The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023
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Harvard professors have been super supportive, and just super interested in my own life, which is really nice to see” Building confidence has been a hallmark of Malone’s rookie season. Rebounding from an injury in the fall, Malone was forced to sit out fall ball, which meant that he entered this year without much game experience. Slotting into the starting attacking unit and working with a slew of underclassmen, Malone noted that he thinks there is room for the team to grow and outperform this past performance. “You see all the sophomores contributing, and even a lot of freshmen contributing this year. As a freshman class, we’ve all discussed with ourselves how we have such a bad taste of losing at the end of the season,” the first-year noted. “We don’t want that to happen again.” “I know a lot of us took the blame for that,” he continued. “A lot of us will be working over the summer to have that not happen again. I think we have a lot of room to grow, but I think we are completely able to do so.” This blame stems from a lack of experience in some big moments on all ends of the field. However, making those mistakes as a rookie rather than as an older player shows that despite this naivete, the team boasts potential and talent in its younger classes, so these players will be able to gain ex-
perience and learn from those difficult situations on the field. Malone is one of those talents. In the first game of the year against No. 1 Virgina, Malone scored two goals and tallied an assist. Against Dartmouth, he scored the first four goals of the game and also notched an additional four in the win against Brown. He is far from a silent impact on the field — his successes had an immediate ef-
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GOALS fect on the outcome of each game, and his lacrosse IQ continued to develop over the course of the season as he played more collegiate games. With his season ending before his brother’s —who is still in contention for an NCAA title with Penn State — Malone did not allow defeat to stymy his appreciation for the sport and for his teammates. Coach Byrne is unique in that he delegates responsibilities to the upperclassmen to foster a cohesive bond within the units. Malone emphasized this tightness within the team and how it is an integral aspect in the team’s successes. Looking onto the next three seasons, Malone has his goals set high. “Win a National Championship and win an Ivy League championship,” Malone said. “And I think just have a great time playing lacrosse together — just really enjoying the sport together, and making it fun — I think that’s how it should be played.” katharine.forst@thecrimson.com
Women’s Tennis
1 CSA Champion
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“I’m proud of the growth of our team and I’m super excited to keep building with our squad” TRACI GREEN Head Coach
3 ECAC Championship
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