Feb. 14, 2003
The 2002 Patriot League men's lacrosse season ended with Army, Bucknell and Hobart in a three-way tie for the championship. The teams were declared tri-champions, and Hobart was awarded the League's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament based on the final regular-season RPI ratings.
This year could be more of the same, according to the 2003 pre-season poll of League coaches and sports information directors. Voters were not allowed to select their own team.
Bucknell (6-7, 5-1 PL in 2002) and Hobart (6-8, 5-1 PL) each gained six first-place nods from the 14 voters and finished with 64 points to share the top spot in this year's poll. Army (8-6, 5-1 PL), the only League team with a winning overall record last season, finished third in this year's pre-season poll with 58 points, including the final two first-place votes.
Lehigh (5-9, 2-4 PL) gained 36 points in the pre-season poll to edge Colgate (7-7, 3-3 PL) for fourth place. Colgate finished with 34 points, followed by Lafayette (4-10, 1-5 PL) with 25 points and Holy Cross (1-14, 0-6 PL) with 13 points.
The season opens with six non-League games this weekend. Saturday's action includes Army hosting defending national champion Syracuse, Bucknell at North Carolina, Saint Joseph's at Colgate, Holy Cross at Fairfield and Marist at Lehigh. Sunday, Hobart opens its season against Butler at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Md.
Bucknell and Hobart each return five players from the 2002 All-League team to the lineup this season. Two seniors from each team, Bucknell attack Dennis Geraghty (King's Park, N.Y.) and keeper Justin Sussman (Towson, Md.) along with Hobart attack John Bogosian (Massena, N.Y.) and midfielder Tim Booth (Waterloo, N.Y.), were named to the 2002 Inside Lacrosse/Face Off Yearbook pre-season All-America team. Booth was a third-team pre-season All-American while Geraghty, Sussman and Bogosian were honorable mention picks.
The Bison, last year's pre-season favorite after capturing the team trophy in 2001, will be led by Geraghty and Sussman, who was named the PL Defensive Player of the Year. Geraghty finished third in the PL in goals scored (34) and seventh in points (38) last year while Sussman led all netminders with an 8.85 goals against average and a .610 save percentage. Both Geraghty and Sussman are two-time All-League picks.
Also returning for the Bison are 2002 second-team all-stars Chris Cara (Medford, N.Y.), Rob Lane (Boonton Township, N.J.) and Blaise Fletcher (Glen Mills, Pa.). Cara, a sophomore attack who was the 2002 PL Rookie of the Year, finished second in the PL last year in assists (31) and points (56) while Lane, a senior midfielder, and Fletcher, a junior defender, joined with Sussman to give the Bison the best defense in the League. In 13 matches, the Bison surrendered just 114 goals (8.77 per game).
Hobart, which has won two championships in its three years in the Patriot League, returns a League-high three first-team all-stars, including Bogosian, Booth and senior defender Brad Neuberth (Riverside, Conn.).
Bogosian tied for fifth in the League's goal-scoring race with 29 and led the Statesmen with 37 points. He combined with second-team All-League sophomore attack Nate Hill (Hamburg, N.Y.), who chipped in 13 goals and 23 assists to rank 10th in the PL in scoring with 36 points, to provide the Statesmen with a solid 1-2 scoring punch.
Booth, the League-leader in ground balls (6.21) and faceoff percentage (.598), and Neuberth combined with returning second-team All-League keeper Mike Borsz (Camillus, N.Y.) to hold opponents to 130 goals in 13 regular-season matches (10.00).
Army, which has won outright or shared the League crown nine times in the 12-year history of the PL, returns three all-stars for the 2003 season, including first-team senior midfielder Mike Kamon (West Chester, Pa.), second-team junior attack Jeff Bryan (Niskayuna, N.Y.) and second-team junior midfielder Marko Kostovic (Seaford, N.Y.).
Kamon, a two-time All-League choice, led the Black Knights in ground balls last season (4.50) and was among the team leaders in goals (15), assists (5) and points (20). Bryan finished second on the team and sixth in the League in scoring last year with 30 goals, 15 assists and 45 points.
Lehigh and Colgate, which are expected to battle for fourth place again this year, each return one player from the 2002 Patriot League all-star team.
The Raiders, who edged LU for fourth place last year but were picked fifth in the 2003 pre-season poll, will be led by senior midfielder Joe Parker (Crofton, Md.). Parker finished among the Top 6 in the League in goals (29), assists (19) and points (48) last year in his first collegiate season after playing wide receiver for four years for the Raiders' football team.
Senior defender Scott Carpenter (Liverpool, N.Y.) earned second-team All-League recognition after a standout season for the Mountain Hawks defense. Also expected to contribute for Lehigh on the attack this year are sophomore Andrew Lucas (Baldwin, N.Y.) and senior Tony Lowe (Setauket, N.Y.), who finished 1-2 in the PL scoring race last year. Lucas led the PL in goals with 41 while Lowe ranked second with 38.
The final returning PL all-star from 2002 is Holy Cross junior Marty Gilbert (Laguna Hills, Calif.), who earned second-team recognition in the midfield. The Crusaders also return their top four scorers from 2002, led by sophomore attackman Mike McKee (Sloatsburg, N.Y.), who had 12 goals and 23 assists for 35 points.
Lafayette, under first-year coach Terry Mangan, finished sixth in the pre-season poll and hope to build behind the goalkeeper Kevin DeVito (Cohassett, Mass.). DeVito played eight games last year for the 'Pards and finished third in the League in goals against average (9.78) and second in save percentage (.617).
2003 Patriot League Men's Lacrosse Pre-Season Poll
Team (1st Place) 2002 Record Points
1. Bucknell (6) 6-7, 5-1 PL 64
(T) Hobart (6) 6-8, 5-1 PL 64
3. Army (2) 8-6, 5-1 PL 58
4. Lehigh 5-9, 2-4 PL 36
5. Colgate 7-7, 3-3 PL 34
6. Lafayette 4-10, 1-5 PL 25
7. Holy Cross 1-14, 0-6 PL 13