AUSTRALIAN OPEN: Oliver Hamit heads upfield in action this spring during his junior season for the Princeton High boys’ lacrosse team. This summer, Hamit competed for Australia in the FIL (Federation of International Lacrosse) 2016 U-19 Men’s World Championships in British Columbia. Playing in the midfield and on defense, Hamit helped Australia take fourth in the competition. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

While Oliver Hamit was sidelined by a shoulder injury for much of this spring in his junior season on the Princeton High boys’ lacrosse team, he wasn’t about to miss his shot to play for Australia in the FIL (Federation of International Lacrosse) 2016 U-19 Men’s World Championships in British Columbia this summer.

“I was going through rehab, seeing doctors and doing physical therapy all of the time,” said Hamit, who hails from Melbourne and moved to Princeton in 2005.

“They said basically your shoulder is all good and it would be very disappointing to all of us if you didn’t go out and play so I went out and played.”

Hamit headed down to Melbourne in early June for a camp with the team and came back to the U.S. later that month for more training at Adelphi University in Long Island.

With his shoulder holding up, the athletic 6’0, 170-pound Hamit showed his versatility, playing in the midfield and on defense as the Australians took fourth in the competition.

“I initially started as the main long stick midfielder; I was always running off the wing,” said Hamit.

“That is what my role was all the way up until the tournament and the first couple of games but then after the first couple of games they moved me to close defense so then I started started guarding some kids, blocking them off from goal.”

Hamit had to raise his intensity level as he battled against the top kids in U-19 lacrosse.

“The competition was a lot higher; you always hear coaches say as you get higher, the game gets faster but you never really realize it until you are there,” said Hamit.

“The game was so much faster and the kids were so competitive. There was a lot of trash talking going on. I had never really been exposed to that. I tried to dish it out myself. It was strange, I never really had to do that before. It was really competitive but it was also really fun, especially when you had a big win.”

Australia enjoyed a big win in pool play when it defeated England 13-10 in Blue division action.

“We beat England and that was the first time we had beaten them in 12 years,” said Hamit.

“I think we just had the better players. The face-offs were a huge part, I think we won 80 or 90 percent of the face-offs so when you just get that ball all the time like that, it just happens.”

In Hamit’s view, the team’s most impressive triumph came in a 21-9 win over Israel in the first round of the playoffs.

“That game was a really great win; Israel is a really competitive team,” said Hamit.

“They are in a lower division but they are the best team in that division and they are very competitive. We really just came together as a team. We played our best offense, we played really good defense.”

For Hamit, a memorable moment of the tournament came when he competed hard against the highly-touted Tehoka Nanticoke of the Iroquois Nationals.

“I guess a personal highlight for me was the game against the Iroquois in pool play, I was guarding Tehoka Nanticoke,” said Hamit, noting that his shoulder injury flared up in a 20-8 loss to the Iroquois nation in the third-place match.

“He is supposed to be the No. 1 player in America right now; he is playing at IMG Academy and is going to UAlbany. The first time he got the ball, I just threw a check and got the ball from him and I felt really good about that.”

Hamit feels a greater confidence level in his game after taking on foes like Nanticoke.

“Just knowing that I have played against the best players, I know that whenever I go up against someone, I can play with them,” said Hamit, who is currently in the college recruiting process as he looks to play at the next level in the U.S. after graduating from PHS. “I shouldn’t have to be nervous or anything like that.”

Getting to mix with players from the other countries proved to be one of best things about the experience for Hamit.

“Before the tournament actually started, there was a big barbecue and all the teams came together and had a couple of burgers,” said Hamit.

“We were able to talk with each other and trade gear. We didn’t have a village to stay in but when we were at the stadium, all the kids were talking to each other. The Australian players became good friends with the Mexican team. By chance, we just always seemed to be together and they all spoke English. We had a great time with them.”

The most indelible aspect of competing for Australia for Hamit, though, was the great bonds he forged with his teammates.

“The thing that I really took the most from this tournament is the relationships that I made,” asserted Hamit.

“I made lifelong friends on the Australian team; we will always have a special connection. It is really what I enjoyed the most, just making relationships with new people and seeing how we are from different places but we all love lacrosse so much.”

—Bill Alden