Shoring up the Lehigh defense
9/18/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse
For Evan Philcox and Tom Ellis, being on defense is a way of life. Philcox, a senior, is a defender on Lehigh’s lacrosse team. Ellis, a junior, is the team’s goalie. On the field, their job is to read the opposing offense, anticipate, and react to keep the ball out of the goal. Both Philcox and Ellis choose to spend their summers reading and reacting as well, as they help protect beach goers as lifeguards on two of the East’s most crowded beaches. Evan Philcox grew up by the beach on Long Island, and has been a lifeguard in some capacity since the age of 14. He has spent the past couple of summers working for the state of New York as a lifeguard at Jones Beach. On crowded days, Philcox says he can be involved in four or five rescues. Interestingly enough, Philcox says that it’s oftentimes easier to spot potential trouble on days when the water is rough. "You can spot the rips and breaks," he explains. "You know where the trouble spots are, and you can focus extra attention there." Like lacrosse, to be successful, lifeguards must work together as a team. "You have to be well-trained on each piece of equipment," Philcox says. "It’s the same crew all summer, so we learn to work well with each other." One of Philcox’s teammates, Tom Ellis, performs similar duties during the summer as a Surf Rescue Technician (SRT) in Ocean City, Maryland. Ellis has spent the past two summers on the stand in Ocean City after passing a rigorous certification test. This past summer, Ellis had his fair share of close calls. He was the second to respond to a surfer who suffered from a broken neck. "You’ve always got to be alert," Ellis points out, "because you don’t know what might happen." Both Ellis and Philcox agree that being a lifeguard keeps them in shape for lacrosse. "You do so much training over the summer, it’s a big help in the fall," Ellis says. "You use different muscles when you’re swimming, so [lacrosse] preaseason is still rough," Philcox says with a laugh. Set to enter his third season, Lehigh head coach Chris Wakely says that Philcox and Ellis have distinctly different personalities. "They each save lives over the summer, but they go about things very differently," Wakely explains. "Tommy wants order, while Evan is less structured. Tommy is vocal – as he has to be as a goalie – while Evan is less so." However, Wakely says that despite their differences, the duo has two very crucial elements in common that will make them successful. "They’re both good kids and good students," Wakely notes. "And on the field, they’re both sincere in their desire to raise our program to the next competitive level." While both Philcox and Ellis are excited about the upcoming season, they are also looking forward to next summer. "I want to do this for as long as I can; I love doing it," Ellis says. Philcox agrees. "Who wouldn’t want to be on the beach in the summer," he asks. "With the waves and the sun setting on the water…now that’s living." Follow Evan Philcox as he represents the lacrosse team all season in the first-ever Lehigh Superstars competition. The competition takes place each week on the Lehigh Sports Magazine, seen every Monday night at 7:30 on WFMZ-TV in the Lehigh Valley, and every Tuesday afternoon nationwide at 3:30 on Fox Sports Net Pittsburgh (DirecTV channel 628).
