Phillylacrosse.con, Posted 2/1/18
From Press Release
Over the past few seasons, the Lehigh men’s lacrosse team has tasted some success, but it wants more…
“My sense is that the guys are tired of being mediocre,” said Lehigh head coach Kevin Cassese. “They’ve had a little bit of success here and there with some big wins, but the only person who’s had a winning season on our roster is Ian Strain (Episcopal Academy) and he’s a fifth-year senior.
Andrew Pettit (left), Ian Strain
“If you get enough people who get tired and cranky about that, then they’re inspired to do something about it.”
The Mountain Hawks are coming off a 7-7 season which saw them reach their seventh straight Patriot League Tournament and pick up back-to-back home wins over nationally-ranked teams Boston University and Princeton. Lehigh’s foundation of players has tasted success, but inconsistency has led to being a pretty average team when all is said and done.
Lehigh wants more than average… much more. The Mountain Hawks are eying a return to championship contention from a few years ago, which saw them win back-to-back titles in 2012 and 2013 and reach a third straight title game in 2014. To do that, the 2018 Mountain Hawks want to get back to the identity from those championship teams.
“To me, our team identity is about having a tremendous chip on our shoulders,” said Cassese. “We want to redevelop that chip on our shoulders so guys are ready to take the next step and become a winning team that has a winning season and can compete for a championship.”
The pieces are in place heading into 2018.
Attackmen
Lehigh returns its top two scorers in junior Andrew Pettit (Tower Hill) and Tristan Rai, who each posted 46 points last season. Pettit led the Patriot League in goals per game (35 in 14 games) while Rai tallied a career-high 22 assists. Classmate Lucas Spence (Springfield-Delco) is expected to start alongside Pettit and Rai after posting 17 points (14 goals, three assists) running on the first midfield line last season.
“You’ve got Andrew as a lefty sniper, one of the best goals scorers in the country,” said Cassese. “You’ve got Tristan, who broke onto the scene early in his career as a goal scorer, but has really developed into a great feeder and an all-around versatile player. Then you have Lucas, who’s an unbelievable dodger, just a fearless competitor. He plays with contagious energy and constant effort. That’s our core group at attack.”
Lehigh features plenty of other talent at attack, including senior John Mehok (Bishop Shanahan), who posted two goals and four assists last year before his season was cut short due to injury. Sophomore Ryan Klose is in the mix at attack after seeing significant time as a freshman, especially on the extra man. Sophomore Crew Cintron and Austin Pierce, as well as freshman Matt Ilchuck are also expected to compete for action.
Midfielders
Strain helps anchor the midfield after recording career highs in goals (15), assists (7) and points (22) last season. A two-way midfielder, Strain also owns 75 career groundballs and 16 career caused turnovers. Sophomore Andrew Eichelberger is expected to play a key role in the midfield after a freshman season which saw plenty of strong points. The 6-foot-4, 225-pound Eichelberger recorded four goals and an assist as a freshman, which included two goals at defending national champion North Carolina last February.
“Strain and Eich are two of our very best two-way middies,” said Cassese. “They do it all – offense, defense, wing play, man-down, extra man. Ian has been a great mentor for Andrew. Those guys have hit it off. They enjoy learning from each other.”
Junior Mickey Fitzpatrick should also see significant time in the midfield as well.
“Mickey is a converted attackman who’s used to having the ball in his stick; he’s used to initiating,” said Cassese. “He’s very skilled, can score, can feed. A dual threat.”
Senior Nolan Apers and junior transfer Alexander Tumminello are also expected to see action in the midfield. Tumminello transferred to Lehigh from Maryland where he won a national championship with the Terrapins last season.
“Nolan, a senior captain, has done a great job. He makes the offense better, just with all the little things that he does,” said Cassese. “Alex has had a great preseason and has really played well in our scrimmages.”
Meanwhile, Lehigh returns each of its top two defensive midfielders in sophomores Christian McHugh and Parker Kent. McHugh had six groundballs and three turnovers last season while Kent recorded three goals, one assist, 10 groundballs and four caused turnovers.
“Christian has had an unbelievable year,” said Cassese. “He reminds me a lot of the guys we had in 2012 and 2013. He’s like having a fifth long stick on the field. Parker is really smart and great in transition. He had a bunch of points last year. Hopefully, we can get some transition going with both of these guys.”
Also in the mix for playing time at defensive midfield are sophomore Austin Clibanoff and freshman Liam Lynch.
