Similar Paths, Different Goals For Boys’ Latin Lacrosse Stars Dom, Nick Pietramala

Twins and Boys’ Latin lacrosse teammates Dom and Nick Pietramala are highly regarded on the national scene. Nick, a junior defenseman, decided this past fall to go to North Carolina and made his decision while his brother was still contemplating what to do.

When Dom decided a few days later, he informed Nick in the way many brothers might. Dom stuck his head in the bathroom while Nick was showering and told his brother some news.

“I was in the shower, and he walked in and said, ‘We’re going to college together,'” Nick said with a laugh. “It was exciting.”

But they’re not going to North Carolina because they’re twins and best friends — and sons of former Johns Hopkins star and head coach Dave Pietramala. These two are different in many ways. Dom plays attack, posting 33 goals and 10 assists as a Laker freshman two years ago before the pandemic ate up last spring’s season. Nick, meanwhile, is 4 inches taller than Dom and uses his 6-foot-4 frame to disrupt opposing attackers.

Nick also has a beard — Dom does not — and they went about the recruiting process in separate ways, not talking to each other too much about it. But Dom likes that he’ll be with his brother in Chapel Hill, N.C.

“I’m very happy with my decision,” Dom said. “I wasn’t necessarily shocked. I’m very happy that Nick and I are going to college together.”

Nick said he just fell in love with the campus right away and knew it would be one of his top choices. But then, the Tar Heels showed him something else.

While playing junior varsity basketball in January 2020, Nick tore his ACL during a game. The defenseman was impressed with the way the Tar Heels continued to recruit him hard after the serious injury. Nick said in February that he’s almost back to 100 percent. He is wearing a knee brace on the field, which he says gives him some extra confidence.

“They stuck with me, and it really felt good because other schools wanted to see me play,” Nick said. “But they were [there]. It showed me a lot. For me, it made everything a lot easier.”

Though both are thrilled to be going to college together, Dom and Nick did not go through the recruiting process as a matched set. Each was looking for a school that fit his needs.

North Carolina turned out to be that school.

“I’m excited about it,” Nick said. “For me, it came as a little bit of a shock. I didn’t want him to go somewhere just because I was there. It was more important that we like the school for ourselves rather than for each other.”

Boys’ Latin coach Brian Farrell said he wasn’t surprised at all to see them pick the same school for college.

“They did their homework; they knew what they wanted,” Farrell said. “They found a place that had all their needs and what they wanted in a college experience. I think they found it, and it happened to be at the same place.”

Though the twins are different people, they’re similar in many ways. Farrell said they’re “really nice kids” and are always gentlemen despite their young age. They are longtime teammates, and that’s something that will continue with the Tar Heels. They love to go against each other in practice and have done so for many years.

“It’s fun; we’ve been going at it in practice since the third grade,” Dom said. “My reps with him are definitely my most competitive, and I [know] I’ll hear about it when I get home.”

Still, the two don’t plan to room together at North Carolina.

“We’ve been living together so long,” Nick said. “I’ll be with him most of the time [anyway].”

The two have different interests off the field. Nick is thinking about military service after lacrosse and is going to sign up for ROTC at North Carolina. His major could be engineering or business with the eventual goal of being a Navy SEAL.

Dom is not as sure of his major yet — after all, they don’t start at North Carolina until the fall of 2022 — but is looking at sports science, entrepreneurship or even real estate and business. He also might want to follow in his father’s footsteps and do some coaching, but that seems to be further down the line.

It seems likely that the twins will remain at their normal positions once they get down to Chapel Hill — it would not be surprising to see them help anchor the Tar Heels’ offense (Dom) and defense (Nick) in their own ways as time goes by — but that can be sorted out later. Regardless of their roles on the team, they’re probably going to have a lot of fun and remain best friends while playing together at North Carolina.

Just like Dom told Nick when he was taking that shower.

“At the end of the day,” Dom said, “I’ll still love him just as much.”

Photo Credits: Courtesy of Boys’ Latin

Issue 267: February/March 2021

Jeff Seidel

See all posts by Jeff Seidel. Follow Jeff Seidel on Twitter at @JeffSeid62