Marquette, Siena Find Strength in Brotherhood, Healing in the Game

JAKE RICHARD HAD THE LENGTH OF A FLIGHT FROM NEW YORK TO MILWAUKEE to think about what to say after the unthinkable happened Sept. 5, a crash that killed Marquette sophomores Scott Michaud and Noah Snyder.

The second-year Golden Eagles men’s lacrosse coach would acknowledge there was no way to prepare to navigate the shock and the emotions of the sudden loss. But he insisted they were ready — mainly because they had each other to lean on.

“A phrase that I’ve heard a ton as we’ve managed this is there’s no playbook and there’s no right answer,” Richard said. “But I actually believe there is a right answer, and the right answer is just being together. When we got the news there was an accident, before we even knew what the impact was, it was just about getting all together.”

Nearly three months later and a time zone away, another Division I program at another Catholic school faced a similar tragedy and reckoning. Siena coach Liam Gleason fell at his home on Nov. 30, suffered a severe head injury and died three days later.

“Our biggest thing was just staying together,” graduate attackman Conor Hufnagel said. “That week, every night we made sure all the guys were together, spending time and trying not to think of it as much. During our break, one of our emphases for us captains was to make sure we reached out to players on the team to catch up and see how they’re doing — they shouldn’t be holding in any emotions.”

A new season is upon both programs, teams heavy from grief and sorrow and still figuring out precisely how to move forward. Both play their first games since their respective losses this Saturday — Marquette at home against Michigan, Siena at Boston University.

There will be visible reminders, things like helmet decals and jersey patches, t-shirts and wristbands. Siena plans to place a logo in Gleason’s honor on its field. Marquette has maintained the lockers that belonged to Michaud and Snyder, with their gear still stashed inside.

And there will be more subtle moments, milestones reached while moving on without ever forgetting.

“The first day is what I’ve been looking forward to for about a month, to be with the guys,” said senior midfielder Colby LeBlanc, another Siena captain. “That first practice is going to be pretty tough because it’s going to be like, ‘Wow, he’s really not here with us right now.’ But he is, right?”

THE SAINTS HAVE ALREADY SHARED A RARE EXPERIENCE. Gleason had designated himself as an organ donor, and Siena’s players lined the hallway at Albany Medical Center as part of an honor walk during Gleason’s final moments. His donation ultimately saved the lives of four people.

“Seeing all these guys in their jerseys as Liam rolled past them for the final time is an image in your head that’s tough to absorb,” said Tim Cox, who was elevated to head coach on Jan. 6. “It’s a beautiful thing with a very emotional scene, if that makes sense. It triggers some emotional memories, but just knowing he was there feeling us, watching us, seeing us and seeing his guys in their jerseys on his final descent speaks volumes.”

Cox, who was an assistant throughout Gleason’s tenure, understands the coming months will be a balancing act. Opposing coaches have reached out to see if they can honor Gleason before games. The March 17 game at Albany figures to be particularly wrenching, given Gleason’s connection to both programs.

Yet there’s still a season to play for the guys now wearing the Siena jersey, and the practices and games might be the best available balm.

“We play a medicine game,” Cox said. “The opportunity to get back on the field and play lacrosse for all of us, including our coaches, is therapy. There’s no phones, there’s no distractions, there’s no TVs, there’s no news, there’s nobody texting you. It’s just your stick and gloves, a couple balls and nets and just competing.”

One part of the Saints’ process is thinking about experiences that evoke joy. Hufnagel said day-to-day things like walking down to the practice field or visiting Gleason’s home for a cookout pop into his mind from time to time and make him smile.

“Pre-practice, we’re all stretching, he’s coming to shoot the [breeze] with guys and we’re talking about football and basketball and he’d come to the basketball games with us with his kids,” LeBlanc said. “For me, what helps me through this whole process is thinking about these little moments with him that brighten your day. Maybe you didn’t realize it in the moment but looking back on it, it’s kind of how it helps me.”

Some facets of being a Siena lacrosse player won’t change. Gleason wasn’t hanging out with them on Friday nights or visiting their houses. But they would encounter him in his office, and it’s one place Cox hopes he can transform this season into something much less somber than if it was left vacant.

“I want to try to make it a softer space, with some couches and things where it’s not just an empty desk to look at,” Cox said. “A place where it has his MAAC championship ring, his trophy, a picture or two of him and chairs where guys can come and sit and do whatever we need to do.” 

THE 6-FOOT-5 GLEASON WAS A LARGER-THAN-LIFE FIGURE in the Capital District lacrosse community. He had ties everywhere — as a player and an assistant at Albany, a brief stint as the head coach at the College of St. Rose and as an assistant and head coach Siena — and just led the Saints to the NCAA tournament for the first time in his seven-year tenure last spring.

Michaud and Snyder left their own mark, one Richard is determined to spotlight in the months and years ahead.

“I don’t want these guys to be numbers or just a face or a name,” Richard said. “I want you guys to know who they were and why we loved them so much. It is important to me to talk about them forever.”

And he has a lot to say. Snyder, a midfielder, was a “gravitating player to watch,” someone who loved the game, treated it as a gift and “had a heart full of fire and humongous dreams.” Snyder competed for the Haudenosaunee Nationals in the World Lacrosse Men's U20 Championship in South Korea last summer and had recently been invited to play with the senior sixes team at USA Lacrosse's Atlas Cup in the weeks before the accident.

Michaud delivered the quirkiness normally ascribed to a goalie. He navigated a typical freshman year, Richard said, “a little bit timid, feeling out who he was and feeling out who was on the team and how he was going to make an impact at this level.” But he came back to campus late last summer with a newfound confidence and was determined to make a statement.

“It was cool to see him turn that corner,” Richard said. “Scott’s the kind of guy you’re curious about when you look at him. You start asking some questions and you realize he’s just an incredibly nice person and you want to be around him more.”

In the wake of the tragedy, Richard said virtually every Division I men’s lacrosse coach — as well as people from every division and level of the sport — reached out to offer support. The next week was a blur, though he credited the campus community for providing a caring environment.

It didn’t make what was next easy. The Golden Eagles flew to Michaud’s Sept. 12 funeral in Springboro, Ohio, just outside of Dayton, then bused six hours to Snyder’s Sept. 14 service in Buffalo, N.Y.

Richard considers it both an experience he wouldn’t wish on anyone and one no one in Marquette’s program will ever forget. The Golden Eagles were there to support the Michaud and Snyder families, but also to be together when there was no time to stop and slow down.

When the team returned to campus, Richard wasn’t sure if they would even have fall practices. His team made the decision for him, unanimously deciding to venture forward with practices and scrimmages already scheduled.

“I never want to go back to that semester and at the same time, I never want to leave it because that’s when those guys were the closest,” Richard said. “For as hard as those times are and as sad as they are, they’re incredibly powerful and really shape who you are.

"Something I talked to the guys about is, I love being sad in a lot of ways, because being sad reminds you how much you loved them and those are some of the saddest times and also some of the most loving times I’ve experienced.”

Richard was emphatic in the fall how important it was for players to show strength in different ways, sometimes by doing more for others and at others being vulnerable and allowing others to provide support.

This season figures to be an extension of that. Scott Michaud and Noah Snyder will be saluted, mourned, honored and most of all remembered at Marquette. The same will be true of Liam Gleason at Siena.

“I think those sad moments that come up in the spring are going to be moments that we’re reminded how much we love them and moments that recenter us and continue us moving forward,” Richard reflected. “So I’m excited for the spring. I think it will certainly be challenging, but one that we’re ready for.”