Bucknell University Athletics
Bison LAX Remains Among Nations Leaders
4/25/2001 8:00:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse
April 25, 2001
Lewisburg, Pa. - The #11 Bucknell men's lacrosse team has four individuals ranked among the nations leaders in the most recent release of NCAA Men's Lacrosse statistics. The Bison are also ranked in several different team statistical categories.
Senior Michael Cheng (Floral Park, N.Y./Floral Park) moved into the nations leaders in assists per game after his most recent effort of three handouts versus Penn State on April 18. Cheng is averaging 1.83 assists per game and is 18th in the nation. His 49 career assists wearing the Orange and Blue is the tenth best total in school history.
Consistently ranked in the top-ten this season for goals per game has been sophomore Dennis Geraghty (Kings Park, N.Y./St. Anthony's). Through 12 games this season Geraghty has found the back of the net a total of 37 times, the sixth highest season mark for a BU lacrosse player. His average of 3.08 goals per game is the seventh best average in the nation. Against #19 Penn State, Geraghty tallied two goals including the game-winner to keep his average above the three-goal mark.
Junior Brian Loesch (Baldwin, N.Y./Kellenberg) has been the most consistent face-off man in the Patriot League and one of the best in the nation in 2001. Loesch has taken the majority of his teams face-offs and has done a fine job winning 56.8% of them. His face-off winning percentage puts him in the nations top-20 in the 16th slot. He has also led the Bison this season in ground balls per game. He has scooped up a total of 79 ground balls through 12 contests for the Herd. His 6.58 groundballs per game clip ranks him 11th in the NCAA Division Men's Lacrosse statistical leaders.
The strongest unit on the Bucknell lacrosse team has been the defense in 2001. Headlining a solid group in the NCAA rankings has been sophomore goalkeeper Justin Sussman (Towson, Md./Friends School). He is currently one of the NCAA's top-five goalkeepers in both save percentage and goals against average. Sussman and the Herd's defense shutdown the Nittany Lions in the second half of their contest allowing the Penn State team to score only once while Sussman recorded 18 saves. His 64.0% save percentage and 7.25 GAA are both fifth best in the country.
As a whole, the Orange and Blue defensive unit is the fifth hardest defense to score against in the country at 7.42 goals per game. The Bucknell man-down unit, which is now 12th in the nation, has also held its own this season only allowing the opponent to score 33.0% of the time. The Bucknell defense is held together by the play and leadership of junior Kevin Smithies (Yorktown Heights, N.Y./Yorktown) and seniors Mark Juelis (Westfield, N.J./Westfield), Brian Treacher (Massapequa, N.Y./Massapequa) and J.C. Metivier (Portland, Maine/Salisbury School).
The 11th ranked Bucknell men's lacrosse team will play one final regular season contest this weekend, April 28, against Lehigh before awaiting its seeding in the NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship Tournament. The selection show for the NCAA Tournament will take place on Sunday, May 6, at 8:00 p.m. First round competitions will be held at UMBC on May 12 and at the US Military Academy on May 13.
