Game Notes
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - It will be a special day at the Carrier Dome on May 5 as lacrosse legend Roy Simmons Jr. will be honored at halftime of No. 19 Syracuse's (5-7) 2007 season finale against No. 16 Colgate (10-5). Simmons Jr. will be recognized as part of the Orange’s "Celebration of Champions." Saturday is also Senior Day at the Dome. Six players -
Dan Biegel, Danny Brennan, Craig Hammond, Jon Jerome, Dustin Palmer, and Steve Panarelli will take part in a short ceremony prior to the 1:00 p.m. faceoff.
Friday's game will be televised live locally on Time Warner Sports 26. Live streaming video and audio of the contest can be found on SUathletics.com via Orange All Access and fans can also tune in to the Syracuse ISP Sports Network radio broadcast on WNSS (1260 AM).
Simmons Jr., known affectionately as "Slugger," took over the Orange lacrosse program from his father in 1971. He guided SU for 28 seasons, retiring after the 1998 campaign with an overall record of 290-96 (.751). Simmons led the Orange to 19 NCAA playoff appearances, 16 straight Final Fours and NCAA national championships in 1983, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993, and 1995. He coached and recruited some of the sport’s all-time greats, including Paul and Gary Gait, Roy Colsey, Pat McCabe, Brad Kotz, and Casey Powell. Simmons also coached all three members of the Orange’s current coaching staff - John Desko, Kevin Donahue, and Roy Simmons III. Donahue became Simmons’ first first-team All-American in 1979 and all three were members of SU’s first NCAA Tournament team (1979). Simmons was inducted into the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 1992.
As a player, Simmons competed for his father, Roy Simmons Sr., from 1956-58 and was a teammate of fellow lacrosse Hall of Famer and Pro Football icon Jim Brown.
ORANGE CONTINUES STREAK OF 20-POINT SCORERS
The 2007 edition of the Orange features six players that have scored at least 20 points. Mike Leveille, Dan Hardy, Kenny Nims, Steven Brooks, Greg Niewieroski, and Greg Rommel have all reached the plateau this season. It marks the ninth straight season SU has had at least six 20-point scorers. The Orange has achieved the feat in every season of the John Desko Era. The last time the Syracuse had fewer than six players tally at least 20 points was in 1998, Roy Simmons Jr.’s final season as head coach.
Leveille leads the club with 38 points (22g, 16a).
COLUCCINI HITTING HIS STRIDE
Sophomore goaltender Peter Coluccini has elevated his level of play in the Orange’s last four games. Coluccini has recorded double-digit saves in three of SU’s last four outings, including a career-best 22 stops against Cornell on April 10. The only contest he didn’t post at least 10 stops during that streak was against Rutgers on April 15. Coluccini made nine saves in three quarters of action against the Scarlet Knights. Almost half of his saves on the year (60-of-134) have come in the last three weeks.
In addition, Coluccini has held two of SU’s last four foes to fewer than 10 goals, including allowing a season-low five scores versus Rutgers.
GROUND BALL GOBBLER
Sophomore do-it-all midfielder Matt Abbott has been a ground ball machine for the Orange. Abbott has scooped up at least six ground balls in three of SU’s last four games and has recovered at least five ground balls six times in 2007. In the Orange’s last outing at Massachusetts, Abbott recorded a season-best seven ground balls.
For the year, Abbott ranks second on the team in ground balls with 49. He trails SU face-off specialist Jon Jerome in that category. Jerome has 57 ground balls, most of which he has recovered after winning his own draws.
SCOUTING THE RAIDERS
Colgate was the runner-up in last weekend’s Patriot League Championship at Navy. The Raiders knocked off Bucknell in the semifinals to advance to the title game, but lost to the Midshipmen in teh final, 15-9. Colgate still has a chance for an at-large berth in the 2007 NCAA Championship with a 10-5 overall record. Prior to its loss at Navy, the Raiders had been riding a six-game winning streak.
Like Syracuse, Colgate has dominated its opponents at the face-off "X" all season. The Raiders are 213-341 on draws, a mark of .625, which ranks third in the country. Chris Eck is the major reason for Colgate’s proficiency in that area. Eck owns a .657 winning percentage on draws (130-198). Will Planer, Mark Florian, and Brian McGowan also have each won at least 50 percent of their face-off attempts this year.
The Raiders also own the second-ranked man-up offense in the nation. Colgate has converted on a sizzling 55.8 percent of man-up chances (29-52). Kevin Colleluori leads the team with eight extra-man goals and eight Colgate players have tallied scores in man-up situations in 2007.
Patriot League Player of the Year Brandon Corp is the club’s top goal scorer with 29. He and Matt Lalli are tied for the team lead at 46 points apiece. Lalli leads the team with 25 assists which ranks 14th nationally. The Raiders have used four different goalies this year, but Tim Harrington has emerged as Coach Jim Nagle’s top option between the pipes. Harrington has played 628:35 of a possible 900 minutes in net. He has 92 saves and a 9.35 goals-against average. Brian Cain has played in six games with four starts. He owns a 5.56 goals-against average and is 3-1 in the cage.
Jim Nagle is in his sixth year at Colgate. He has been picked as the Patriot League Coach of the Year twice and is 51-37 at the helm of the Raiders. Overall, he is 116-76, including a 65-39 record in five seasons at Oneonta. Nagle served as an assistant coach at Springfield College from 1992-94 and played collegiately at Loyola. He was a member of the Greyhounds’ 1990 team that lost to Syracuse in the national championship game.
THE SERIES WITH COLGATE
The Orange has won the last nine meetings with the Raiders and 18 of the last 19. Colgate's only win during that stretch came in 1975 by the score of 11-9 in overtime. Overall, SU is 42-9-1 versus the Raiders.
