Brandon Gibson, a born leader for the St. Augustine lacrosse team, is headed to West Point

After the win, with teammates celebrating around him, Brandon Gibson lay on his back. He bit hard on the collar of his jersey and grimaced in pain as a trainer stretched out his cramped leg.

It was a pain he’d masked through most of the second half. Nothing, he told himself, would stop him from contributing to his St. Augustine lacrosse team’s huge 5-3 win over Moorestown, South Jersey’s top-ranked preseason team, on opening day.

Gibson’s approach to lacrosse — really his approach to most things in life as he tells it — centers on sacrifice.

“It’s about being a part of something that’s bigger than yourself,” Gibson said.

The mind-set led the senior defender to choose the United States Military Academy as the place he’ll continue his lacrosse career next year.

It’s also a mind-set that makes him the perfect leader for this year’s Hermits.

“We graduated some talented players,” said St. Augustine coach JC Valore, whose team was 12-7 in 2018 and advanced to the Non-Public A semifinals. “When you look at the names and numbers that we lost to graduation, a lot of [outsiders] are going to look at you and say: ‘Who do you have?’

“Well, we have a lot of unassuming players who are really talented and play really well together. I think that showed [against Moorestown].”

Gibson isn’t even the only player on his team headed to Army after this season. Fellow senior defender and captain Mitch McEntee will also continue his lacrosse career at Army.

The two are friends and talked about their decision before they made it. Both ultimately were swayed by their desire to serve their country.

They bring leadership qualities and a sense of accountability that Valore sees as permeating through his team.

“The great thing about what they bring to the table is they have a military mind-set,” Valore said. “They’ve already been through a lot of experience with leadership on that end and what [the Army] coaching staff consistently communicates to them. The ripple effect is that our team as a whole has not just two guys, but all four of our captains who we can rely on for a disciplined approach to team management from the players.”

Gibson remembers wanting to serve, in some capacity, as far back as 9 years old. At first, he planned to join the Naval Academy, but after visiting the school he said he felt it wasn’t the right fit. He then met with the Army coaching staff, and after the coaches expressed interest in him, the choice was easy.

“I remember thinking, in a heartbeat, I will join,” he said.

The idea of sacrifice appears to simply be a part of Gibson’s nature. A Pennsauken native, Gibson has to commute more than an hour each way to St. Augustine’s Richland campus.

“It’s a drive I make every day, but I’d make the drive over and over again just to be with these guys,” he said, pointing to his teammates. “Coach Valore picked me as a preseason captain this year, and it’s an honor. Him telling me that I express what the program stands for and what the school stands for is an honor in itself. My job, along with my cocaptains, is to lead this team to a state championship — that’s the goal.”

It’s a goal put into even clearer focus after the win over Moorestown.

The Hermits have long been one of the top programs in the area, and over the years, they’ve produced some truly marquee names and some of the flashiest talent in recent state history.

This year’s Hermits are winning with a bit of a different formula. And if the first game of the season is any indication, it should work just fine.

“I always like to look at our team as Tim Duncan — Mr. Fundamental,” Gibson said. “We don’t do anything flashy. But we take care of the fundamentals, and we execute the fundamentals the way Coach Valore wants us to. And when we put the pieces together, it’s a working machine.”