Dan Savoca waited two years to become the Robbinsville High first-string lacrosse goalie. But to observe him during that time, you would never know he was the goalie-in-waiting.
“If you watched him before the game, you would think he was the starter,” coach John Demkovitz said. “The kid is locked in. Headphones on, he does his routine. If something would have happened (to starter Brendan Coyle) he would be game ready. He’s always working, always getting extra one-on-one time over the summer with the goalie trainer. He knew his time was coming.”
And if for some odd reason he didn’t know, it was confirmed at the end of last season.
“The first thing that came out of my mouth was ‘Hey man, the keys are yours,’” Demkovitz said.
While one would think Savoca would put in extra time knowing he was starting, the truth was, he had been preparing for it all along.
“There were no major changes in the off-season aside from maybe some extra pressure and upping the intensity in my practice,” the junior said. “It felt great to be told that at the end of last season, and with that came a lot of excitement about this season.”
But he made sure not to vary from what he did when backing up Coyle.
“Before every game I try to keep to the same routine – put a pair of headphones on and listen to music while doing some hand eye coordination drills,” Savoca said. “During the games, I would have a catch with a teammate on the sidelines to ensure that I was always ready. I focus on my breathing and try to clear my head as much as possible.”
There has been, however, an added twist to the exercise.
“A fun new practice I’ve picked up,” Savoca said, “is listening to Herb Brooks’ “You were born for this,’ speech from the movie Miracle.”
It makes sense, as Savoca was born to play goalie.
He began in Kindergarten, following his two older brothers into the Robbinsville Lacrosse Association.
“At the time the lowest age group they had was first and second graders,”
Savoca recalled. “But they let me play up. The joke is that I was the original ‘mini laxer.’”
Savoca was first allowed to play goalie in third grade and since his brother
Matthew was in goal for the Ravens, “I wanted to be just like him.”
From there he played travel for the New Jersey Lacrosse Club, and its affiliate national team, the Barnstormers.
When he arrived at Robbinsville, Demkovitz and his assistants immediately realized they had a good one coming in. But Coyle was really good, so Savoca had to wait.
“We knew we already had a great goalie and the kid never once complained at all,” the coach said. “There was never even the slightest look on his face of disappointment.”
But the fire was burning within.
“When I first got to RHS, I was hoping to play any way I could whether it be on the varsity or JV team,” Savoca said. “I wanted to have an impact and help the team whichever way I could. Growing up with two older brothers, I am super competitive and wanted to be on the field.”
Even though he wasn’t on the field just yet, Savoca made the best use of his time by learning from Coyle.
“Brendan was a great mentor to me,” Savoca said. “He showed me how to better communicate on the defensive end and his ability to get up and out on the clear is something I’m still working to replicate.”
Savoca got his first varsity action last year, making five saves and allowing one goal in two games that were already decided. Through the Ravens 5-2 start this season, he allowed 33 goals while making 74 saves.
“This kid is gonna go under the radar and people are gonna think, ‘Hey maybe this year Robbinsville doesn’t have a goalie,’” Demkovitz said. “We still have a goalie, and he’s the backbone of our team that will take us as far as we can go.”
Savoca has one quality that all goalies need – a coolness under fire and the ability to put a bad play behind him.
“You rarely see him get flustered,” Demkovitz said. “If something good doesn’t happen he can turn the page real quick. I honestly haven’t seen many high school kids be able to turn the page as fast as him. In practice if it seems it’s not his day, he takes a step back, goes through his whole routine and is back at it. He’s very mature.”
Savocin realizes he does not have the luxury of dwelling on a bad play, even for a split second.
“The largest part of being a goalie is the mental aspect,” he said. “You hear people talk about the ‘next shot mentality’ – not getting down on yourself for every goal. To me every game is 0-0 until the final whistle.
“On the physical side, the only really important attributes, I find, are good hand eye coordination and quick reflexes.”
One thing a goalie doesn’t need much of is speed, but Savoca has it in both short and long runs.
“He’s first in our sprints every day,” Demkovitz said. “He can outrun almost anyone. Distance-wise he probably outruns the majority of his team. Something that goes completely unnoticed is how athletic he really is. He has extremely fast hands, which is what you need as a goalie.”
Asked if his teammates get a little upset at being beat by a goalie, Savoca couldn’t help but take a jab, saying with a laugh “Well, you know, they are so far behind I don’t get to see them making any faces, so you’d have to ask them.”
Actually, his teammates think so highly of him that they voted him one of the team captains as a junior.
“It was a great honor,” he said. “I always try to be a leader and a good role model and it felt great that my teammates saw me that way.”
Savoca is certainly a leader in the classroom, with a 4.475 weighted GPA.
“Academics have and always will be important to me,” he said. “Maybe it’s my competitive nature, but I’ve always wanted to do my best in school.
He also wants to help the organization that launched his career, serving as an assistant in the RLA.
“I volunteer when I can to give back to the organization that helped foster my love for lacrosse,” he said. “I also do different activities with the Robbinsville Fire Department, where my dad works.”
With one more year of high school still left, Savoca hasn’t pinned down a college yet, but the search will start with what goes in the classroom.
“As of now, I want to stay connected to the game whether it be playing on the official team or intramural,” he said. “I think it would be great to play for a college team, but the most important thing for me is academics and finding the right place.”
For now, after two years of waiting, the right place for Savoca is in the Ravens goal.
