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Men's Lacrosse Meets No. 10 Loyola
4/5/2001 10:00:08 AM | Men's Lacrosse
SU travels to Baltimore this week for its first road game since April 23, 2000 when it played at Princeton. The Orangemen have played away games since then, but they have been contests held at neutral sites.
This will mark the 16th meeting between the Orangemen and Greyhounds. The rivalry began on March 29, 1967. SU owns a 12-3 advantage in the series and has won seven of the last nine meetings, including the last two.
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 three
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: April 15 & 22 at 7 p.m.
and April 11 at 8 p.m.
This week's Loyola game will be broadcast live on WMAR-TV out of Baltimore, but it will NOT be available via satellite. Quint Kessenich, Scott Garceau and Keith Mills will call the action.
Syracuse Coming Off its Largest Margin of Victory So Far this Season
The 15 goals Syracuse posted last Saturday against Brown are the
most the Orangemen have scored this season. The 11-goal differential
marked the largest margin of victory for SU this year.
The Orangemen have been trying to fire up their offense and increase their goal production. Last year's team averaged 15 goals per game, while this year's squad is currently ranked eighth in the country with a 12.83 goal-per-game average.
After six games last season, SU had managed 86 goals for an average of 14.3 per game. This current edition of Orangemen have tallied 77 goals, nine fewer than the amount they had at this point last year.
Four Orangemen registered four or more points against Brown. Freshman Michael Powell (Carthage, NY/Carthage) tied his season-high of six points (two goals, four assists), junior Josh Coffman (Carthage, NY/Carthage) tied his career-high of four goals, sophomore Michael Springer (Ridgewood, NJ/Ridgewood) had a hat trick and an assist and junior Liam Banks (Setauket, NY/Ward Melville) tied his personal-best of five assists.
Syracuse in the National Statistics (Through games of April 1) Points Per Game 5. Michael Powell 4.83 T16. Michael Springer 4.00 Assists Per Game 6. Michael Powell 2.83 T19. Liam Banks 1.83 Face-Off Winning Percentage 2. Chris Cercy .80-118 (.678) Save Percentage 6. Rob Mulligan 68 saves (.660) Goals Against Average 4. Rob Mulligan 6.14 Scoring Offense 8. Syracuse 12.83 gpg Scoring Defense T4. Syracuse 6.67 gpg Face-Off Winning Percentage 2. Syracuse 91-133 (.684) Man-Up Offense T3. Syracuse 14-35 (.400) Man-Down Defense 5. Syracuse 33-39 (.846) Scoring Margin 3. Syracuse 6.17 gpgSyracuse Program Approaching 700 All-Time Wins
The all-time record of the Syracuse men's lacrosse program is 691-273-15 (.713). The Orangemen need to win nine more games this season for the program to reach the 700-win milestone in 2001.***
Johns Hopkins is the only program in Division I that has won more than 700 games.
John Desko: 32-7 as Head Coach, 2-1 vs. Loyola
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 32-7 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 Ranks Fourth in the Nation in Goals Against Average
Fifth-year senior Rob Mulligan (Farmingdale, NY/Farmingdale) had
one of his best days in goal during SU's 15-4 victory against Brown. He
played the first three quarters, stopped 10 shots and allowed just one
goal. A second-team All-American in 2000, Mulligan once again has
All-American numbers this year. He is the owner of a 6.14 goals against
average (fourth in the nation) and a .660 save percentage (sixth in the
nation). Against Princeton on March 24, Mulligan recorded his 500th
career save. He is now sixth on the school's all-time saves list with
518 career stops.
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).
Six games into the season last year, Mulligan's goals against average was at 7.02. That means that he has lowered his GAA by nearly a goal a game and has allowed five fewer goals than he did at this time a season ago.
Mulligan has eight NCAA Tournament games worth of experience under his belt, including starts in the 1999 and 2000 national championship games.
