March 16, 2009

Center Valley, Pa.--The competition is heating up at the top of the Patriot League standings. Both Bucknell and Colgate enter the week with unbeaten Patriot League records. Meanwhile, Navy, which owns the most Patriot League wins so far this season, sits closely behind in third place. Colgate and Navy will meet in a key Patriot League battle on Saturday in Annapolis. Army, which enters the week at 4-2, has yet to begin Patriot League play. The Black Knights will commence their League schedule with a pair of Patriot League contests this week.

Patriot League Men's Lacrosse Release 3.16.09

Offensive Player of the Week (Mar. 9-Mar. 15)

Perry Menzies, Bucknell Sr., M, Upperco, Md.

Menzies recorded six goals and an assist in games against No. 5/4 Notre Dame and League foe Lafayette. He scored twice against Notre Dame, helping the Bison remain within striking distance of the Fightin' Irish. Menzies then notched a career-high four goals and five points against the Leopards, upping Bucknell's Patriot League record to 2-0.

Defensive Player of the Week (Mar. 9-Mar. 15)

Bill Henderson, Army So., D, Tully, N.Y.

Henderson anchored the Army defense in a three-goal victory at Rutgers on Saturday. Henderson helped hold the Scarlet Knights' leading scorer, Kory Kelly, who entered the game with 12 goals, scoreless on seven shots. Henderson also collected four ground balls.

Goalkeeper of the Week (Mar. 9-Mar. 15)

Nick Sciubba, Bucknell Sr., GK, Sea Cliff, N.Y.

Sciubba recorded a career-high 16 saves on Thursday against No. 5/4 Notre Dame. He made 10 stops while surrendering just two goals in the first half, allowing the Bison to take a 3-2 halftime lead. Against Lafayette on Saturday, Sciubba made six saves before departing with a 14-4 lead in the third quarter. For the week, he had a .611 save percentage in two games.

Rookie of the Week (Mar. 9-Mar. 15)

Charlie Streep, Bucknell Fr., M, New Canaan, Conn.

Streep recorded a hat trick in the Bison's 18-6 win over Lafayette on Saturday, helping Bucknell maintain its undefeated mark in Patriot League play. He also notched an assist and a ground ball against No. 5/4 Notre Dame on Thursday.

Patriot League Notebook

In Review Bucknell remained undefeated in Patriot League play with a 16-6 win over Lafayette. Earlier in the week, the Bison dropped a 10-6 decision to No. 5/4 Notre Dame. Colgate is tied with Bucknell at the top of the League standings. The Raiders did not play a League game last week and remained 1-0 in Patriot League competition. The Raiders won their only match-up last week, rallying to claim a 13-12 win over non-League foe Fairfield. No. 15/13 Navy, which sits in third place, owns the highest number of Patriot League victories. The Mids improved to 3-1 in League outings with wins over Lehigh and Holy Cross. Also claiming a win last week was No. 20/19 Army, which downed non-League opponent Rutgers.

On Deck Army will become the final team to begin Patriot League play when the Black Knights host Lehigh on Tuesday evening. Army will then hit the road to take on Holy Cross in another League contest on Saturday. Only one other League game is on the slate this week. Preseason favorite Colgate will travel to No. 15/13 Navy on Saturday.

Five Nominated For Lowe's Senior CLASS Award Five Patriot League men's lacrosse student-athletes are among 30 candidates for the candidates for the lacrosse division of the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: Classroom, Character, Community, and Competition. Among the Patriot League candidates are Bucknell midfielder Doug Buckley, Colgate attackman Brandon Corp, Holy Cross goalkeeper Jimmy Harrison, Army defenseman Scott Rosenshein and Navy defenseman Andy Tormey.

Patriot League Teams In The Rankings Two Patriot League teams are currently in this week's rankings. Rivals Army and Navy find themselves in both the USILA Coaches Top 20 poll and the Nike/Inside Lacrosse Media Top 20. Navy is ranked 15th in the coaches poll and 13th in the media rankings. Army enters this week's coaches' poll at No. 20. The Black Knights moved up one spot to 19th in the media poll. Colgate and Bucknell are both receiving votes in the coaches' poll.

