WOOSTER, Ohio — Swampscott native Rob Driscoll was raised in a lacrosse family.
His father, Tom, started the Swampscott Nahant Youth Lacrosse program. His older brother, Thomas, played college lacrosse at Guilford in North Carolina. Thus, it was only right that Driscoll followed in their footsteps.
Now a sophomore midfielder for the men’s lacrosse team at College of Wooster in Ohio, Driscoll has emerged as a key piece to the Fighting Scots’ success this spring.
Driscoll considers himself a product of a lacrosse family and community. His athletic career began playing Little League baseball, but he transitioned to lacrosse in his early teens. After trading his baseball glove for a lacrosse stick, Driscoll fell in love with his new sport and never looked back.
“I played baseball up until fifth or sixth grade,” Driscoll, who graduated from Governor’s Academy, said. “Eventually I got sick of baseball and I started playing lacrosse going into the seventh grade. I fell in love with it and it was awesome. The influence I had from my older brother was awesome. I used to volunteer with the high school coaches in Swampscott. I was always around it. Being surrounded by lacrosse allowed me to fall in love with the game and understand the game.”
In 13 games this season, Driscoll has logged four ground balls and caused four turnovers for the Division III Fighting Scots. As a freshman last season, Driscoll scored one goal, scooped six ground balls and caused seven turnovers.
Wooster’s 8-6 this spring, 4-3 against North Coast Atlantic Conference opponents.
“Right now we’re 4-3 in the conference,” Driscoll, a sociology major, said. “We’d rather be undefeated but we’ve come such a far way. We’re where we want to be but we’re not content with where we’re at. We want to improve as a team each day but 8-6 is a great start and a great place to be at this point in the season.”
Perhaps the most impressive attribute of Driscoll’s lacrosse career is that he’s fighting the odds as he battles with choroideremia, a rare hereditary, degenerative eye disease that slowly causes loss of vision. Driscoll’s older brother also has the disease.
Driscoll’s mother, Tara Cassidy-Driscoll, is the treasurer of the Choroideremia Research Foundation. She also coaches a Swampscott Nahant Youth Lacrosse U13 team alongside Tom. Driscoll’s younger sister, Carolyn, is on the team.
Currently, there’s no known cure for choroideremia. Driscoll struggles with aspects of the sport such as seeing the ball on the ground or playing night games. However, he doesn’t allow himself to make any excuses as he holds himself to high standards on the field.
“I’ve noticed some effects when I’m playing lacrosse,” Driscoll said. “Playing at night can be tough. Sometimes if the ball’s on the ground or something like that, I might not be able to see that. There might be a point during my senior year where it might affect me. I definitely don’t let it limit me in any way. I hold myself to the same standards as anybody else.”
From watching his older brother play at the college level, Driscoll took a positive approach on playing with choroideremia.
“Being able to watch Thomas play all four years in college kind of gave me a positive outlook on the situation,” Driscoll said. “He was able to do it so I figured there was no reason that I couldn’t do it. Watching him and learning from his attitude taught me a lot not only about lacrosse but also about how to live life in general.”
The Fighting Scots have one regular season game left, a conference clash against Ohio Wesleyan Saturday afternoon (1), when Wooster will look to snap a three-game losing streak. Wooster’s currently in fifth place in the conference standings, behind Ohio Wesleyan, Denison, Kenyon and Depauw.
Driscoll’s hopeful the Fighting Scot can pull through with a win Saturday as they look to qualify for the NCAC Tournament.
“The focus and energy we bring to practice every day allows us to be on the same page,” Driscoll said. “We’re not content. We’re focusing on getting better as a team each and every day. That starts with the coaches. They’ve hammered that to us throughout the season and it has paid off so far. We just have to continue with that mentality.
“We just have to keep allowing ourselves to grow,” Driscoll added. “Last year we became a stagnant team toward the end of the season. If we continue to grow and play hard there’s nothing that can stand in our way.”
