Bucknell University Athletics
Men's Lax Opens Season Saturday at Delaware
2/6/2015 2:54:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse
Bucknell vs. Delaware: Webcast | Live Stats
LEWISBURG, Pa. -- Even though the weather is still a bit frosty in the Northeast, the Bucknell men's lacrosse team will become the latest spring sport to get going when it travels to Delaware on Saturday for a 1 p.m. game at Delaware Stadium. The Bison will be opening their season against the Blue Hens for the fourth year in a row, and each of the previous three meetings have been decided by a total of four goals.
Last season, Bucknell defeated Delaware in a defensive struggle, 6-4 at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium. The Bison won 9-8 in Newark the previous season, snapping a 21-game series losing streak, and in 2012 the Blue Hens prevailed 11-10 in overtime in Lewisburg. Delaware has a 24-5 edge in a series that dates back to 1969.
While Bucknell has played a pair of scrimmages against Hobart and Syracuse, Delaware has already played one official game. The Blue Hens lost 15-10 at High Point last Saturday, despite three goals and two assists from Beau Jones.
Following the Delware game, Bucknell will play Bryant in its home opener on Feb. 14 at noon at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium.
Below is a closer look at the Bison entering the 2015 season:
As the 2015 campaign approaches, the Bucknell men's lacrosse team finds itself in the unusual position of trying to rebound from season considered sub-par by their lofty standards. After nine straight years at .500 or better, the Bison finished 7-8 after dropping a double-overtime heartbreaker at Colgate in the Patriot League Tournament quarterfinals, but head coach Frank Fedorjaka feels as though his team is poised for a bounce-back year.
“We went through a lot of adversity on and off the field last year, and it has made us stronger as a program from top to bottom,” said Fedorjaka, who is entering his 10th year as Bucknell's head coach. “One of the trademarks of our program has been that we always seem to play well on gameday. Last year we just didn't play very well for a variety of reasons, but when you come off a tough year like that everyone wants it so much more. I love our chemistry, and we are really excited to start the year.”
Tactically, two areas that hurt Bucknell last season were faceoffs and shooting efficiency. Those are typically strengths for Bison teams, but last season they won only 34.2 percent of their faceoffs — the second-worst mark in Division I lacrosse — and they converted on just 22.9 percent of their shot attempts just two years after leading the country in that statistic at 37.1 percent.
Fedorjaka is optimistic that a freshman class ranked No. 13 nationally by Inside Lacrosse will help bolster both of those areas. Overall, Bucknell will feature a mixture of veterans and youth at virtually every position on the field.
Offensively, the Bison return six of their top seven point-producers from last year, including a pair of all-star midfielders in senior co-captain David Dickson and junior Thomas Flibotte. Dickson was a Third Team All-American after breaking Bucknell and Patriot League records with 48 assists in 2013. Last year he moved between attack and midfield and produced another strong year with 15 goals and 28 assists en route to Second Team All-Patriot League honors. A seventh-round draft pick of the Denver Outlaws, Dickson is an Inside Lacrosse Preseason Honorable Mention All-American this spring.
Flibotte has been a First Team All-Patriot League pick in each of his first two collegiate seasons, and he already has 48 career goals. A powerful dodger, Flibotte has attempted over 100 shots each year so far. He earned Preseason All-Patriot League honors leading into the 2015 campaign.
Dickson and Flibotte will most likely be joined by senior co-captain Ryan Joseph on the first midfield line. Juniors Kyle Shanahan and Adam Lynne, along with sophomore Tommy O'Connor and freshman Sean O'Brien are leading candidates for the second midfield unit. Joseph scored 10 goals last season, four of them coming against Colgate in the postseason. Shanahan also hit double figures with 11 goals a year ago.
Junior Sean Doyle headlines the attack unit. The 2013 Patriot League Rookie of the Year has already pieced together back-to-back 40-point seasons, and he has at least one point in all 29 career games. Doyle logged 24 goals and 16 assists last season, highlighted by a six-assist, eight-point afternoon in a league win over Holy Cross.
Senior Alex Ryan has been a reserve for most of his career, but now the 6'4” crease attackman appears ready to crack the starting lineup. His playing time increased last season, when he made his first two collegiate starts, and he contributed his first four career goals. Newcomer Will Sands, who was ranked No. 49 on Inside Lacrosse's Top-100 Freshmen list, had an outstanding fall and is the likely third starter at attack. Sophomore Quinn Collison and freshman Connor O'Hara are also in the mix.
