Bucknell's Gilray and Sands Capture Patriot League Weekly Awards

CENTER VALLEY, Pa. – Bucknell's Matt Gilray and Will Sands were honored with Patriot League weekly awards, the league office announced Monday afternoon.

After leading the Bison to an upset over then No. 6 Loyola in Baltimore, Gilray was recognized as the Defensive Player of the Week for the first time in his collegiate career while Sands captured his fourth Offensive Player of the Week laurels of the 2018 campaign.

Gilray was instrumental in Bucknell's 12-11 victory, guarding two-time Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year and 2018 First Team All-American Pat Spencer. Spencer finished the game with just three points (1g-2a), well below his season average 5.63, and also turned over the ball twice, including with 35 seconds remaining in regulation.

Gilray finished the week, which also included a 9-8 loss at then No. 15/16 Penn, with two ground balls and two caused turnovers.

Sands registered nine points (3g-6a) during Bucknell's pair of games. Against the Quakers, he led the Bison with four points (2g-2a). He then notched five points (1g-4a) against the Greyhounds, assisting on a pair of Connor O'Hara strikes during a 4-0 run that proved to be the difference in the game.

Sands was also voted as the Bison Athlete of the Week for the second time in his career. He first received that award in 2017 after registering five points (2g-3a), including the game-winning goal, in a 9-8 double overtime victory over then No. 17/18 Loyola.

With 51 points (17g-34a) in nine games, Sands stands third in the country. He needs just seven points to crack Bucknell's top 10 in single-season points for the third time in his collegiate career; the senior already owns the program's seventh- (64, 2016) and eighth- (62, 2017) best totals.

Sands is the third Bison to reach the 200-point plateau and the fifth to register at least 100 assists. With one goal, he'll become the sixth to score 100 over the course of his time in Lewisburg.

Four Bison have now captured Patriot League weekly accolades this season. Sands is already a four-time Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week while Gilray and Lukas Munoz were recognized as the Defensive Player of the Week in back-to-back weeks. Christian Klipstein garnered Goalkeeper of the Week laurels after Bucknell's upset at then No. 18/20 Colgate.

Sands is the second-straight men's lacrosse player to be selected as the Bison Athlete of the Week. Last week, Munoz was honored for his role in the squad's comeback victory over Boston University. Previously, only the wrestling team had won back-to-back Bison Athlete of the Week awards this season, with Nick Stephani (Dec. 18) and Tyler Smith (Jan. 1) earning the accolades.

The Bison, who returned to the USILA Coaches' Poll at No. 16 and entered the Inside Lacrosse Maverik Media Listing for the first time this season at No. 18, face off against No. 15/20 Army West Point on Saturday, March 31 at noon in West Point, N.Y.