(Photo by Bill Allen/NJ SportAction) CHANGING FIELDS: Hun School athletic director Bill Quirk surveys the action last spring in his role as assistant softball coach. This spring, Quirk is moving to a new field as he takes over as the head coach of the Hun boys’ lacrosse program. The Raiders, who went 11-9 last year under Greg Provenzano, will start their 2009 season by playing at the Hill School on April 1.

Quirk Taking Helm of Hun Boys’ Lacrosse, Hoping to Guide Seniors to Happy Ending

Bill Alden

Bill Quirk is having trouble making a key decision as he takes over the Hun School boys’ lacrosse team.

“It’s really easy to see that we are senior heavy,” said Quirk, the Hun athletic director and longtime assistant softball coach who is replacing Greg Provenzano as the Raider boys’ lax head coach.

“One of the questions people ask me is who is going to be the captain. I think as a whole the seniors are great leaders. They each have their own little thing that they bring to the table. I don’t want to single out individuals. I am trying to get this group to focus on the team aspect. We may go with game captains.”

Quirk, though, is expecting one of those nine seniors, Zach Martin, to give him a great individual effort on attack.

“Last year, Martin was one of the leading scorers in the area,” said Quirk of Martin who had 97 points last spring as he came back from a serious knee injury.

“He is going to Roanoke College. I think that knowing where he is going to go and having that behind him is allowing him to enjoy the game. He is not worrying about who is watching him. He can do some amazing things with his stick. Last year, he was an unknown quantity. This year he will be known.”

The Raiders have some other known quantities on attack in seniors Harry Blackburn and Sam Rosenberg.

“Sam is a natural lefthander and Harry is a right hander; it gives us balance,” said Quirk, whose team opens the 2009 season by playing at the Hill School on April 1.

“Some of Zach’s moves have rubbed off on Sam. He can also do some amazing things with the stick.”

The Raiders are looking for senior midfielder Brendan Gallagher to not worry about trying to be amazing.

“Last year Brendan was trying to do too much,” said Quirk. “What we got out of our Florida trip last week is that he is back on his game. He feels at ease and less pressure. His dodging makes the defense pay attention to him and that opens things up for the others.”

The Raiders have other potential stars on midfield in senior P.J. Kirnan, sophomore Will Sweetland and freshman Steffen Gratch.

“We have four midfielders who are all interchangeable,” asserted Quirk. “If one goes down, another can step right in.”

Hun boasts similar depth in its defensive unit which includes seniors Chris Loy, Steve Norman, Geoff Rogers and post-grad Will Brundage.

“Loy, Norman, and Rogers are all experienced,” said Quirk, who will also use Brendan Foley and Dylan Zucosky along his backline.

“Brundage came to us from Pingry and is going to the Naval Academy, he will go out and bring it to the table.”

Sophomore goalie Peter Blackburn brings a lot to the table for the Raiders.

“Pete is the quarterback back there; he takes command,” said Quirk.

“He is a sophomore but he plays bigger. He is not afraid of the ball. He sees the field well on clears. He has a good head on his shoulders. He knows when to take it up the field and when to pass it.”

Quirk, for his part, is looking forward to moving to the lax field after spending the last 25 springs on the softball diamond.

“I am really excited; I have been around the game for a long time with my son playing at Princeton,” said Quirk, who has coached girls’ lacrosse and helped out with the Hun junior varsity lax program.

“One of the reasons I took this job is that I enjoy the seniors. I have been watching some of them since middle school. When they were sophomores, I told them they would have to step up a year early and they did last year as juniors on a team with only three seniors.”

One of the first steps Quirk took after agreeing to coach lacrosse was to seek out the advice of Princeton University men’s lacrosse head coach Bill Tierney.

“He was telling me to be realistic; you have to adapt to the talent you have,” said Quirk.

“It isn’t like college where you have kids with a lot of experience. You have to try to keep things basic. You can’t worry about running the elaborate play, you have to make sure they can pass and catch.”

The basic factor in Hun’s success will come down to its group of seniors. “The whole thing depends on the seniors and their leadership,” said Quirk.

“We could have a super season or it could be mediocre. They have to stay focused for 56 days. The team has to play as a unit. If someone gets down, we need somebody else to be able to pick things up.”

Quirk is hoping the Raiders can pick up a championship along the way. “We are in the Bianchi, Prep A and MAPL (Mid-Atlantic Prep League); we have three titles we are going to shoot for,” said Quirk. “We would like to get at least one of them.”

Achieving that goal would be a fitting conclusion for Hun’s group of stellar seniors.

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