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At the Lower Trestles beach, located a few miles away from San Clemente, California, Johnny Gavin surfed with his high school friends when he wasn’t on the lacrosse field. Johnny’s younger brother, Bobby Gavin, would join the bunch too despite being only 6 years old at the time.

Johnny and his friends worried that the 10-foot waves would be too strong for Gavin, who needed an initial push from his dad to start riding a wave more than twice his size since he was too weak to paddle on his own. But once he was launched into the waves, he easily zig-zagged through the tough current with his right foot strapped onto the board.

“He had no fear ever with anything,” Johnny said.

Gavin surfed competitively for seven years before eventually trading his swim trunks for a lacrosse helmet, jersey and pads in middle school. After last season, Gavin traded his orange Virginia jersey for a Syracuse one, and he has started in five games so far this year. He’s recorded 49 saves with a cumulative save percentage of 47.1% while splitting time with Harrison Thompson in goal.

Gavin started surfing after hearing about competitions from a neighbor when the family lived in Laguna Beach, Johnny said. He quickly entered into International Surfing Association and National Scholastic Surfing Association contests around California. There wasn’t really a balance between lacrosse and surfing at the time for Gavin, but he was always surfing at a high level, Johnny added. In competitions, Gavin was slated against kids who were homeschooled and spent their whole lives trying to hone in on their surfing abilities.

Gavin beat other local kids in competitions who are now on professional surfing tours, Johnny said. Gavin won his first contest when he was 8 at the Brooks Street Surf Classic in Laguna Beach. Then, he placed for the first time at the California Street Classic in Ventura, California. “We didn’t really expect that,” Johnny said of the wins.

While his surfing career took off just before he entered middle school, Gavin simultaneously joined West Coast Starz, a travel lacrosse program coached by Jono Zissi. He took his ambidextrous abilities from the ocean, where he rode a skimboard goofy (using his non-dominant foot), onto the lacrosse field, Johnny said.

Gavin was a premier attack for the program with his off-hand being as strong as his dominant right hand, Zissi said. Johnny and his dad both played attack in college, and they saw Gavin make strides at that position in the cage they had in their backyard. They were startled at first about the switch to goalie, but Gavin eventually made the varsity team at Torrey Pines High School (Calif.) at his new position as a sophomore.

“He’s pretty stoic and doesn’t get rattled,” said Zissi, who also coached Gavin at Torrey Pines. “Surfing kind of helped with the mellow mindset.”

Zissi said that mindset was present in Gavin’s first full game of this season against No. 1 Maryland, when the Orange overcame a 5-0 deficit and almost upset the Terrapins in a 14-10 loss. But it first manifested at Torrey Pines, where Gavin helped the team to two straight state championships.

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In his junior year, Gavin had committed to Towson, but his performance against some of the best Northeastern teams at a Long Island tournament with the West Coast Starz earned him an offer from Virginia.

“It all speaks to Bobby’s growth,” Zissi said of Gavin’s play in the competition. “That tournament was sort of his coming out party and he’s continued to get better.”

Gavin held an advantage over East Coast players since he was able to play year round, Zissi said. He got a personal coach throughout high school, conducting two to three two-hour sessions every day after school. Gavin became more consistent in net by constantly taking shots from goal, even switching hands in practice like he had done as an attack in middle school.

The importance of individualized training was something Gavin learned from surfing, Johnny said. He also had a personal coach when he was surfing, training after school by learning from film that he recorded with his coach.

“Surfing is an individual sport,” Gavin said. “You’re kind of in your own space as a goalie, you have to worry about your individual position.”

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While he was surfing, Gavin never wore a wetsuit. Johnny said other parents at competitions were concerned about this habit as he became known as “the trunk kid,” but Gavin wasn’t worried about staying warm in the 45 degree weather during 6 a.m. contests.

The decision to not wear a wetsuit directly related to the confidence Gavin had in his surfing ability, knowing that he wouldn’t fall into the cold ocean. Gavin has occasionally provided glimpses into this lack of fear when the Orange’s defense has broken down in games, leaving him in tough situations against some of the nation’s best offenses.

Early in the second period against Maryland, Gavin defended a two-on-one situation as the rest of the Orange defense fought for a ground ball near midfield. With his feet planted in front of the cage, Gavin tracked Keegan Khan as he held the ball before shifting his attention to Eric Malever, who was on his left side. Malever shot high at point-blank range, but Gavin quickly mimicked his movement and shuffled his feet like he was trying to stay on a wave, trapping the ball with his stick. He finished the day with 11 saves, recording a 44.0% save percentage.

“There’s not a lot of guys in the country that can stop those shots from those guys,” head coach Gary Gait said.

Published on March 22, 2022 at 11:22 pm

Contact Anish: asvasude@syr.edu | @anish_vasu