University of Notre Dame men’s lacrosse player Pat Kavanagh battled through a brutal hamstring injury to help the Fighting Irish win the NCAA championship against Duke University on Memorial Day.
After the game, Kavanagh and his younger brother and teammate, Chris, were interviewed on the field, and Pat was asked how he was able to fight through the pain.
His answer was one that truly resonated with the meaning behind Memorial Day.
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Pat Kavanagh (51) of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish controls the ball against Will Frisoli (7) of the Duke Blue Devils during the NCAA Division I men’s lacrosse championship game at Lincoln Financial Field May 29, 2023, in Philadelphia. (Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
“Honestly, I’ve been waiting too long for this game. Sixty minutes for the rest of my life,” Kavanagh said. “Got a lot of support from my family, my coaches, my medical staff. And Liam Entenmann actually sent me a text message last night about Mike Day, who’s a solider who took about 20 bullet shots and a grenade and still got up and killed two of his enemies.
“Liam said, ‘If this guy can do this, you can play through a little hamstring injury.’ So I said, ‘That’s all the motivation I needed. Thank you Liam for sending that text.’
“It’s Memorial Day. Couldn’t be prouder to get this done on Memorial Day. Thank you to our troops. This is just unbelievable, it’s so surreal.”
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Day was a highly decorated U.S. Navy SEAL who survived being shot 27 times while in Iraq. He served 21 years in the Navy, and after retiring, he became an advocate for wounded military veterans and an author.
Day died March 27, but his story and sacrifice will never be forgotten, as Kavanagh showed.
Pat Kavanagh (51), Chris Kavanagh (50), Eric Dobson (8) and Griffin Westlin (31) of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish react against the Duke Blue Devils during the NCAA Division I men’s lacrosse championship game at Lincoln Financial Field May 29, 2023, in Philadelphia. Notre Dame defeated the Blue Devils 13-9. (Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
Kavanagh was on “The Pat McAfee Show” Tuesday, and he showed the former NFL punter just how bad the injury was.
While it was heavily taped during the game, Kavanagh showed the significant bruising found just above the back of his knee, and it didn’t look pleasant.
Kavanagh, a native of Rockville Centre, New York, was a big reason the Fighting Irish were able to compete for their first-ever national championship. He is a finalist for the Tewaaraton Award for the best collegiate lacrosse player, his second career nomination.
The attacker wasn’t able to find the back of the net in this contest, but he did have an assist on a Brian Tevlin goal in the third quarter. Chris Kavanagh scored twice for the Fighting Irish.
Pat Kavanagh of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish celebrates a goal during the Division I men’s lacrosse championship at Lincoln Financial Field May 29, 2023, in Philadelphia. (Larry French/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
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Pat Kavanagh finished the season with 25 goals and 52 assists over 16 games for 77 points.