Men’s lacrosse sophomore midfielder Tyler McCreery and freshman attacker Mike McCreery know everything about being a brother and what it entails.
“I definitely think it is different from living with the kid every day to now going to school with him, where I pretty much don’t see him every day, except for lacrosse games and practices,” Mike McCreery said. “It has been fun though, and it definitely plays to our advantage.”
Since Mike McCreery is a freshman, his older brother has been guiding him.
“One of the first couple days on campus when he was moving in, I showed him all of the buildings and went through his schedule,” Tyler McCreery said. “He came when I was a freshman and met all of the guys. His adjustment was almost seamless, but it was still definitely a big change for him.”
A brotherly bond is a different kind of relationship, much different than just being friends. The brothers know their relationship is a unique one.
“You think of the father-and-son bond; having that person you can look up to,” Tyler McCreery said. “The brotherly bond is something you cannot break, even when you are at odds with someone, you’re always loving them and with them and it helps so much in life in general, as well as on the lacrosse field.”
It especially helps for Mike McCreery, who views his older brother as a role model.
“Having someone that close to your age in your life makes it easier to look up to that person,” Mike McCreery said. “He is so focused on school and having someone like that push you is very nice to have around.
The McCreery brothers wear numbers nine and five.
Photo courtesy of Tyler and Mike McCreery
The team started off the season with a 4-0 record, giving the McCreery brothers time to build chemistry on the field. The pair can practically read each other’s minds on the field.
“We know what we are doing before we even do it,” Tyler McCreery said. “I know exactly how he is going to move and where he is going to run and how he is going to do it.”
Mike McCreery believes playing with his brother has molded him into a better player.
“Playing with [Tyler] through high school and childhood, we have that ‘click,'” Mike McCreery said.
Head coach Matt Poskay has been a great influence on the brothers in his second season with the Red Hawks and they are grateful for his guidance.
“I have pretty much learned the most crucial things in lacrosse from him,” Mike McCreery said. “Manning up and realizing not to be selfish and take the little things for granted. Being a freshman is a whole new chapter of my lacrosse life and my coaches have helped me to be more respectful to the people that help us out.”
When it came to choosing Montclair State University for Mike McCreery, it was just destiny that he would follow in his brother’s footsteps and join him on the collegiate journey.
“They were my first offer,” Mike McCreery said. “Being that I met the team in my junior year [of high school], it just clicked; it felt like I was home.”
