This sounds like a good one. Dami is gone I believe so there is at least one open spot in the top 4. Even if he isn't I would like so see us bring more guys into the permanent ssdm rotation. Fatigue and overuse seemed like recurring issues and we seemed to only use the top 4 unless someone was hurt enough not to play. I still like our top 2 of Rice and Aviles. Rosa had a shaky year but also battled injuries. Most of Rice's mistakes were team d/positioning related and should improve next year now that he has more experience.
The jump from DIII to D1 is tough enough as a long pole and I imagine could be even harder as an ssdm. Will he have the athleticism to make the adjustment is the big question.
I thought all four "starting" SSDMs had their moments last year, but an upgrade is definitely needed. The UNC game stands out to me as one where they were clearly picked on. The Tar Heels (especially Steven Kelly) could draw and dump all day long. As Quint likes to say, your defense is only as good as your weakest link.
To my eyes it seemed like Aviles had a pretty good bounce back year, he seemed more aggressive and I thought he did particularly well as a face-off wing. At times he was like a pit bull out there getting beat up but coming up with the ball. Rice started out well but to me it looked like he got worn down as the season wore on. Rosa clearly has a ton of heart, but it seemed like sometimes his body was moving faster than his head at times. And as you said he was beat up. Dami just never seemed to improve from his freshman year. I also thought he got left on an island way too many times last year.
You need to have so many attributes to be a good SSDM now a days. Foot speed, strength, balance, speed. I had thought for a long time that you needed to be over 6 feet, to make up for the missing long pole, but a number of SSDMs who were named All American this year were at 5'11 or shorter (the top four SU SSDMs are 5'11). Roman Puglise who was perhaps the best this year stands at only 5'11. I do think our SSDM's need to bulk up, especially if the coaches expect them to guard guys like Eric Dobson from ND, which Aviles had to do twice last year.
No idea what kind of playing time Bolea will get, if any. He might just be pursing a grad degree independent of the lacrosse team and the coaches are giving him a shot. Still, based on his stats it does seem like he offers at least some promise. SU also brings in two SSDM recruits in Vincent Trujilio and Zach Mercado. I think/hope SU will be in okay shape in this department next year, if the players who played last year keep improving and they can find one more guy that guy establishes themselves.
