When the Middlebury men’s lacrosse team routed Plattsburgh State last March, it could’ve been the last time senior Michael McCormack ’20 played collegiately. The game fell on Tuesday, March 10, just hours after Laurie Patton requested that all students evacuate campus due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In that moment, the future was ominous.
Would the season resume? Or had McCormack and his teammates just competed in their final match of the year?
A suspension in NESCAC play soon evolved into an outright cancellation, terminating the Panthers’ season. But McCormack, who was named team MVP in that three-game ‘season,’ was desperate to write another ending to his collegiate career. The star playmaker knew he still had gas in the tank, especially after taking the 2018–19 year off from school.
Fortunately, his wish earned a boost when the NCAA announced that all spring athletes would be afforded one more season of eligibility, circumstances considered.
“With the season last year and everything that happened, I really just wanted to look to find somewhere to use that last year of [NCAA] eligibility,” McCormack told The Campus. “[I] reached out to coaches at the Division I level because I knew that’d probably be the best bet [for] having a season.”
McCormack, who was a First Team All-NESCAC and Third Team All-American selection in 2018, was no average D-III player. The University of Vermont (UVM), a strong D-I program positioned 35 miles north of Middlebury, was quick to realize this.
“[I] had great conversations with the coaches at UVM and that made the decision pretty easy,” McCormack said.
After committing to UVM, McCormack made the move up to Burlington for the 2020-21 academic year. He enrolled in a graduate certificate program in Integrated Health and Wellness Coaching and found a place to live with another fifth-year student.
Once the fall preseason kicked into gear, McCormack quickly noticed differences between the D-III and D-I level. At UVM, the team practiced six days a week, lifted weights three times a week and conducted biweekly conditioning exercises. It was a big change from Middlebury, both in terms of commitment and seriousness.
“In the fall [at Middlebury], there's not really that [much] fall ball or training just because we encourage kids to do another sport or go abroad or put their time and energy into something else,” McCormack said. “Just coming to D-I level especially at UVM, it’s a lot more time and commitment in the offseason. That's the biggest difference that I experienced.”
After months of preparation, the UVM Catamounts (0–1, 0–0) finally took the field last weekend in its non-conference season opener. On Saturday, Feb. 27, the team faced off against Bryant University (2–1, 0–0), a talented program from Rhode Island. The Catamounts fell, 15–12, but it wasn’t all bad news for McCormack. The attackman netted a pair of goals and notched a team-high six ground balls in his debut.
His performance marked a strong start to his D-I career, but it didn’t necessarily catch him by surprise.
“I think the NESCAC is the strongest division in D-III and gets top-tier players,” McCormack said. “It's really good competition, so being able to play such top-tier teams and players in general has prepared me for this moment I’m in.”
This season, UVM will play 11 games over nine weeks, including duels against Syracuse, the University of Albany and Hartford. It’ll be a fast-paced next few months, but McCormack is eagerly welcoming the bustle. It’s time for him to make an impression, after all.
“I wouldn’t say nervous is the right word,” McCormack said. “I’m excited and I feel prepared just by the work I’ve put in throughout my life.”
Blaise Siefer ‘23.5 is a sports staff writer.
Siefer is majoring in Sociology and minoring in Spanish.
For three semesters in 2021 and 2022, Siefer served as Senior Sports Editor. He also co-founded a Middlebury sports recap podcast, PFL Weekly, which is released on all major streaming platforms every Tuesday.
Siefer is also the Co-Founder and Co-President of Middlebury Club Soccer.
