Bucknell Men's Lacrosse Visits Lehigh Friday in Another Key Patriot League Game
4/10/2008 8:00:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse
April 10, 2008
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LEWISBURG, Pa. - After last week's 7-4 victory over Army, the red-hot Bucknell men's lacrosse team remains in the hunt for the Patriot League regular-season title. The Bison face another tough hurdle on Friday night, however, with a conference road test at Lehigh at 7:30 p.m.
Now ranked 10th in the Nike/Inside Lacrosse Media Poll and 11th in the USILA Coaches' Poll, the Bison are 8-2 overall and 3-1 in the Patriot League. Army is also 3-1, and both teams trail 5-0 Navy in the league standings. Colgate currently sits in fourth place at 2-2, while Lehigh is 2-3 and looking to move up into the top four to secure a Patriot League Tournament berth.
Bucknell can still be the No. 1 seed in the tournament if it wins its final two league games against Lehigh and Colgate, and if Army defeats Navy (but not by more than four goals) on Saturday and Lafayette on Tuesday.
Seniors on Brink of History:
Bucknell's nine-man senior class is one victory away from setting the school record for wins by a class. The Class of 2008 has 33 wins to its credit, which is tied with the Class of 2003 for the all-time record. Four other classes have won 31 games.
A Winning Era:
In the 40-year history of Bison Lacrosse, never has the team won nine or more games in consecutive seasons. After winning 11 games in 2007, the 8-2 Bison are one win away from achieving the feat for the first time.
Home Sweet Home:
Bucknell's victory over Army last Friday was its ninth in a row at home, tying the school record. The Bison also won nine straight home games from Apr. 26, 1995 through March 29, 1997. The current streak includes a perfect 6-0 home record this season. It is also tied (with UMBC) for the second-longest active streak in the nation. Duke has the nation's longest home winning streak at 17 games.
Series Notes:
• This will be the 40th meeting between Bucknell and Lehigh. The Bison hold a 29-10 series lead.
• Two years ago in Bethlehem, the Mountain Hawks dealt the Bison a 7-5 defeat that would ultimately keep Bucknell out of the Patriot League Tournament.
• Last season in Lewisburg, Bucknell broke open a tight game with a five-goal fourth quarter and won 11-5. Defensively the Bison forced 14 failed clears in 30 attempts, and Austin Winter led the offense with a goal and three assists. Nick Sciubba had 12 saves in goal, and Rick Carolan had a good day at the X, winning 9 of 14.
• Bucknell is 11-7 against Lehigh in Bethlehem, but the Bison have only won two of their last seven games on the Mountain Hawks' home field.
Scouting the Mountain Hawks:
• Lehigh comes in with a 6-7 record, 2-3 in the Patriot League. The Mountain Hawks need a victory and help to garner a Patriot League Tournament berth.
• Two of Lehigh's three league losses have been close, low-scoring affairs. On March 19 the Mountain Hawks lost to Army 4-3, and last Saturday at Colgate, Lehigh let a two-goal lead slip away and fell 5-3.
• Five of the six teams to beat Lehigh are currently ranked in the top 20 in the USILA Coaches' Poll: No. 2 Duke, No. 6 Navy, No. 10 Drexel, No. 16 Brown and No. 17 Army. Lehigh's other loss was to Delaware, which was ranked No. 14 at the time of the game and is now the top team among "others receiving votes."
• Lehigh's leading scorer is Ricky Cornetta (14-8-22), while Max Dahlem (15-4-19) leads the team in goals. Fred Cassilly (10-7-17) has also reached the double-figure mark in the goals column.
• The Mountain Hawks score 6.5 goals per game and allow 8.1. Goalie Eric Spirko has a 7.29 goals-against average and a .529 save percentage. He averages 8.3 saves per game.
• Lehigh has won 46.0% of its faceoffs on the season, although No. 1 faceoff man Stuart Baxter is converting at an even 50.0% clip (81-162).
• Lehigh's man-down unit has been stellar this season. Opponents are just 10-for-53 (.189) with a man advantage.
• First-year head coach Kevin Cassese was a three-time All-America midfielder at Duke. He was an assistant coach at Duke last season, when the Blue Devils advanced to the national championship game.
Last Outing:
Last Friday at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium, Bucknell raced to a 6-0 halftime lead and never looked back, defeating Army 7-4 in a key Patriot League game. Mike Danylyshyn led the offense with two goals and an assist, while Tim Brandau also had two goals, including a highlight-reel around-the-back goal in the second quarter. The Bison defense did not allow a goal until the 11:29 mark of the third quarter, and Rick Carolan won 11 of 15 faceoffs.
Bison Bits:
• Austin Winter leads the Patriot League in assists with 20 in 10 games, and he ranks second in the league in points per game (3.10).
• Tim Brandau is fourth in the league in goals per game (2.00) and seventh in points per game (2.40).
• Joe Mele is tied for the league lead with three game-winning goals.
• Tim Brandau leads the league with six EMO goals.
• Mike Danylyshyn was named the Patriot League Rookie of the Week on Monday after his three-point performance against Army. His first two career multi-point performances have come in Bucknell's last two games.
• With 10 saves and only four goals against in the Army game, Nick Sciubba raised his season save percentage to .589, third-best in the league.
• Bucknell continues to be the least-penalized team in the Patriot League, with only 21 flags in 10 games.
• The Bison are now converting at a strong 42.1% rate with a man advantage. The EMP team was 2-for-3 against Army.
• The only three Division I teams in the nation to rank in the top 10 in both clearing and riding are Bucknell, Duke and Virginia.
• Defenseman Billy Haire is tied for 12th natinally among long poles with 35 ground balls.
In the Polls:
• The Bison are ranked 11th in the USILA Coaches' Poll this week. The Bison are just two points behind No. 10 Drexel.
• In the Nike/Inside Lacrosse media poll, Bucknell is up to No. 10, its highest ranking of the season.
• LaxNews.com has Bucknell at No. 9.
• ESPN and Inside Lacrosse analyst Quint Kessenich also has Bucknell at No. 9 in his own top-20 rankings, noting, "Terrific win on Friday against Army solidifies Bucknell's claim to a top ten spot."
• Bucknell was picked third in the Patriot League preseason poll, behind only Navy and Colgate. Bucknell received one first-place vote and 51 total points. Navy collected 12 of the 14 first-place tallies and 72 points, while Colgate also received a first-place vote and 60 points. Army was picked fourth with 45 points, followed by Lehigh (31), Holy Cross (20) and Lafayette (15).
Looking Ahead:
• Bucknell visits Penn State for a non-league game on Tuesday night, the the Bison return home on Saturday, Apr. 19 for the regular-season finale against Colgate at 8 p.m.