April 28, 2006

By Pete Iorizzo, Albany Times Union First published: Thursday, April 13, 2006

LOUDONVILLE -- This is what happens when triplets play lacrosse: About 30 or 40 sticks -- not counting the random heads and shafts tucked under tables and behind couches -- collect across several rooms. The home's siding is cracked. The neighbor's fence is often broken.

"I find the balls everywhere," their mother said. "I'm usually tripping over them."

And this is after the triplets go away to college.

The threesome -- Erin, Scott and Travis Montgomery -- all attend Siena and play on its lacrosse teams, Erin on the women's and Travis and Scott on the men's. The 19-year-old freshmen from West Islip are the only college-lacrosse playing triplets in the country.

Though they never had planned to go to the same school, few who know them were surprised that they did. After all, their favorite pastimes included playing catch in the back yard as their Labrador retriever, Guinness, chased loose balls and shooting tennis balls at each other.

"We were inseparable," Erin said. "We were always together. We had a net, a throw-back, everything. Even in the evening, while we waited for dinner, we'd go out and play."

The triplets landed at Siena somewhat serendipitously. During their senior year at West Islip High School, Scott and Travis attended a recruiting camp, at which Scott misplaced his wallet. Siena men's lacrosse coach Brian Brecht recovered it and suggested a visit. Scott and Travis accepted the offer, and Erin tagged along.

"I think by the next day," said their mother, Karen, "they had decided that's where they wanted to go."

Though growing up they shared a common circle of friends, they decided to live in three separate dormitories at Siena. But they still hang out often. Scott and Erin take a psychology class together. And Travis often climbs through Scott's first-floor window to play video games.

Their personalities, like their appearances, are surprisingly different. Scott, with shaggy blond hair, is the most sociable and extroverted. Travis, a self-described "T-shirt and jeans guy" who wears a beat-up baseball cap everywhere, is the most laid-back. And Erin, her brothers said, is the most organized, boasts the cleanest room and helps around the house most.

During their recruiting visit, guided by Brecht, Travis and Scott took turns picking berries off bushes and throwing them at each other. Erin, also the most strait-laced, ordered them to knock it off by whacking one of her brothers across the chest.

"I think she's the toughest," Brecht said with a laugh.

When the three were younger, Travis and Scott's coaches often joked, "Erin is the best of the three of you," which, Erin said, "always got them pretty riled up."

But sibling rivalries, they agreed, made them all better players. "I can remember our high school practices getting pretty competitive," Travis said. "We'd get at each other, and coach would just shake his head and say, 'All right, here we go again.' "

Added Scott, "When we played video games, controllers would get broken. It was intense."

On the field, Scott and Erin both play midfield. Travis is a long-pole, or defensive midfielder. Erin, described by women's coach Jake McHerron as "a tenacious hustler who can work all over the field," has appeared in nine games, starting one. Travis and Scott, like most freshmen on the men's team, have played only sparingly, though Brecht said, "There's light at the end of the tunnel for both of them."

But that, they say, is secondary to the experience of playing together and attending the same school as their sister.

"It's a blast," Scott said. "If you need help with anything, you have someone to go to. If you have a question about a class or lacrosse or anything, there's someone to go to. I like it this way."