March 30, 2009

Center Valley, Pa.--Bucknell and Colgate can secure berths in the 2009 Patriot League Men's Lacrosse Tournament with wins this weekend. The Bison and Raiders enter the week tied atop the Patriot League standings at 3-0. Bucknell and Colgate will not meet until the regular season finale on April 18.

Patriot League Men's Lacrosse Release 3.30.09

Offensive Player of the Week (Mar. 23-29)

Brandon Corp, Colgate Sr., A, Chittenango, N.Y. Corp averaged 4.0 points per game in a pair of key Colgate victories last week. He finished with three goals and an assist in the Raiders' 9-4 triumph over Ohio State on Tuesday. Of his four points, three came in the fourth quarter. He added four more points in Colgate's double-overtime win against Army. All of his points against the Black Knights came in the second half, helping the Raiders erase a 3-1 halftime deficit. He closed the game with two goals and two assists. His final assist came on the game-winner in the second overtime period. Corp has now scored in 42 consecutive games and has 41 points on the season.

Defensive Player of the Week (Mar. 23-29)

Cesar Munoz, Lafayette So., M, Lynbrook, N.Y. Munoz scooped up a game-high 12 ground balls and won a career-best 15-of-20 faceoffs in the Leopards' 10-8 win at Mount St. Mary's. He helped the Lafayette defense limit Mount St. Mary's to just four goals and 11 shots in the second half. Munoz also registred an assist in the win.

Goalkeeper of the Week (Mar. 23-29)

Tim Harrington, Colgate Jr., GK, Lutherville, Md. Harrington helped keep Colgate atop the Patriot League standings with a pair of victories last week. He stopped 21 of the 34 shots he faced, including a 12-save effort in the Raiders' double-overtime victory against Army. With the win against the Black Knights, Harrington became the first Colgate goalkeeper to defeat Army and Navy in the same season. Harrington also picked up a win against Ohio State. He allowed just four goals while making nine saves against the Buckeyes.

Rookie of the Week (Mar. 23-29)

Charlie Streep, Bucknell Fr., M, New Canaan, Conn. Streep scored seven goals in two games last week. He scored four of the Bison's seven goals in Bucknell's 8-7 loss to Towson, including two in the fourth quarter. He added three more goals in Bucknell's 17-6 Patriot League victory over Holy Cross. Streep now leads the team with 16 goals.

Honorable Mention Performances Last Week

Tom Palesky, Army So, GK, Plano, Texas Averaged 16 saves per game in a pair of double-overtime losses. Faced 51 shots while surrendering just 18 goals against No. 6/8 Hofstra and No. 17/17 Colgate.

Michael Crown, Colgate Jr., D, Winnetka, Ill. Picked up the ground ball that led to the game-tying goal with seven seconds remaining in regulation against Army, a game won by Colgate in double-overtime. Also notched eight ground balls and an assist in two games last week.

Jeff Canfield, Lafayette Sr., GK, Kinnelon, N.J. Finished with 10 saves, five in each half, in Lafayette's 10-8 win over Mount St. Mary's. Made two saves in the final seconds to preserve the win.

Tim Paul, Navy Jr., A, Parkton, Md. Recorded a career-high five points, including four in the fourth quarter, in Navy's 10-8 win against Georgetown. Scored the game-winner with 3:57 left to play.

Tommy Phelan, Navy Sr., GK, Towson, Md. Posted a career-best 15 saves while facing 23 shots against Georgetown. Stopped eight shots in the third quarter alone. Stopped 65.2 percent of the shots he faced while making his first start of the season.

Patriot League Notebook

In Review Colgate matched Bucknell's 3-0 start in Patriot League play with a 10-9 win over Army in double-overtime on Sunday. The Raiders also picked up a 9-4 non-League win against Ohio State, giving Colgate five straight victories. Bucknell had previously moved to 3-0 in Patriot League play with 17-6 win over Holy Cross. The Bison dropped a non-League contest to Towson, 8-7, earlier in the week. Navy, which did not play a League contest last week, remains in third place at 3-2. The Mids did earn a significant non-League win, however. Navy improved to 7-3 by topping Georgetown for the first time since 2004. Also picking up a non-League win was Lafayette, which claimed a 10-8 road victory over Mount St. Mary's.

On Deck Just five games are on the schedule for Patriot League teams this week. Lafayette will start the week with a home bout against Marist on Tuesday. A pair of ranked teams will battle on Friday when No. 17/14 Navy hosts No. 8/8 Maryland. Three Patriot League games are on the Saturday slate. Bucknell will travel to Army for a noon match-up. At 1 p.m., No. 15/15 Colgate will play at Lehigh, and Lafayette will host Holy Cross.

