Bucknell University Athletics
Men's Lacrosse Continues League Play at Colgate Saturday on PLN
2/27/2014 4:14:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse
LEWISBURG, Pa. -- For 10 straight years Bucknell and Colgate squared off in the final game of the men's lacrosse regular season, almost always with major Patriot League Tournament implications on the line. But the conference schedule has been modified this year due to the addition of Boston University and Loyola, meaning the Bison and Raiders will now clash in much colder climates this Saturday in Hamilton, N.Y. Despite the earlier game date, there will still be plenty riding on the outcome, as both teams have championship aspirations in 2014.
Bucknell got out to a great start in league play with a 9-6 victory over Navy on Saturday at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium. Sean Doyle scored four goals to pace the offense, and the defensive unit turned in a nice bounce-back performance on the heels of a 12-9 loss at Bryant one week earlier.
The Bison trailed Navy 2-0 after one period, but two goals each from Doyle and Thomas Flibotte accounted for all the second-quarter scoring, and Bucknell led the rest of the way. Todd Heritage and Alex Ryan both had multi-point games with a goal and an assist. Ryan's goal was the first of his career, and it was a big one in the fourth quarter when the game was still very much in doubt.
Sam Grinberg chalked up nine saves, and the defense trio of Jackson Place, Ben Kellar and Evan Bernstein limited Navy scoring leader Sam Jones (seven goals, seven assists in his first two games) without a point on just two shots.
The Bison defense also did another terrific job spearheading the team's clearing efforts. Bucknell was a perfect 18-for-18 against Navy and is now 59-for-60 in three games this season.
Flibotte is now the team's goal-scoring leader with six, while Doyle has a team-high seven points from five goals and two assists. David Dickson (3-2-5), Heritage (3-1-4) and Kyle Shanahan (3-1-4) are also top point-getters.
Colgate is off to a 2-1 start in 2014, but the Raiders were upset by Lafayette 8-7 in their Patriot League opener on Saturday. Colgate opened with a 7-4 win over Bryant and then smacked Vermont 13-3.
Ryan Walsh had five goals and two assists against Lafayette, and he leads the team in goals (10), assists (4) and points (14) thus far. Brendon McCann (2-3-5), Kevin Adams (4-0-4) and Eric Foote (3-1-4) are also off to strong starts.
The Raiders have been excellent defensively in February. Opponents have managed only 15 goals on 85 shots, and goalie Brandon Burke has a stout .667 save percentage with 28 saves and only 14 goals against.
Bucknell will have another tough faceoff battle on its hands on Saturday. Colgate has won a whopping 73.6 percent of its draws, with Alex Kinnealy (35-48, .729) handling the bulk of the action at the X.
Bucknell has a 21-12 lead in the all-time series with Colgate, including a 13-8 win last season in Hamilton. Since 2007 the teams have met four times in the Patriot League Tournament, including twice in the championship game. Colgate won 13-9 in the 2008 final, and the Bison returned the favor with a 10-3 victory to capture the 2011 title.
In last year's meeting, Dickson and Grinberg sparked an 8-1 run to finish the game, and the Bison locked up the No. 2 seed in the Patriot League Tournament with the victory. Dickson dished out four assists and Grinberg made six saves in the final 22:07 after coming on in relief. Doyle added four goals and an assist, and the defense held reigning Tewaaraton Trophy winner Peter Baum without a goal.
Bucknell will make it three straight Patriot League contests the following Saturday, March 8 when they face defending champion Lehigh at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium at noon.
