STEVE DUSSEAU Last Dance: Dusseau Has One More Tourney Chance Senior Captain Went to Final Four as Freshman, Looks To Return By Derek Richmond Special to The Hoya

Charles Nailen/The Hoya Senior midfielder Steve Dusseau tunes up for the final time before opening the season tomorrow against Ohio State. The game is at 1 p.m. on Harbin Field.

As the end of his senior year approaches, Steve Dusseau, one of four captains of the Georgetown men’s lacrosse team, should be torn between plans for after graduation and plays for tomorrow’s game against Ohio State.

In a way, he is.

The Ohio native will graduate in May with a degree in psychology and, as of now, has no job lined up. In spite of this and his intense desire to lead his team back to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth time in as many seasons, he does not allowed lacrosse to distort his priorities.

“He’s obviously a talented player – arguably one of the best players in the country,” Head Coach Dave Urick said of the midfielder. “But he has the unique ability of being able to keep it all in the proper perspective.”

While all three of last year’s team captains – Rodger Colbert, Mike Henehan and Scott Doyle – were drafted by Major League Lacrosse, Dusseau says that such a future is probably not in the cards for him, at least not immediately. On the other hand, he admits that he will probably not seek a job in his major field of psychology, and he does not completely rule out the possibility of a job in the Major League Lacrosse league.

Born in Columbus, Ohio, Dusseau grew up with three older brothers. At that time, Ohio was not a lacrosse haven like Long Island or Marlyand – the places that many of his teammates call home. He credits his brother Chris, an All-American at Notre Dame, for getting him hooked on the game when he was young.

“It’s one of the biggest sports [in Ohio] now, but people like my brother started it, and it started to take off from there. I was just a beneficiary of that,” Dusseau said. “[Chris] was a senior when I was a freshman, and we actually played Notre Dame and I got to play against him for the first time, so that was neat.”

Having a brother who is an All-American could have been a lot to live up to, but Steve Dusseau has a long list of awards and accomplishments himself. He played four years of lacrosse at Upper Arlington High School and received both the Ohio and Midwest Offensive Player of the Year Award twice. As a High School All-American and two-year captain, Dusseau won three State and three Midwest Championships before arriving at Georgetown.

With a brother playing lacrosse quite successfully at Notre Dame and a slew of accolades to his name, Dusseau could likely have played lacrosse just about anywhere. He was a highly sought-after recruit during his senior year of high school and a prized acquisition for the Hoyas.

“Academically, I thought that Georgetown offered a lot, and I also thought that it would be nice to live in a big city because I haven’t been used to that with my upbringing,” Dusseau said when asked why he chose Georgetown. “Also, the coaching staff here is amazing.”

Dusseau said he spoke with athletes who had played for Urick in the past – none of whom had a single bad thing to say about him. He said one of the best things about his coaching style is the way Urick utilizes the strengths of each individual without trying to make a player into someone he is not.

“[Urick] is just a very admirable person and I try to play my best for the program, but also for him as well,” Dusseau said.

Clearly, Dusseau has a great amount of respect for the staff. This season marks Urick’s 13th season at Georgetown. In that time, the Hoyas have recorded their only 12 winning seasons in the 30-year history of the program. His teams have advanced to the NCAA Tournament the past five seasons, making it as far as the Final Four during Dusseau’s freshman year at Georgetown.

Urick will be the first to tell anyone that it takes more than a good coach to lead a team, and Dusseau’s respect for his coach does not go unrequited. Urick depends on the leadership Dusseau exhibits to achieve all that the team has over the past three seasons. Being named team captain this season was a natural role for Dusseau, Urick said, emphasizing that Dusseau’s leadership essentially made him a captain last year and the only difference this season is the label.

He says the true measure of a player is the influence that he has on those around him and that Dusseau only makes his teammates better.

“Steve’s a special kind of young man,” Urick said. “I don’t know if every coach has the good fortune to have a Steve Dusseau some time in their coaching career. If they do, then they are better for it. I think I’ve learned as much from him as he learns from us.”

Urick is not the only one who respects Dusseau. Like Urick, Dusseau has won his fair share of awards while at Georgetown. The ECAC named Dusseau its Offensive Player of the Year for 2001 and Preseason Offensive Player of the Year this season. Like his brother, he was also awarded First-Team All American honors in 2001. Additionally, Dusseau was selected to the 2002 U.S. en’s Lacrosse Team and will compete in the World Championships this summer in Australia.

Despite all of his successes at all levels of the sport, Dusseau maintains a firm grasp on reality and a clear focus on goals both on and off the field.

“He plays hard, but he also has a good time. He realizes that it is a game – it’s important, but it’s a game, and it’s not the most important thing that’s going on in the world,” Urick said.

Urick expects Dusseau’s leadership to take the team far this season. Dusseau also has high expectations for the season. He would like to take the Hoyas back to the NCAA Tournament. A repeat performance of their 1999 run to the Final Four – or beyond – is a big dream for Dusseau, and he knows the kind of work it will take to make such a run. “That’s kind of been my personal, and our team’s, motto to work hard day in and day out and good things are going to happen,” he said.

All that starts with tomorrow’s season-opener against a team from Dusseau’s home town, Ohio State.

In the end, Dusseau may not have a job lined up for himself when he graduates, but for right now that doesn’t seem to bother him. With the season starting tomorrow, he wants only one thing: to win.

– Staff Writer Julie Wood contributed to this report.