Let's Hit The Road! Of the Patriot League's seven teams, three have more victories on the road than at home. A fourth, Army, has the same winning percentage in road games as it does at Michie Stadium. Lehigh has the biggest difference between home and road performance. The Mountain Hawks have won half of their six road games, but they are winless in four home contests.

Two Lowe's Senior CLASS Award Finalists From Patriot League Ten senior student-athletes who excel both on and off the field have been selected as finalists for the 2009 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award in the Men's Lacrosse division. Included among the 10 finalists are two Patriot League scholar-athletes: Colgate's Brandon Corp and Navy's Andy Tormey. Nationwide balloting begins immediately to determine the third annual winner, which will receive the award during the NCAA® Men's Lacrosse Championships in Foxboro, Mass.

Patriot League Teams In The Rankings Two Patriot League teams are currently in this week's rankings. Navy climbed two spots to No. 14 in the media rankings, while dropping one spot to 17th in the coaches' poll. Colgate jumped two spots in both polls. The Raiders are now 15th in both rankings. Army is receiving votes in both polls. The Black Knights are the first team out in the media rankings. Also receiving votes in the media poll is Bucknell.

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.

Team Notebooks

Army The Black Knights dropped a pair of double-overtime heartbreakers to ranked foes last week. Army fell to No. 6/8 Hofstra by a 9-8 count before being dealt a 10-9 defeat at the hands of No. 17/17 Colgate. Sophomore goalkeeper Tom Palesky made 32 saves while facing 51 shots during the week. The Black Knights are now in fifth place in the Patriot League standings. Army is a half game back of Lehigh, a team that defeated the Black Knights earlier this season, for the fourth and final spot in the Patriot League Tournament. Army will host Bucknell on Saturday at noon.

Bucknell The Bison remained undefeated in Patriot League with a 17-6 win over Holy Cross on Saturday. Without the services of Austin Winter and Patriot League faceoff leader Jake Clarke, Bucknell was handed an 8-7 loss by Towson in non-League play on Tuesday. Winter and Clarke missed the game due to injury. Both returned in a big way against Holy Cross. Winter had a season-high five assists against the Crusaders, including his 80th career assist. Clarke was 10-for-15 on faceoffs and recorded seven groundballs. Joe Mele added three goals and an assist. Bucknell will travel to West Point to take on Army on Saturday.

Colgate The Raiders won their fourth and fifth straight games, defeating Ohio State and Army. Junior goalkeeper Tim Harrington made nine saves and the Colgate defense limited the Buckeyes to 13 shots on goal in the Raiders' 9-4 victory. The Raiders added to their momentum with a 10-9 win in double-overtime against Army, improving Colgate's record in League play to 3-0. Brandon Corp, who extended his scoring streak to 42 games, now has 41 points on the season. He is third on the school's all-time scoring list with 172 points.

Holy Cross The Crusaders suffered a pair of defeats last week, falling to Dartmouth and Bucknell. Junior Chris Smirti scored three goals in the Crusaders' 10-9 loss to Dartmouth on Tuesday. Colin McGeehin scored a hat trick of his own in a 17-6 loss to Bucknell on Saturday. McGeehin's three goals against the Bison marked a new career-high for the freshman. Holy Cross will travel to Easton, Pa. for a Saturday match-up with Lafayette. Both teams will be seeking their first Patriot League win of the season.

Lafayette The Leopards picked up a dramatic 10-8 non-League win over Mount St. Mary's on Saturday. Matt Mersky contributed to four of the Leopards' goals. He scored there goals and assisted another. Senior goalkeeper Jeff Canfield played all 60 minutes, making 10 stops in the process. Lafayette will be the lone Patriot League team to play twice this week. The Leopards will host Marist on Tuesday before meeting Holy Cross on Saturday.

Lehigh The Mountain Hawks lost their second consecutive game, a 14-13 defeat at the hands of Bryant. Down 14-10, Lehigh scored three goals in a four-minute stretch to pull within one, but the Mountain Hawks were held scoreless over the final 4:16. Four different Lehigh players scored multiple times, led by Ricky Cornetta's three goals. Lehigh will look to strengthen its hold on the fourth and final Patriot League Tournament spot with a Saturday game against Patriot League co-leader Colgate.

Navy The Mids defeated Georgetown for the first time since its 2004 trek to the NCAA National Championship game. Senior Bruce Nechanicky produced a goal and an assist in what was his first appearance at Multi-Sport Field since sufferein a knee injury at Georgetown in 2007. Making his first start of the season, senior goalkeeper Tommy Phelan turned in a career-high 15 saves while also posting Navy's best save percentage of the year (65.2). His 15 saves were the most by a Navy player since Seth DiNola stopped 21 shots on goal at Penn State on April 12, 2003. Navy will be at home on Friday for a showdown against No. 8/8 Maryland.