2009 Men's Lacrosse Championship The 2009 Patriot League Tournament will take place on Friday, April 24 and Sunday, April 26 at the site of the highest seed. The top four teams in the regular-season standings will advance to the Patriot League tourney. The championship game on Sunday and Friday's semifinals will be broadcast on CBS College Sports. Third-seeded Colgate won last year's championship in West Point, N.Y.

Patriot League, Inside Lacrosse Sign Agreement The Patriot League has come to a multiple-year agreement with Inside Lacrosse, it was announced this fall. Inside Lacrosse will market and showcase Patriot League men's and women's lacrosse programs, coaches, student-athletes and institutions. The agreement will come over a variety of platforms including Inside Lacrosse magazine, Inside Lacrosse's Face-Off Yearbook as well as insidelacrosse.com. It will also include promotion of the Patriot League's men's and women's lacrosse championships.

Team Notebooks

Army The Black Knights won their third straight game, a 9-6 triumph at Rutgers. Jason Peyer contributed to five of the Black Knights five goals, notching three goals and two assists. Defensively, Bill Henderson limited the Scarlet Knights' leading scorer, Kory Kelly, to seven shots and no goals. Goalkeeper Tom Palesky made 11 saves, including seven in the third quarter alone. Army will commence its Patriot League schedule with two games against League foes this week. The Black Knights will host Lehigh on Tuesday before battling Holy Cross in Worcester on Saturday.

Bucknell The Bison remained undefeated in Patriot League play and winless in non-League action. Bucknell dropped a 10-6 decision to No. 5/4 Notre Dame on Thursday, before rebounding to claim a 16-6 win against Lafayette on Saturday. All four of Bucknell's losses this season have come against ranked foes. Entering the week, Bucknell junior Austin Winter leads the team with 15 points, including five goals. The Bison will host No. 18 Denver on Tuesday before taking on Air Force in Dallas on Saturday.

Colgate The Raiders won their second straight game, rallying to defeat Fairfield, 13-12. Junior attacker Ian Murphy had a four-goal day with three goals and an assist. All three of Murphy's goals came in the second half and either tied the game or gave Colgate a lead. The Raiders have just one game on the schedule this week, a key Patriot League showdown at No. 15/13 Navy on Saturday.

Holy Cross The Crusaders were dealt a 10-5 defeat by No. 15/15 Navy on Saturday, dropping Holy Cross 0-2 in League play and 0-5 overall. The Crusaders held a 4-3 lead after three quarters, but Navy erupted for seven goals in the final frame to keep Holy Cross from claiming its first victory of the season. Junior Chris Smirti recorded a goal and an assist, while senior co-captain Jimmy Harrison made 13 saves in goal. Holy Cross will be at home this weekend, taking on No. 20/19 Army in Patriot League action.

Lafayette The Leopards dropped their second straight game on Saturday, a 16-6 defeat to Bucknell. The Bison jumped on the Leopards early, scoring the first five goals and building an early 12-1 advantage. Senior Matt Mersky paced the Leopards' attack, scoring a goal and an assist. Lafayette was narrowly out-shot, 40-39. Senior Jeff Canfield notched seven saves on the afternoon in just over 47 minutes of work, while Vinny DePasquale totaled three saves in his 12 minutes between the pipes. Lafayette will play non-League foes Stony Brook and Drexel this week.

Lehigh The Mountain Hawks dropped a pair of games to ranked foes last week, falling to Navy and Villanova. Lehigh held a 5-1 lead over No. 15/15 Navy midway through the second quarter, but the Mountain Hawks were unable to hold onto the lead and eventually fell to the Midshipmen 10-8 on Tuesday. The Mountain Hawks are now 0-1 in Patriot League play. No. 20 Villanova scored six first-quarter goals to knock off the Mountain Hawks, 16-6, on Saturday. Lehigh, which has played four ranked teams this season, will play two more ranked opponents this week. The Mountain Hawks will meet No. 20/19 Army on Tuesday before battling No. 18 St. John's. Both games will be on the road.

Navy The Mids have now won four straight games after recording Patriot League victories against Lehigh and Holy Cross last week. Navy trailed in both games, but rallied for its second and third Patriot League wins of the year. Though sitting in third place in the Patriot League standings, Navy has more League wins than any team this season. The Mids' six overall victories are also a League high. Navy has just one game on the slate this week, a critical Saturday showdown against preseason Patriot League favorite Colgate in Annapolis.