Bray Malphrus

Bray Malphrus takes the ball from a Cornell player (The News and Advance (AP).)

Why do we always seem to idolize a hero? Why do we hold heroes to a high standard? Why are they even heroes? A hero is a person who people strive to be. They seem to define the best qualities that others can have. We expect them to be the best that they can be in anything they do. Some can be humanitarians who, through the goodness of their heart, work towards equality. Some can be scientists who with their gifted minds can find the cure to a plaguing disease. Some can also be a successful business person who reached fame by achieving so much. These are all examples of what a hero is, yet they all seem to share commonalities. Each one is different, but to be a hero it seems one must have a never ending determination to succeed, an open mind for new possibilities, and an ability to work through a problem. 

Lacrosse player Bray Malphrus is an example of all of those different characteristics. Throughout his career he had always wanted to succeed and was willing to work his hardest to achieve his goals. He came through high school at Georgetown Prep in Maryland. As a lacrosse player he was highly decorated with many different awards such as Under Armor All-American, two time first-team All-Metro area team, and league champion his junior year. He was ranked as the fifth best player in the entire country by Inside Lacrosse, and was heavily recruited throughout his time at Georgetown Prep. He committed to the University of Virginia, along with many of the other best players in the country, all in hopes that they would eventually win a national championship. Throughout his time at UVA he always came close to capturing the elusive championship ring. But his team was never able to quite grasp it at the end of the season. On many occasions they came up short in the semi-finals of the NCAA tournament, and never were able to get past that. They continued to reach for success, while never giving up on themselves. 

Bray Malphrus (Washington Post (Matt Riley))

Malphrus had always worked hard to achieve his goal; he appeared in every single game except for one his freshman and sophomore years. He was part of the second string, waiting to become one of the starters and leaders for the team. Even though he took a back seat, he still made an impact. As a freshman he was able to make quite a difference on the field and became a fixture in the UVA team. However, Malphrus’ career was bound to start taking a different road. During his junior year he began to see more of a leadership role, and was assigned to a more important task on the team. He started to become one of the strongest defenders and was tasked with shutting down some of the best players other teams had to offer. 

He was becoming a pivotal part of a seemingly championship-bound squad, when all of a sudden things took a turn for the worse. George Hugely was convicted for the murder of Yeardly Love. George was a midfielder for the UVA men’s lacrosse team, while Yeardly was on the women’s  lacrosse team. The athletic program was shocked as a whole after this all happened. Tragedy had struck Charlottesville. The year ended with yet another disappointing loss in one of the NCAA semifinal games, where they lost to rival Duke (who would go on to win the title that year).

Bray Malphrus Celebrates (The University of Virginia Magazine (Virginiasports.com))

When the next year came, it carried with it the same high expectations. The team was hungry for a national championship, and was again willing to work hard to achieve it. Sadly, this season took yet another turn for the worse; the team began to struggle through their year. Senior stars, Shamel Bratton and Rhamel Bratton, that had once carried the team were beginning to receive troubles from the coaching staff. Players started facing disciplinary actions as different players began to be dismissed and suspended from the team. Soon the year was looking down, by the start of the NCAA tournament UVA had 5 losses and was struggling to even find a spot. This is when Bray Malphrus truly began to shine. Even as his classmates and teammates began to struggle he did not let that bring him down. UVA implemented a new defense, which drastically changed the way that they played their lacrosse. He embraced this new scheme, and continued to be a leader of his squad. As a senior captain of the team, he led them to the National Championship game where they beat Maryland for the title.

Even through all the circumstances that he had to go through, he kept on persevering.  Performing at the highest level possible, he achieved the highest success possible. It was through his hard work and determination that he was able to finally achieve his goal. He said in an interview with Inside lacrosse that "Every kid that grows up playing...their dream is always to win a National Championship." With his hard work he finally achieved these. Malphrus stands out to me because he just never quit. He never let anything stand between himself and his goal. Through all the teams struggles of the last two years, he never let any of that phase him. He performed at a level of excellence that is attained by very few.

             As a lacrosse player myself, he is a role model in his game. He is strong, athletic, tenacious, and simply never gives up on any play. By playing at UVA, he is one of the best players in the country. He exemplifies some of the qualities of a lacrosse player; he is smart yet physical, risky yet smart. As a person though he is even more respectable, he became a leader of his peers and worked to a common goal. He got 40 different inputs and put them into one common voice. I have unending respect for this man as he has achieved so much after going through so much. He would just never let himself quit until he succeeded.

Works Cited

"A Proven On-Field Leader, Bray Malphrus Prepares For Leadership Role in Service |  

 InsideLacrosse.com." InsideLacrosse.com | The Source of the Sport. Web. 07 Dec. 2011.              .

"Bray Malphrus." University of Virginia Cavaliers Official Athletic Site - VirginiaSports.com. University of
                Virginia. Web. 07 Dec. 2011. .

Doughty, Doug. "Resilient Virginia Playing for Division I Men's Lacrosse Title." Roanoke Times [Roanoke,
                VA] 30 May 2011. Print.

"Grand Jury Gets U of Va Slaying Case." UPI NewsTrack 12 Apr. 2011. Print.

Riley, Matt. Bray Malphrus. Digital image. Washington Post. Washington Post, 20 May 2011. Web. 6 Jan.
                2012. .

"UPDATED: Virginia Women's Lacrosse Player Found Dead, Men's Player Charged with First-degree
                Murder | InsideLacrosse.com." InsideLacrosse.com | The Source of the Sport. Web. 07 Dec.
                2011. .

Virginiasports.com. Captain Bray Malphrus Celebrates UVa’s Fifth All-time NCAA Title. Digital image. The
                University of Virginia Magazine. The University of Virginia, 13 June 2011. Web. 6 Jan. 2012.                        

The Associated Press. Bray Malphrus takes the ball away from a Cornell player. Digital image. The News
                and Advance. The News and Advance, 23 May 2011. Web. 9 Jan. 2012. .