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Men's Lacrosse Meets No. 1-Ranked Princeton
3/22/2001 9:47:25 AM | Men's Lacrosse
The Princeton Tigers (3-0) moved up one spot to take over the No. 1 ranking.
This will mark the 14th meeting between Syracuse and Princeton. The series began in 1922 and the Orangemen, who own an 8-5 advantage, have won the last three meetings. Last season, the two teams battled twice. SU defeated the Tigers, 16-4, at Class of 1952 Stadium on Easter Sunday. The Orangemen won their seventh national title by defeating Princeton, 13-7, on Memorial Day 2000 at Byrd Stadium in College Park, MD.
ON THE AIR
Radio
SU's games will be broadcast on the school's flagship radio station
for lacrosse, WFBL 1050 AM. Carter Blackburn will handle play-by-play
duties, while Syracuse equipment manager Kyle Fetterly will serve as the
color analyst. The broadcast can be picked up through
www.suathletics.com.
WAER FM 88 will continue its long-standing tradition of broadcasting the games.
Television
Time Warner 13 in Syracuse will broadcast the Orangemen's six
remaining home games and show them on a tape-delay basis. Ted DeLuca
will handle the play-by-play duties, while Dale Drypolcher will provide
analysis.
The dates the games will air are: March 25 at 7 p.m./April 1, 15 & 22 at 7 p.m. and April 11 at 8 p.m.
Bouncing Back ... Refocusing ... Syracuse Style
In games following losses during a single season, Syracuse has
bounced back to post wins 18 times in the past 10 years. In fact, only
once in 10 years has SU lost two games in a row - that was during the
1995 season when Virginia (15-7) and Johns Hopkins (14-13 OT) beat the
Orangemen in back-to-back contests at the Carrier Dome. Syracuse went
on to win the national championship in 1995 with a 13-2 record.
To illustrate Syracuse's resiliency even clearer, look how the team has responded after losses during the course of the past 20 years. Since 1981, there have been only three times when SU has posted two or more consecutive losses (1981, 1982 and 1995).
Last Year's Syracuse vs. Princeton Games
April 23, 2000, Class of 1952 Stadium, Princeton, NJ
No. 2 Syracuse 16
No. 4 Princeton 4
With a 16-4 victory, Syracuse handed Princeton its worst loss since a 20-8 thumping from Johns Hopkins in 1990. The Orangemen jumped all over the Tigers to set the tone early in the first quarter. They got six goals from five different players, including the last three of the period in a span of 2:51.
AGATE RESULTS:Goals: SU - Michael Springer 5, Tim Byrnes 3, Devin Darcangelo 2, Liam Banks 2, Ryan Powell, Josh Coffman, Ethan Mills, Joe Russell. Princeton - Owen Daly, Brendan Tierney, Josh Sims, Jake Kenney.
Princeton 1 1 1 1 4 SYRACUSE 6 4 3 3 16
Assists: SU - Ryan Powell 6, Josh Coffman 2, Devin Darcangelo 2, Liam Banks 2. Princeton -Matt Striebel 2, Josh White, Chris Harrington.
Saves: SU, 10 (Rob Mulligan 10, Bob Rust 0)
Princeton, 20 (Trevor Tierney 20, Willis Wu 0).
Shots: SU 44, Princeton 27
Ground Balls: SU 42, Princeton 17
Faceoff: SU 17, Princeton 6
Penalties: SU 6/6:00, Princeton 3/3:00
Extra Man Opportunities: SU 0/3, Princeton 1/6
Att: 4,743
NCAA Finals
May 29, 2000, Byrd Stadium, College Park, MD
No. 1 Syracuse 13
No. 3 Princeton 7
Liam Banks set a career-high with six goals, leading top-seeded
Syracuse to its seventh national title (sixth recognized by the NCAA).
The Orangemen defeated the third-seeded Tigers, 13-7, in front of 22,880
fans. It was the first loss for Princeton in a championship game in six
attempts and marked the first national title for SU since 1995.
AGATE RESULTS:
Princeton 0 3 2 2 7 SYRACUSE 4 3 4 2 13Goals: SU - Liam Banks 6, Ryan Powell 3, Michael Springer 2, Josh Coffman, Ethan Mills. Princeton - Josh Sims 2, Owen Daly, Sean Hartofilis, Matt Striebel, Brendan Tierney, Rob Torti.
