Chicago Machine midfielder Mike Leveille hasn’t stood still in more than a week.
The Delmar native and newly minted Major League Lacrosse player traveled from Foxborough, Mass., to Chicago with stops in Syracuse, New York City and Washington, D.C., in between.
With a schedule like that, it’s not hard to believe that Leveille hasn’t had any time to digest what’s happened during that stretch winning the NCAA Division I national title with Syracuse, being named the Tewaaraton Trophy winner and getting drafted into MLL.
This week has been crazy, and it hasn’t all sunk in yet,` said Leveille hours after he made his Machine debut in an 18-14 loss to Washington Sunday in Chicago. `I’m just glad I was able to help my team win a national title and be part of the tradition at Syracuse.`
The trip began May 24 in Foxborough when Leveille led one of the biggest comebacks for Syracuse this season. He scored five goals, including the tying goal late in the fourth quarter and the game winner in the second overtime, as the Orange overcame a 9-4 deficit and beat Virginia 12-11 in the NCAA Tournament semifinals.
`We’d been in similar situations earlier in the year ` not necessarily that bad,` said Leveille. `We just told ourselves to hang in there and keep going.`
Leveille said his winning goal was a case of throwing the ball on net and getting a good bounce off the Gilette Stadium turf.
`I got to the middle of the field and tried to get one on net,` he said. `Fortunately, it found its way to the back of the net.`
Leveille and his Syracuse teammates had less than 48 hours to recover from that game and face defending champion Johns Hopkins in the finals. This time, the Orange used a balanced attack to beat the Blue Jays 13-10 to win their 10th national championship, with Leveille contributing a goal and two assists.
`They were trying to shut me off, so I tried not to do too much and pick my spots,` said Leveille.
Leveille’s parents made the trip from Delmar to be part of the nearly 50,000 people that witnessed the May 26 national title game.
`It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,` said Leveille’s father, George. `So to be there to enjoy the scenery and see the turnout was very exciting.`
The NCAA tournament committee rewarded Leveille’s efforts during the semifinals and finals (six goals, four assists) by naming him the Most Outstanding Player. It wouldn’t be the only award Leveille would receive that week. Three days later in Washington, he accepted the Tewaaraton Trophy ` lacrosse’s equivalent of the Heisman Trophy.
`It certainly is a tremendous honor, but it was the team’s success that allowed me to do what I did,` said Leveille.
Leveille was hoping his neighbor and fellow Syracuse University student, Katie Rowan, would win the women’s Tewaaraton Trophy that night, but the committee gave the award to Northwestern’s Hannah Nielsen after the Wildcats won their fourth consecutive national title.
`I thought she was deserving of that,` Leveille said of Rowan, who led the nation in scoring with 142 points. `She had a tremendous year, and she’s a tremendous player.`
Between the national championship game and the Tewaaraton ceremony, Leveille stopped in New York City for the MLL draft. He was hoping to be picked by Chicago, where his older brother, Kevin, plays. But before the Machine could grab him, New Jersey selected Leveille with the third overall pick.
Leveille might have remained a member of the New Jersey Pride had not a deal been made between New Jersey and Chicago. At the start of the third round, Leveille was traded to Chicago for a player and two draft picks.
`There was a lot going on behind the scenes,` said Leveille. `Kevin worked hard to get Chicago to draft me. Then, New Jersey kind of pulled a fast one and picked me, but I’m glad it all got worked out so I could play with Kevin.`
Leveille’s pro debut was a good one, despite Chicago’s 18-14 loss to Washington. He scored two goals and assisted on two of Kevin’s team-high five goals.
`It was a different experience. I didn’t know what to expect,` said Leveille. `There was a lot of transition and odd-man rushes.`
Leveille will have plenty of time to adjust to the MLL game. The regular season runs through the middle of August ` after which he can shift his focus to his day job as an accountant for New York City firm KPMG, which he starts in September.
In the meantime, Leveille plans to commute between Delmar and Chicago and enjoy every moment he gets to play pro lacrosse.
`Regardless of the crowd size and how young the league is, it’s still going out and being paid to play a sport you love. It’s pretty great,` said Leveille.
Those last three words could easily sum up Mike Leveille’s whole week.“