Bucknell University Athletics
Bison Men's Lacrosse Can Clinch Postseason Berth with Win over Holy Cross Saturday
3/31/2011 8:00:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse
March 31, 2011
LEWISBURG, Pa. -- The 18th-ranked Bucknell men's lacrosse team will celebrate Senior Day prior to Saturday's home finale against Holy Cross, then the Bison will take the field knowing that a victory would clinch a berth in the Patriot League Tournament. Game time is 3 p.m., and the contest will air live on Bison Vision at BucknellBison.com.
The Bison improved to 8-2 on the season with a tight 8-6 win over No. 20 Penn State on Tuesday night. Defense was the key to victory, as Bucknell forced 22 turnovers and nine failed clears, while sophomore goalie Kyle Feeney made a season-high 14 saves.
Bucknell's eight victories are tied with Duke for the most in Division I lacrosse. Entering the weekend, Bucknell, No. 9 Army and Colgate are all 2-0 in the Patriot League. Army and Colgate play Saturday in Hamilton, N.Y., so the Bison will need to beat Holy Cross to maintain a share of first place.
After Saturday's game, the Bison face a tough finish to the regular season, with three straight league road games against Army, Lehigh and Colgate.
Bucknell is a perfect 20-0 all-time against Holy Cross, including an 11-2 win last season in Worcester. Klipstein had five goals in that game, while Danylyshyn had two goals and three assists. Feeney enjoyed his best game of the year with 12 saves and only two goals against.
The Crusaders are in the midst of a tough season and recently underwent a coaching change, with former Syracuse All-American Jim Morrissey taking over on an interim basis.
Holy Cross fell to 0-3 in the Patriot League with an 11-5 home loss to Lehigh last Saturday. James Kennedy scored three goals in that game, giving him a team-high 16 points on eight goals and eight assists. John Hannan leads the squad with 13 goals. Mike Fisher and Kenny O'Connor have shared time in goal this season, with Fisher sporting a team-best .471 save percentage.
Bucknell has eight seniors playing their final regular-season home game: Jake Clarke, John Collett, Mike Danylyshyn, Jason Foreit, Ryan Klipstein, Alex Lyons, Jordan Neis and Christian Tucker.
Klipstein is the team's top scorer with 31 points on 22 goals and nine assists, followed by Danylyshyn at 10-12-22. Sophomore Chase Bailey is coming off his most productive game, with two goals and three assists in Tuesday's win over Penn State.
The Bison have outscored foes 98-74 in 10 games.
Saturday's game is the back end of a lacrosse doubleheader at Bucknell, as the women have a league game against Lafayette at noon at Graham Field.