Assists: SU - Tom Hardy 2, Ryan Powell 2, Michael Springer 2, Liam Banks, Josh Coffman. Princeton - Chris Harrington, Ryan Mollett, Josh Sims.
Saves: SU (Rob Mulligan 10); Princeton (Trevor Tierney 15).
Shots: SU 39, Princeton 32
Ground Balls: SU 57, Princeton 31
Faceoff: SU 15, Princeton 7
Penalties: SU 8/6:00, Princeton 6/6:30
Extra Man Opportunities: SU 1/6, Princeton 1/6
Att: 22,880
What the Polls are Saying
2001 STX/USILA Division I Coaches Poll - March 19, 2001
1. Princeton (9) 180
2. Notre Dame 159
3. Maryland 155
4. Georgetown 154
5. Johns Hopkins 148
6. SYRACUSE 143
7. Massachusetts 125
8. Loyola 116
9. Virginia 105
10. Duke 98
11. UMBC 85
12. North Carolina 78
13. Hobart 72
14. Penn State 58
15. Bucknell 50
16. Brown 48
17. Towson 26
18. Harvard 25
19. Cornell 19
20. Navy 11
Yale 11
Others receiving votes:
Penn, Hofstra, Ohio State, Rutgers, Dartmouth.
Warrior/Inside Lacrosse.com Division I Men's Lacrosse Media Poll - March 19, 2001
1. Princeton (9) 180
2. SYRACUSE 162
3. Maryland 154
Notre Dame 154
5. Johns Hopkins 148
6. Georgetown 141
7. Loyola 124
8. Virginia 114
9. Duke 108
10. Massachusetts 104
11. UMBC 66
12. Bucknell 64
13. North Carolina 62
Hobart 62
15. Brown 50
16. Penn State 42
17. Hofstra 41
18. Cornell 37
19. Towson 36
20. Navy 20
21. Yale 6
Ohio State 6
23. Delaware 4
Drexel 4
Rutgers 4
Others Receiving Votes: Penn 3, Harvard 2.
Media Voters: e-lacrosse.com, Face-Off Yearbook, Inside Lacrosse Magazine, Lacrosse Magazine, LaxTalk Radio, Princeton Packet, Quintessential Productions, WAER Radio - Syracuse, NY, USA Today.
John Desko: 30-7 as Head Coach, 3-1 vs. Princeton Third-year head coach John Desko won his 30th career game at Syracuse when his Orangemen defeated Fairfield, 13-5, on March 12.
With a 30-7 record (6-1 postseason) and two trips to the national title game in two years, it is obvious that the Syracuse program is in good hands.
Last season, Desko guided SU to a 15-1 record (the best finish since 1988), an 18th-consecutive appearance in the final four and the school's first national championship since 1995.
In 1999, Desko became the third head coach in Division I history to reach the NCAA title game in just his first year at the helm. He led the Orangemen to a 12-5 record and the program's 10th appearance in an NCAA championship game. It was the first time a No. 8 seed ever reached the national semifinals and finals.
His success after only two seasons has led Desko to opportunities outside of Syracuse. On June 10, 2000, he served as a coach for the north team in the annual North/South Senior All-Star game at Delaware. He is also a member of the NCAA Lacrosse Committee, a group that oversees and regulates rules, championships and other issues pertinent to the sport. Desko was selected to the committee in 1999.
Mulligan Approaching 500 Career Saves Milestone
Fifth-year senior Rob Mulligan (Farmingdale, NY/Farmingdale) had 13
saves against Johns Hopkins on March 17. He is sixth on the school's
all-time saves list with 495 career stops. Mulligan needs five saves to
become just the sixth goalie since 1967 to reach the 500-save plateau.
Mulligan has eight NCAA Tournament games worth of experience under his belt, including starts in the 1999 and 2000 national championship games.
Last season, he ranked eighth among the nation's Division I goaltenders in goals against average (8.34). He was ninth in save percentage (.614).
If he can continue the trend of the past two seasons when he recorded more than 200 saves, he will end up at least third on SU's career list behind Jamie Molloy (766) and Tom Nims (692).
