No timetable for coach Pietramala's return at Hopkins after back infection
Dave Pietramala is unsure when he can return from a lower back infection to coach the men's lacrosse team at Johns Hopkins.
He described his recovery from an infection that required hospitalization and a surgical procedure as “a day-by-day thing.” “Imagine something that is a part of your being and you not being able to be a part of it,” he said Wednesday. “That's been the challenge.”
Pietramala has missed the past four games for the No. 16 Blue Jays (5-4 overall, 0-1 in the Big Ten). Associate head coach Bill Dwan has directed the team.
“I've got great people that I trust implicitly. And I know in any situation, they would do what's best for our program and do things the way I would want them done,” Pietramala said.
“This isn't about me; this is about our team.”
Saturday's 16-9 setback at Rutgers put Hopkins one game behind the Scarlet Knights (8-1, 1-0), No. 5 Maryland (7-2, 1-0) and No. 14 Penn State (7-3, 1-0) in the race for the Big Ten Conference regular-season title and the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament. But Pietramala recalled last year's squad rebounding from a loss at Ohio State to capture a share of the league championship and the tournament crown.
“We've been here before,” he said. “The way to handle this is to simply understand that we're guaranteed four games and that's all we're guaranteed and focus. ... Our margin of error is minimal ... and that means we've got to practice and we've got to continue to get better.”
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