When it was announced that Johns Hopkins lacrosse coach Dave Pietramala would not be coaching against Syracuse on March 19, the news was more than just stunning. It was scary.

For Pietramala to miss a game against rival Syracuse, it had to be a serious situation.

Now we know he had a spinal cord infection that required hospitalization and a surgical procedure. He said there was a risk of paralysis.

So on Saturday, when Pietramala, 49, returned to coach the Blue Jays against Big Ten Conference rival Ohio State after a four-game absence, Hopkins had won before the opening faceoff.

“It's a lot different. I don't think I've had a weirder feeling playing lacrosse than the first game, the Syracuse game where Coach was out,” said Johns Hopkins senior midfielder Holden Cattoni. “When he came back, it was right back to our same old routine, the same old vibes on the sideline. I think as players, we jelled into it really quickly and got used to having Coach back on the sideline. It's definitely a different feeling.”

Hopkins beat the Buckeyes, 13-12, but the game was more about Pietramala's return than about wins and losses. His school and his name are synonymous with lacrosse, and his return saves the Blue Jays from another agonizing period.

It was January last year when Hopkins freshman lacrosse player Jeremy Huber was found dead in his campus dorm. Authorities later said he died of complications from pneumonia.

There are few things tougher in sports than a head coach having to tell his players about the death of a teammate or an assistant coach. I've had to do that, and you never forget the expression on your players' faces. It hurt then and it hurts now. Pietramala led his team though that situation, but his illness created some tense times.

Those moments were erased Saturday.

“When you're missing the big guy, it's obvious. There was something that was there before, a familiarity that was not there on the field, in practice,” said junior defenseman Nick Field. “It's great to have the big guy back now.”

During his absence, some thought the Blue Jays might relax and play better because Pietramala is such a fierce competitor. He demands as much from his players as he did from himself when he was the best defenseman in college lacrosse.

But those who suggested that apparently don't get the big picture. Do you really think that these players didn't know how demanding Pietramala is after 15 years?

Everyone knows Pietramala gets a little crazy on the sidelines. In fact, it's entertaining sometimes watching him yell at his players and scream at officials. After a while, teams are identified by their coaches. It would be tough seeing Duke without John Danowski, Loyola without Charley Toomey and Syracuse minus John Desko.

No one appreciated his return to the sidelines more than Pietramala, who was serenaded by the crowd with chants of “Petro! Petro!”

“I've got to tell you, I don't think I was ever as nervous as a player once,” said Pietramala. “Playing was easy, it was fun. I'm always nervous as a coach, but it was a different nervous. It was ‘You've got to make the right call. Did you prepare them well enough? … Given the limited time, did we prepare them well enough? Did we go over those things enough? Did I miss anything because I wasn't here 7 [a.m.] to 10 [p.m]?' That's what these guys deserve.

“The last thing I want to do in an important game is be the reason they get shortchanged,” he said.

That's vintage Pietramala. He'd rather talk about his team than about himself, but it was fun seeing him on the sideline wearing the typical baseball cap. He wasn't stalking the sideline, but using a motor scooter.

The original plan was to have him return next week, but he came back a week earlier. That's vintage Pietramala, too.

Dr. Justin Tortolani “gave me the OK, and it was a very odd feeling,” Pietramala said of returning to coaching. “The lacrosse field in my lifetime has been the one place where nothing else matters. … It's the first time I've felt at odds on the lacrosse field. You come back to work, and you don't feel like you belong. You go home to your apartment and you don't feel like you belong. You go back in the office or on the field and you don't feel like you belong because you've been away for so long.

“The guys have been great. … They didn't bat an eye. They kept me in the loop. They kept me involved as much I could be,” said Pietramala. “I was nervous.”

Johns Hopkins' next two games are at No. 14 Penn State on Sunday and at Michigan on April 23. Pietramala is unsure whether he will travel to those games because he can't sit or stand for long periods.

“I'm hopeful it'll be OK to go on a bus” to Penn State, he said. “We've talked about it. We'll see. And we've talked about a plane ride out to Michigan. Everything's tiring. The bottom line is, what I've been told is, you have to listen to your body. It's a hard thing for a coach to do. We're taught to ignore whatever and do what we've got to do.”

And if he doesn't make those games, it is no big deal. His players and assistants needed to see him on the mend, and they did.

The Big Man was back.

mike.preston@baltsun.com

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