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. 518 ROB MULLIGAN 1998-present 7. 476 Chris Surran 1991-93 8. 466 Alex Rosier 1994-95Coffman Four Points Away From the 100-Point Milestone
For the third time in his career, junior midfielder/attackman Josh Coffman (Carthage, NY/Carthage) had a four-goal game. He posted four first-half goals against Brown, including three in the first quarter. In 2000, Coffman scored four goals in the Rutgers and Massachusetts games.
The Orangemen are 22-5 when Coffman finds the back of the net This season, Coffman is the third-leading scorer on the team with 21 points (14 goals, seven assists). He is tied with Michael Springer as the team's top goal scorer.
Coffman 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. He went 3-1 in the win against Princeton.
Coffman owns a string of 18 straight games with at least one point. His streak dates back to last season. He is the owner of 96 career points (57 goals, 39 assists).
Springer Has Scored at Least One Goal in SU's Last 13 Games
Sophomore attackman Michael Springer (Ridgewood, NJ/Ridgewood)
contributed three goals and one assist in the win against Brown to mark
the 13th time in his career (out of 22 games) that he posted three or
more goals. He tallied two goals in the win against Princeton, led the
Orangemen with two goals and three assists against Johns Hopkins, and
scored a season-high four goals in the win against Virginia.
In the Hopkins game, Springer assisted on SU's last two goals of the game, which brought the Orangemen back from an 11-8 deficit with just under two minutes remaining.
Springer is second on the team in scoring this season with 24 points (14 goals, 10 assists). He is tied with Josh Coffman as the team's top goal scorer and is tied for 16th in the nation in points per game (4.00).
He notched his 50th career goal against Colgate on February 23.
Springer is averaging 2.82 goals per game for his career.
He has scored at least one point in every game he has appeared in for the Orangemen. Springer has had 18 games in his career in which he has posted four or more points, including five this season.
Springer has 92 career points (62 goals and 30 assists).
Banks Two Points Away From the 100-Point Milestone
Junior attackman Liam Banks (Setauket, NY/Ward Melville) matched
his career-high in assists with the five he posted against Brown last
Saturday. Ironically, the first time Banks ever dished out five assists
in one game was against the Brown Bears last season in Providence.
Banks has now played two very good games back-to-back for the Orangemen. He tied for the team lead in scoring with one goal and three assists in the win against Princeton. One of those assists was a behind the back pass to freshman Michael Powell on a fast-break opportunity. Banks' goal was a pretty putback in which he caught a rebound out of mid-air and with his back to the goal, deposited the ball neatly past Tiger goalie Trevor Tierney.
On March 17, Banks 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 contributed multi-point performances in SU's last four outings. He is the team's fourth-leading scorer with 16 points (five goals, 11 assists) and he is tied for 19th in the nation in assists per game (1.83).
For his career, Banks has the most points (98) of any player on the team with 52 goals and 46 assists.
Banks had two assists in the opener against Colgate. He 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).
Powell Only Freshman to Rank Among the Nation's Top 15 Scorers
After six games, first-year attackman/midfielder Michael Powell
(Carthage, NY/Carthage) is leading the Orangemen in scoring with 29
points (12 goals, team-high 17 assists) or a 4.83 point-per-game
average. He ranks fifth in the nation in points per game and is the
only freshman to crack the top 15.
Powell is sixth in the country in assists per game (2.83) and is the only first-year player to rank that high.
He has tallied at least four points in every game this season. He matched his season-high of six points with two goals and four assists against Brown. He had the same numbers against Virginia.
Powell turned in a three-goal, one-assist performance against Princeton. He had two goals and two assists versus Hopkins. With SU trailing the Blue Jays, 11-9, at the two-minute mark, 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.
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 25.
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 not draw 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 one of his brothers did after their first six college games.
Casey Powell was the last freshman to lead a Syracuse team in scoring - that was during the 1995 championship season.
