and working hard.”

While PDS ended up falling 7-6 to ANC in quadruple overtime, Tuckman saw value in the effort.

“The whole season, we tell everyone that the regular season doesn’t matter,” said Tuckman, who tallied a goal and three assists in the defeat. “We would rather take a loss in March than in May; we are always looking forward to playoffs.”

On Monday, the Panthers suffered a tough playoff loss as second-seeded PDS fell 8-4 to third-seeded Lawrenceville in the state Prep A semis with Tuckman tallying a goal and an assist in a losing cause.

The Panthers, who dropped to 7-5 with the loss to the Big Red, will now look forward to competing in the Mercer County Tournament. PDS, which has won two straight MCT titles, is seeded second and will host a quarterfinal contest on May 5.

Tuckman and his fellow seniors are determined to achieve one more milestone together.

“I am just hoping that we can string a couple of games together and that we can peak at the right time,” said Tuckman, who is headed to Gettysburg College where he will play for its men’s lax program.

“Staying healthy is a big thing, but it is just playing our best ball at the right time. We want to go out with a bang; we all have each other’s backs. It is a very tight knit senior class. We just want to go out on top.”