Statistics not the story about this Notre Dame lacrosse senior captain

SOUTH BEND − A deeper dive into what makes a good college lacrosse short stick defensive midfielder delivers an assortment of job descriptions. One Down: 'Lacrosse gods' smile on Thomas Ricciardelli, Notre Dame in NCAA opener They better be athletic because they work both sides of the field, often making the transition from defense to offense and offense to defense. They better be elite defenders who can shadow the other team’s best offensive weapon.

They better be versatile. They need to know how best to facilitate. Be a good teammate.

Be a connector. Be relentless. One word to describe a short-stick defensive midfield may best suit Notre Dame lacrosse senior captain Christian Alacqua.

It’s a word that will be on display Saturday in an NCAA Tournament quarterfinals matchup between No. 2 seed Notre Dame (11-2) and unseeded Johns Hopkins (10-5) on the campus of Hofstra (New York) University (Noon, ESPNU). Disruptor.