John Demkovitz feels one of the great things about being a head coach is watching players evolve from their freshman to senior seasons. In the case of his Robbinsville High boys lacrosse team, Lukas Hutt has been the perfect example.
“As a freshman, he liked lacrosse, he had fun but it wasn’t the most fun,” Demkovitz said. “His sophomore year he got a little taste and junior year he grew into his body and turned into loving the game. As a senior, he talks about lacrosse, 24-7. He absolutely loves the game. I think the passion he has for the sport is the biggest thing about him evolving and growing into the young man he is.”
Hutt will go down as one of the greatest all-around attackmen in program history. Heading into Robbinsville’s June 25 state tournament game with Barnegat, he led the Ravens in goals (48), assists (28) and points (76).
As Robbinsville carried an 11-5 record in the states, the attackman had 97 career goals and 116 assists. Demkovitz, a former Raven attacker, said if he scored three goals he may be the first player in program history with 100 goals and 100 assists. But the coach added he had to research that to make sure.
Whether he’s the first or not, Hutt has become one of the Colonial Valley Conference’s most dangerous offensive players.. And he agrees with his coach that he is a far cry from the player he was in ninth grade.
“I couldn’t care less about lacrosse back then,” Hutt said. “I was a midfielder on JV, I hated it. I came back my sophomore year, I was a little more athletic, I was more in shape. There was an open spot, a lefty spot. I’m a righty, I ended up playing that position and that’s something that I’ll always appreciate. It’s allowed me to work with both my hands. If it weren’t for that year I’d have never put in the time that I did on my left hand. Now I’m really comfortable going both ways.”
Despite his indifference to the sport as a freshman, thoughts of quitting never entered Hutt’s mind.
“I wasn’t thinking about giving it up because I love my teammates,” he said. “I found fun within the sport. Even if it wasn’t coming from the game, I had fun with the guys on the bus, in the locker room. I wasn’t grasping the game in the way I do now. I love when things come together. I couldn’t ask for it any other way. I got my opportunity, once that happened there was no looking back.”
When he does reflect, Hutt remembers a young team that went 6-10 but won the CVC Valley Division title as sophomores. Last year they improved to 14-6 and this year Hutt had high hopes heading into states.
“We always talk about that year when we started 10, 11 sophomores and we talked about how teams beat us up,” he said. “This year we were able to take care of a lot of teams we weren’t able to before. Overall we’re having a great season and we’ve given ourselves a chance to make a great run. “
Hutt feels team chemistry plays a large part in Robbinsville’s improvement.
“There are 14 seniors on the team,” he said. “Since I signed up I’d say 10 of them were on the team then. It’s been these kids and our bond. It’s so cool to play with them for so long and have the same group for so many years. Obviously guys are coming and going but the continuity between the guys that have stayed is cool.”
And that atmosphere is what Hutt cares most about. Demkovitz noted that when he collected his 100th assist or 200th career point, he made no mention of it and didn’t really care about the individual milestone.
“He’s a little more old school; just put your head down and work and grind,” the coach said. “It’s about the team’s success, not about his success. He wants the team to have succes and work hard every single day. It shows. He’s a huge spark for our team and our team feeds off it.”
It’s almost as if Hutt bought stock in energy, which has risen every day. After being bored by baseball due to its lack of physicality, Hutt found lacrosse in 7th grade.
“It is literally everything I would ever look for,” Hutt said. “It’s physical, the fastest game on two feet. You gotta be fast and you gotta be talented. I fell in love with the game.”
Hutt started at midfield but due to a lack of attackmen his age, he moved to attack in sixth grade and has been there ever since. He tried playing football but it wasn’t the type of physicality he was looking for.
“In lacrosse, as my game has progressed I just love using contact against my defender to my advantage and help my game,” Hutt said.
His style of play has become quite the show for spectators.
“You talk to anyone who watches our games and they love him, just for his sheer hustle,” Demkovitz said. “He literally flies around, he’s willing to get physical with you, he’s always in the mix for ground balls and his speed and intensity alone puts us in situations we might never be without someone like him on the field.”
As aforementioned, Hutt earned an attack spot on the left side and learned how to use both hands. He collected 17 goals and 25 assists as a sophomore and, midway through the season, he began to play the X spot, a specialized attack position comparable to a basketball team’s point guard. Controlling the ball behind the opposition’s goal, Hutt set up offensive plays and was a natural for the position with his strong dodging skills and the ability to throw accurate passes.
“My goal is to open it up for my offense and create opportunities not just for me but my teammates,” he said. “I have to draw my draw slides, keep my head up and move the ball quickly.
“Another thing I’ve worked on is playing in tight and using the crease and the back of the net to my advantage. Just finishing up close is something I spent a lot of time on and got a lot better at this year.”
Hutt’s greatest strength is probably his ability not to force the issue, but take what comes to him. He is eager to get things done, but patient enough to see what is presented. It helped him score 32 goals and rack up 63 assists last season.
“He’s really evolved into a complete lacrosse player,” Demkovitz said. “He can go right, he can go left, so you really can’t scout him. He can pass, he can score and he lets the game come to him. He’s a playmaker, he’s swinging for the fence and trying to make the home run play.”
The impressive thing about him is that Hutt doesn’t save his energy for only when it counts.
“He tries so hard in practice and in games,” Demkovitz said. “He practices like he plays. The last two years he’s been going 110 percent. Even when things don’t go his way or he’s having a bad day you know he’s gonna try his hardest.
“If he’s not having a good game or a good practice, he’ll ride or die with those guys. I have so much trust in him. I’ll take those scrappy plays when he makes mistakes only because I know he’s gonna ride so hard and hustle to make up for that mistake and prove me wrong and then he’s gonna do something fantastic.”
Hutt’s skills are made even more impressive by the fact he never played travel lacrosse except for a few guest spots in tournaments. His off-season workouts consisted of him and Ravens goalie Brendan Coyle going to the Ravens’ turf field in the off-season and working out against each other.
“We’d go about four times a day and we would do literally hundreds and hundreds of reps, motivating each other,” Hutt said. “After we went 14-6 with a team full of juniors, I knew it was worth the work.
“I never really thought about travel. I know it’s how you get recruited, but I just use athleticism. It’s a lot about reacting for me and what I think is right. Let the game come to me and see what I can do back to them.”
Demkovitz loves Hutt’s athleticism, and also noted that he has a desire to score that is necessary on attack.
“He’s lightning quick, he can change speeds, change directions and go both directions,” the coach said. “He’s also very fast. A lot of guys are quick but not fast. He can change direction on you and then break away from you.
“And his attitude is ‘I’m getting to the goal, you’re not stopping me no matter what you do.’ If you’re getting to the middle of the field and someone’s gonna hit you, you gotta have that attitude. That’s the one thing an attackman needs, he puts his body on the line for the team and he bounces right back up.”
Hutt never wants to take a break and even if it appears he suffers a painful injury, he will be bugging Demkovitz to put him back in the game minutes later.
In the fall, Hutt is headed for James Madison University. He was recruited to play lacrosse by some smaller schools but was attracted to JMU. The fact he will play club lacrosse is not lost on Demkovitz.
“He has such a passion for the game and for the team – our team is a family and it’s always family first with him,” the coach said. “He’s so unselfish, every move he makes is to put the team in a better position to win. And that’s every day at practice, in the game, in team meetings. That’s what sticks out so much more. At the end of day it puts a smile on your face knowing he is having the time of his life out there and is giving it his all.”
It’s all part of Lukas Hutt’s wonderful evolution.
Lukas Hutt, left, plays in a recent game for Ravens boys’ lacrosse.,
