Bucknell University Athletics
Bison Men's Lacrosse Now Ranked in Both Major Polls, Visits Robert Morris Tuesday
3/21/2011 8:00:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse
March 21, 2011
LEWISBURG, Pa. -- The Bucknell men's lacrosse team, the winner of four straight games and now 6-1 on the season, is ranked in the top 20 in both major national polls this week for the first time this season. The Bison have been ranked in the Nike/Inside Lacrosse media poll for most of the season, and this week they moved up one spot to No. 18. Additionally, Bucknell debuted this week in the USILA Coaches' Poll at No. 17.
The Bison are coming off an 11-8 road win over Lafayette, which pushed them into sole possession of first place in the Patriot League at 2-0. Bucknell also has a league win over Navy this season, and the team's 10-8 win over Villanova on Feb. 26 is still looking very good. The Wildcats are 7-1 after sweeping Penn and Princeton last week, and they are ranked No. 7 in the USILA rankings and No. 11 in the Inside Lacrosse poll this week.
Bucknell puts its 6-1 record on the line on Tuesday night, taking on Robert Morris at 7:30 p.m. at Mount Lebanon High School in Pittsburgh. This will be the very first meeting between the two teams.
The Colonials have won three games in a row and are now 4-3 on the season. On Saturday they routed Bellarmine 18-10, coming on the heels of a 14-13 overtime win at Detroit and an 11-7 win at Jacksonville. Robert Morris also has a 9-7 win over Manhattan, with the losses coming against North Carolina (14-11), Hobart (9-8) and Colgate (14-12).
Robert Morris was picked as the preseason favorite in Northeast Conference, one season after leading the nation in scoring at better than 15 goals per game. This year's team is averaging 11.9 goals per game, led by Trevor Moore with 19 goals and six assists for 25 points. Patrick Smith (15), Kyle Buchanan (11) and Corbyn Tao-Brambleby (11) are also double-digit goal scorers.
Ryan Klipstein (16-6-22) continues to lead the Bison in scoring after posting three goals and an assist in the Lafayette win. Middie Billy Eisenreich (12-7-19) has been red-hot with nine goals and six assists in his last four games, while Mike Danylyshyn (8-9-17), Todd Heritage (9-5-14) and Charlie Streep (9-3-12) are also off to good starts in 2011.
Defensively, Bucknell ranks 12th nationally in scoring defense, allowing 7.43 goals per game. Senior Alex Lyons (29 ground balls) leads a standout group of defenseman, while goalie Kyle Feeney is stopping 52 percent of shots on goal. Jake Clarke (.538) and Ryan Gutowski (.600) are combining to win better than 55 percent of their faceoffs on the season.
Following the Robert Morris game, Bucknell plays three in a row at home against Albany, Penn State and Holy Cross.
