(Photo: Jodi Vosika/ASU Lacrosse)
Midfielder Adam Beauchamp will not be returning to Arizona State lacrosse for the 2015 season.
After two years as a role player for the Sun Devils with 40 total points, the junior has decided to focus on academics this spring.
“I decided to focus more on school this semester and work,” Beauchamp said. He went on, detailing the decision as a difficult one. “I love lacrosse and it hurts not playing with all the guys.”
This news is coming off of the role player’s best season, where he posted 20 goals and 10 assists in 2014. He contributed four goals in the postseason, two of which came in the national championship game against Colorado. Coming into this season, he was expected to play a pivotal role in this midfield as a second-line threat.
ASU head coach Joe Thon was supportive of Beauchamp’s decision to take the year off from the team.
“Obviously, we hate to see him go,” Thon said. “But he has to do what’s best for him in the future. It was an emotional decision for him and something he hated to have to do.”
This is the latest in a series of departures since the end of last season. Starting defensemen Nick McEneany and Matt Wallace, as well as attackman Landon Gagner, have also left the team for varying reasons.
Beauchamp first made his impact as a fill-in for the injured Ben Martynec during the 2013 season. As a freshman, he took on the starting job and recorded a hat trick late in the regular season against Grand Canyon. In his sophomore year, he was a consistent scoring threat on the midfield’s second line, putting up six games with multiple goals.
The absence of Beauchamp will provide another role in need of filling for the team. Although the top midfield line is all but locked in with seniors Kyle Denis and Cooper Pickell likely to pair up with freshman standout Tommy Carrasco, there are numerous question marks beyond that point. Juniors Henry Archie and Finn Wells should see consistent playing time, but whether or not they’ll be able to effectively replace the goal-scoring talents of Beauchamp remains to be seen.
Neither Beauchamp nor Thon would commit to whether this move means the end of his lacrosse career at ASU.
“I told him my door is always open,” Thon said. “Should he be able to come back next year, he’d be welcomed with open arms.”
“Next year will be another decision I will have to make when the time comes,” Beauchamp said.
Trey Lanthier is a lacrosse reporter and editor at WCSN, as well as a contributor for Inside Lacrosse. You can reach him at treylanthier@gmail.com or on Twitter, @TreyLanthier.