“We have a lot of weapons on offense,” said Fedorjaka. “Our household names like David Dickson, Sean Doyle and Thomas Flibotte are all playing their best lacrosse, and they are all setting a great example with their work ethic. Then we have some names that might not be as familiar — some upperclassmen and some freshmen — who are ready to step up.”
Bucknell has traditionally been a stout defensive team, and that defense often starts with a hard ride from the attack and midfield units. The Bison led the nation last season by forcing turnovers on 24.1 percent of opponents' clearing attempts. Ultimately they ranked 14th nationally with an 8.61 goals-against average, an impressive figure considering they spent an inordinate amount of time playing defense thanks to the faceoff issues.
Bucknell will have to replace an Honorable Mention All-American at close defense in Jackson Place, who ranked second in the country in caused turnovers last season. But the Bison do return three defensemen with starting experience, led by senior Ben Kellar. Kellar started all 15 games in 2014 and ranked third on the team with 37 ground balls. Sophomore Evan Bernstein began his rookie season as a starter last year before being supplanted by classmate Mike Schiappa midway through the season. Both will play lead roles this season, with another sophomore in Brad Dotson also in the mix. Fedorjaka is also high on freshman Lukas Munoz.
Junior Alex Spring is one of the top returning long-stick defensive midfielders in the Patriot League, and he was recognized as a Preseason All-Patriot League pick this year. Spring is a magnet on ground balls, and he led the team with 57 a year ago. Matt Gilray, another Inside Lacrosse Top-100 freshman, will also see plenty of action, and Spring and Gilray should give the Bison a strong presence on faceoff wings.
Fedorjaka is very pleased with his depth at short-stick defensive midfield, where he has four high-quality options with varying skill sets. Senior co-captain Mike Ondrusek is the elder statesman of the group, but juniors Eric Monfort, Zach Henkhaus and Brock Ghelfi have also played a lot of lacrosse at Bucknell. Ghelfi, one of the fastest players on the team, will be moving from offensive to defensive midfield after scoring 24 goals over the last two seasons.
Sam Grinberg returns for his senior year as Bucknell's starting goalie. Grinberg won the starting job last season and had a strong year, posting a .563 save percentage and an 8.52 goals-against average. He sat out the fall season while recovering from an injury but is fully fit for the start of the spring. Freshman Brac McKee and senior Frank Morelli are the backups.
“We were the No. 1 riding team in the country and one of the best in defensive efficiency, in terms of goals allowed per defensive possession,” noted Fedorjaka. “When our defense is rested and has energy, we are much better at getting stops and then clearing the ball. Last year we just played too much defense, and they got worn down.”
Senior Gavin Sullivan is the most experienced of the faceoff specialists in the program, and he had a strong game against Syracuse in a January scrimmage. Junior Colin Farawell also returns for his second year in the program after switching from wrestling to lacrosse. Two promising newcomers — Sam Hahn and Jake Dunlop — looked good in fall ball and hope to help solidify the position.
“Nick Marks has worked very hard with our faceoff unit,” said Fedorjaka. “The additions of Hahn and Dunlop at the X and Gilray on the wing are huge, and Gavin Sullivan is a senior with a lot of experience who just needs to translate his success in practice into the games. The rule changes this year, where players are no longer allowed to carry the ball on the back of their sticks, could also be a big factor.”
Bucknell was picked to finish fourth in the Patriot League preseason poll, behind Loyola, Army and Lehigh and just ahead of Colgate. For the first time in a number of years, the Bison are not ranked in the preseason top 20, but Fedorjaka is not concerned with predictions.
“To be honest, it's actually been nice this preseason not to have to worry about wearing a bulls-eye on our back and trying to defend somebody else's expectations,” said Fedorjaka. “We are just going about our business and working extremely hard to get back to where we want to be.”
After taking on Hobart and Syracuse in preseason scrimmages, the Bison open the season at Delaware on Feb. 7 before hosting Bryant on Feb. 14. Then Patriot League play comes up quickly, with Navy, Colgate and Lehigh looming on consecutive Saturdays in late February and early March.
The Bison will also have non-league games against Fairfield at home and Brown and Mount St. Mary's on the road. Three of the top five projected teams in the Patriot League — Colgate, Army and Loyola — will have to come to Lewisburg this season. The Patriot League Tournament begins with the quarterfinal round at home sites on Apr. 21, and then the No. 1 seed will host the semifinals and championship on Apr. 24 and 26.
