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thedrifter
05-19-07, 06:47 AM
Overseas Marine on lacrosse field in spirit
By John Connolly
Saturday, May 19, 2007 - Updated: 12:42 AM EST

Brody Savoie of Wilbraham may be halfway around the globe serving with the Marines in Iraq, but his teammates on the Western New England College men’s lacrosse team haven’t forgotten him. All season, as the Golden Bears reached the NCAA Division 3 tournament, they carried Savoie’s No. 15 jersey to midfield during pregame introductions.

After WNEC claimed the Pilgrim League Championship, Golden Bears players ran onto the field waving Savoie’s jersey aloft before receiving the championship trophy. The players sent game film overseas to their former and future teammate.

“As long as he’s overseas and stuff he’s still part of the team,” said junior goaltender Chris Brody of Newtown, Conn., and Savoie’s roommate last year. “Just having his jersey there motivates us a lot. In the fall, when he knew he was going overseas, he was one of the people who tried to improve our team 100 percent even though he knew he wasn’t going to be in a game.”

Sophomore defender Jared Pavis, 19, of Wilbraham, agreed. “He’s been in our hearts all year,” said Pavis, who was due to be Savoie’s roommate this season. “He was the hardest worker on the team, and when we heard he was going we wanted him to be with us all the time. We have a spot for him when he gets back next year.”

WNEC coach John Klepacki said the players deserve a lot of credit.

“It’s a tribute to Brody that they did it on their own,” said Klepacki, whose team finished 17-1 and reached the NCAA Division 3 quarterfinals before losing to Cortland State, 12-10. “They want to make sure that when he comes back he’s coming back to something better than when he left it. This team has a lot of class.”

Savoie, 21, joined the Marine Reserves in the fall of his freshman year. He is serving with the GSMTCO 6th Motor Transportation Battalion out of Providence, R.I. The unit is stationed about 85 miles northwest of Baghdad in Al Anbar province, Iraq’s largest. While in Iraq, he has a laptop to keep up with news from home and how the WNEC lacrosse team is doing.

“He (Savoie) wanted to do more than the average college kid,” Klepacki said about the preseason All-American player. “He had that leadership quality.”

Savoie’s parents, Carol and Reid, appreciate the players’ efforts.

“The school and the way they promote the family-type atmosphere there and to take it one step further with our son overseas, it’s quite a wonderful thing,” Reid Savoie said.

“They’re selling T-shirts and then turn around and purchase things for the troops and send it not only to my son but to the rest of his unit as well,” said the proud father. “They really appreciate it over there.”

Ellie