Lacrosse tournament honors Donnie Farrell

There’s something to be said about the strength and camaraderie felt between teammates. Throughout all the practices, games and road trips, a team may develop a connection similar to family. For the members of Rowan’s club lacrosse team, that family was rocked by tragedy two years ago when teammate Donnie Farrell was killed after being attacked by a group of still unidentified men.

Michael Kerbaugh, senior and president of Rowan’s club lacrosse team, was a close friend of Farrell’s and decided the best way to commemorate his life was by holding a lacrosse tournament.

The goal was to raise money for a scholarship in Farrell’s honor at his high school, Mountain Lakes High School, located in Morris County.

Called the Donald J. Farrell III Memorial Scholarship, and supported by the Boonton Township Policemen’s Benevolent Association Local 392, the scholarship is awarded to a student who “posses courage, integrity, and a clear desire to excel.”

The idea of a tournament to honor Farrell had been in Kerbaugh’s mind since his friend was killed, but different obstacles kept getting in the way.

“I’ve been kicking around a tournament for a while because I was very close with Donnie,” Kerbaugh said. “We tried to do something last year, but it got shut down because of issues with the facilities. The budget got very large and we just couldn’t get it together in time.”

Last spring, the team’s idea was to hold a 24-hour lacrosse tournament in which teams from all over the state, including Farrell’s high school team, would play non-stop for an entire day with each team rotating their time on the field.

After the 24-hour tournament fizzled, the team decided to set their sights a little lower. With Kerbaugh leading, they got a four-team tournament together that was held on Nov. 7 and 8 on the intramural fields.

Using his contacts with friends on other club teams, Kerbaugh managed to get Cabrini College, Drexel University and LaSalle University to participate in the event. He had e-mailed 12 to 14 different schools in the area asking them to join the tournament, but club teams have a harder time getting organized, especially in their off-season.

“Being fall, its tough to get people and teams to travel to Rowan for an off-season tournament. Our real season starts in spring,” Kerbaugh said.

Sophomore Tim Ryan sees other road blocks for club spots in college.

“It’s a club team. We don’t have a coach; it’s just us,” Ryan said. “We have to handle everything ourselves.”

Ryan believes that without all of Kerbaugh’s hard work, the tournament would never have happened.

“Mike did a lot of this by himself,” Ryan said. “I give him a ton of credit for this. He really worked hard to get the teams, the refs together. Then he told us afterward so we could get on board.”

Ryan didn’t know Farrell, but grew up in the same area and even played against him in high school lacrosse.

“I didn’t know Donnie personally, but the fact that he was so close to someone that we look up to was a big deal to us. Mike’s our leader and he gave us incentive for everyone to do their part,” Ryan said.

Sunday was a special day at the tournament when Farrell’s parents visited and talked to players. Ryan got the chance to speak with Farrell’s parents in between games.

“When I talked to his parents, you could tell they were so grateful that we put this together [and] so appreciative of the tournament,” Ryan said.

The team raised money from a snack stand, “LAX 4 Donnie” t-shirts and charging each team a $400 entry fee. The entry fee helped to pay for the referees and the winner’s trophy.

“Unfortunately, we didn’t raise too much money, but one of the major things we were able to accomplish was honoring Donnie,” Kerbaugh said.

Kerbaugh hopes the Rowan’s club lacrosse team continues with the tournament long after he has graduated.

“I would like to see it continued each year. It has the opportunity to grow, raise awareness and raise more money,” Kerbaugh said.

Ryan hopes he can learn as much as he can from Kerbaugh so once Kerbaugh graduates in the spring, Ryan can continue the tournament. Both players see this tournament as something that can become an annual fundraiser.

“Hopefully I’ll be able to pass it [tradition of tournament] along once I graduate too. I think its something great for the team and for people to remember Donnie,” Ryan said.

For Kerbaugh, the tournament was successful, but he has other goals in mind with respect to Farrell.

“They still haven’t found the suspects,” Kerbaugh said. “There is an over $100,000 reward. His parents would like some closure. I’d like to see some progress in the case.”