Syracuse Lacrosse Freshman Records (Since 1971) Points in a Season 74 (33-41) John Zulberti 1986 67 (39-28) Casey Powell 1995 63 (42-21) Larry Storrier 1976 54 (28-26) Tim O'Hara 1977 52 (32-20) Brad Short 1979 50 (37-13) Oliver Hill 1972 42 (22-20) Barry Powless 1976 37 (21-16) Tom Nelson 1984 36 (14-22) Rob Kavovit 1994 35 (22-13) Charlie Lockwood 1991 34 (22-12) Rob McCarthy 1978 (11-23) Sid Hill 1971 33 (16-17) Ryan Powell 1997 31 (21-10) Brad Kotz 1982 29 (25-4) Gary Gait 1987 (11-18) Mike Cornelius 1974Cercy Nearly Perfect Against Brown at the Face-Off X
Senior midfielder and face-off specialist Chris Cercy (Bethpage, NY/Bethpage) is winning 67.8 percent of the faceoffs he lines up to take. Against Brown, Cercy won the game's first 10 draws. He finished 15-of-16 for the contest.
Cercy is ranked second in the nation in face-off winning percentage, and so is SU, as a team (91-of-133 - .684). Last season, Cercy led the nation in individual face-off winning percentage (.711).
He scored the fourth goal of his career and second of the season against Brown last Saturday. Last year in the national semifinals, Cercy recorded two goals against Johns Hopkins.
Cercy, an honorable mention All-American in 2000, has set another goal for himself this season, which is to graduate on time. In order to do this, Cercy is taking 20 credits this semester. He is majoring in finance and already made the Athletic Director's Honor Roll for the fall semester.
Abendroth/Bontaites Lead Team in Ground Balls
Senior Jay Abendroth (Manlius, NY/Fayetteville-Manlius), a
long-stick midfielder, and sophomore midfielder Matt Bontaites
(Marblehead, MA/Marblehead) are leading Syracuse in ground balls with 26
apiece.
Both players have lined up on the wing during faceoffs. Bontaites scooped up a team-best eight ground balls in the Fairfield game. No other Orangeman has collected more than eight GB's in a game this season. Abendroth had seven against Johns Hopkins. Freshman attackman Michael Powell (Carthage, NY/Carthage) is third on the team with 25 ground balls. He and Bontaites each had six versus Brown.
Rookie Nee Finds Net Again
First-year attackman Brian Nee (Cockeysville, MD/Boys' Latin) has
scored at least one goal in five of SU's six games this season. He
notched eight goals in Syracuse's first four games, but was held without
a goal in the Princeton game. Last week against Brown, Nee returned to
form, scoring twice. He is the fourth-leading marksman on the team with
10 goals, and ranks fifth in scoring overall (no assists).
An excellent finisher, Nee has the best shooting percentage of anyone on the team (.588). He has connected on 10-of-17 shot attempts. He aided SU on the extra-man unit at the start of the season. Of his 10 goals, five have been scored on the EMO. He had a career-high three goals against Fairfield in Florida.
Zone Busters: Syracuse Special Teams Have Improved
The Orangemen are tied for third in the nation in man-up offense
(14-for-35) with a .400 success rate. However, SU has cooled off on the
extra-man during its last three games, where it has gone a combined
2-for-12. Josh Coffman and Spencer Wright each had EMO goals against
Brown. In their first three games of the season, the Orangemen
converted more than 52 percent of their extra-man opportunities
(12-for-23). On the flip side, Syracuse is fifth in the country in
man-down defense, having successfully killed off 33 of its opponents 39
EMOs. That means that nearly 85 percent of the time, the SU man-down
unit holds the opponent without a score.
Syracuse has done a particularly good job on the ride this year. The Orangemen aggressively pursue the ball when the other team is trying to clear. As a result, SU has forced its opponents into just a .739 clear percentage (122-of-165). Against Princeton, the Orangemen refused to allow 13 Tiger clears. Princeton cleared just 21-of-34 times.