Career Goaltender Saves at Syracuse
1. 766 Jamie Molloy 1977-80
2. 692 Tom Nims 1981-85
3. 632 Jason Gebhardt 1994-98
4. 612 Paul Bishop 1971-73
5. 537 Matt Palumb 1987-90
6. 495 ROB MULLIGAN 1998-present
7. 476 Chris Surran 1991-93
8. 466 Alex Rosier 1994-95
9. 431 Alan Brown 1967-69
10. 411 Jim Gyory 1983-84, 86-87
Syracuse Likes Its Chances When Coffman Scores
The last two times Syracuse has lost a game (to Johns Hopkins on
March 17, 2001 and to Cornell on April 11, 2000), junior
attackman/midfielder Josh Coffman (Carthage, NY/Carthage) has been held
scoreless. The Orangemen are 20-5 when Coffman scores a goal. Prior to
the Hopkins game, he owned a streak of 11 games dating back to last
season when he scored a goal.
This season, Coffman is the third-leading scorer on the team with 13 points (seven goals, six assists).
He notched his 50th career goal with three markers and two assists in Syracuse's 13-5 win against Fairfield on March 12.
Coffman also scored three goals in SU's season-opening win against Colgate. He had one goal and two assists against Virginia and dished out two assists in the loss to Johns Hopkins.
Coffman's point-scoring streak stands at 16 games, dating back to last season. He is the owner of 88 career points (50 goals, 38 assists).
Banks Third Orangeman to Tally 50th Career Goal This Season
Junior attackman Liam Banks (Setauket, NY/Ward Melville) scored
twice against Johns Hopkins and in the process tallied his 50th career
goal. He is the third Orangeman this season to accomplish the feat,
along with Michael Springer (February 23) and Josh Coffman (March 12).
Banks has now posted back-to-back two-goal games. He is the team's fifth-leading scorer with seven points (four goals, three assists).
While an appendectomy forced him to sit out the Navy and Army scrimmages, Banks returned to play in SU's season opener against Colgate. He responded with two assists.
Banks started against Virginia but was held without a point for the first time since May 8, 1999 (a string of 21-consecutive games in which he registered at least one point).
He has the most career points (89) of any player on the team with 51 goals and 38 assists.
As a member of the starting attack on last year's national-champion club, Banks was the only player to score a goal in every game. He was the team's third-leading scorer last season with 66 points (39 goals, 27 assists).
Banks became the first SU attackman to be named the Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA Tournament when he scored a career-high six goals (on six shots) and had an assist in the 2000 national championship game against Princeton.
As a freshman, Banks played in 16 games and totalled 16 points (eight goals, eight assists).
Freshman Nee Continues to Roll
Along with freshman attackman Michael Powell (Carthage,
NY/Carthage), first-year attackman Brian Nee (Cockeysville, MD/Boys'
Latin) is off to a flying start. He is the team's second-leading goal
scorer behind Michael Springer with eight goals. Remarkably, Nee has
connected on 8-of-10 shots, which is by far the best shot percentage on
the team.
Nee's contribution comes on the extra-man unit, where SU has seen a marked improvement in this area compared to last season.
Against Fairfield, Nee fired home a career-high three goals. The younger brother to SU defenseman Tom Nee, Brian was responsible for two-man-up goals against Virginia. He also had two goals in the Colgate game.
Brian Nee has scored five of SU's 12 extra-man goals this season. He is fourth on the team in scoring with eight points. He is one of three players on the squad to have scored a goal in all four games so far this season, along with Michael Springer and Michael Powell.
Rookie Powell Off to a Fast Start - Leads the Orangemen in Scoring
After four games, first-year attackman/midfielder Michael Powell
(Carthage, NY/Carthage) is leading the Orangemen in scoring with 19
points (seven goals, team-high 12 assists) or a 4.75 point-per-game
average.
He is coming off a four-point performance against Johns Hopkins in which he tallied two goals and two assists. With SU trailing the Blue Jays, 11-9, with under two minutes to play, Powell took a feed from teammate Michael Springer (Ridgewood, NJ/Ridgewood) and fired a shot into the Hopkins net. The goal put the Orangemen within one with 1:52 left on the clock.
Powell's season high came against Virginia, when he scored a career-high six points on two goals and four assists. The four assists are the most by an Orangeman so far this season.
At times this season, Powell has served as a wingman during faceoffs. Against Virginia, he collected a team-high six ground balls. He is currently third on the team in groundballs with 14.
In the season opener against Colgate on February 23, Powell tied Springer with a game-high four points. He had one goal, three assists and three ground balls in his collegiate debut. He found the back of the net on the only shot he attempted in the contest.
With his two older brothers, Casey and Ryan Powell, sharing the school record for career points, it is nearly impossible to withstand drawing comparisons between the three. Although it is early in his career, it is an interesting fact that Michael Powell has scored more points than either of his brothers did after their first four college games.