Defensemen
Lehigh’s returning defense is arguably the team’s most established unit. Leading the way is junior Craig Chick, who as a freshman, led the nation with 37 caused turnovers then as a sophomore, posted a school-record 40. Chick has plenty of experience at both long-stick midfield and close defense, and will likely play in both positions at different points this season.
Freshman Teddy Leggett is also expected to contribute at long-stick midfield. Leggett came to Lehigh from The Hill Academy, same school as teammate Apers and former Mountain Hawk standout Patrick Corbett.
“Teddy is the fastest guy on our team, he’s one of the hardest workers and is an absolute vacuum on the ground and a terror between the lines,” said Cassese. “Having Craig and Teddy as a 1-2 punch at long-stick midfield is pretty special.
“Other guys competing for time are Matt Douglas, also a freshman. He’s smart, long, rangy and great off the ground. We also have junior Michael DiRienzo, who’s been right on the cusp for years.”
Close defense will be anchored by juniors Eddie Bouhall and Matt Rimol, along with Chick who can play down low. Lehigh’s top cover defenseman, Bouhall was a second team All-Patriot League honoree last season after posting 40 groundballs and 20 caused turnovers; he was also named preseason All-League on Tuesday, along with Chick and sophomore faceoff specialist Conor Gaffney (Lenape-NJ).
If Chick is playing long-stick midfield, sophomore Erik DiGirolamo (Parkland) and senior J.J. Foley are options to play alongside Bouhall and Rimol at close D. DiGirolamo started four games as a freshman last year, tallying 11 groundballs and two caused turnovers, while Foley started five games in his freshman season of 2015, recording seven groundballs and four caused turnovers. Last season, Foley saw significant action on man-down.
“Defensively, it’s a group that doesn’t have very many seniors involved, but there’s a lot of experience,” said Cassese. “You add a couple of the young guys like Teddy Leggett and Matt Douglas into the mix, and now you get some much-needed depth to an area that we think is going to be a strength of ours. We’re excited about both the talent level and depth that we have at that spot.”
Faceoff Specialists
Gaffney returns after finishing his freshman season eighth nationally in faceoff percentage (0.610). The preseason All-Patriot League honoree at faceoff, Gaffney also recorded 96 groundballs; his 8.0 groundballs per game stood fifth nationally.
“The kid is just a machine,” said Cassese. “Everything is repetition with him; he’s got a strict routine and sticks with the routine. He’s the king of extra work; we have to kick him out of the weight room. He’s a guy who breathes it, eats it and sleeps it. He wants to be the best in the country at his trade and I think he’s eager to prove that last year wasn’t a fluke and that he’s here to stay for the next three years.”
Behind Gaffney is freshman Joel Trucksess (Haverford School) and junior Brian Meyer (Harriton). Trucksess was Team MVP at The Haverford School as a senior while Meyer is set to begin his second season with Lehigh. Meyer’s first season was highlighted by winning 3-of-5 draws in Lehigh’s big victory over No. 16/18 Boston University.
Goaltenders
Freshman and Phillylacrosse-com Co-Player of the Year James Spence (Springfield-Delco) appears to be the frontrunner for the starting goaltender position, but it’s been an open battle with sophomore Colin Kirst and junior Chris Kiernan also making strong cases.
“We’ve got tremendous competition this year at the goalie position,” said Cassese. “James looks like he’s a sophomore or junior as far as his level of comfortability in there and his ability to communicate. He’s just even-keel all the time and you always know what you’re going to get from him. He’s got terrific fundamentals and a knack for stealing a few out of the back of the net. Colin has worked so hard to improve his athleticism and take the next steps as a goaltender. He’s also a very good communicator and makes great decisions. Chris is one of the best leaders on our team. He’s as selfless as they come. He’s won some very big games for us in his career, so we always feel confident in Chris.
“We are lucky to have all three goalies. They all bring different, unique tangible qualities that can help the team.”
Outlook
The Mountain Hawks have a strong foundation at every position. Every position is important, but one of the most exciting and promising aspects of the 2018 Lehigh Mountain Hawks is their potential success at faceoff and goaltending.
“The specialty positions have proven to be incredibly important in our sport,” said Cassese. “If you have possession, the other team doesn’t. The faceoff is key and critical towards that possession battle. Then defensively, if you make some blunders and you have a goalie who can steal a few, that will cover up some of those blunders. Every defense, no matter how well coached or how athletic, will make some blunders if you play enough defense.”
To reach its goals in 2018, Lehigh will need more than faceoff and goaltending. First and foremost, the Mountain Hawks need to redevelop the “chip on their shoulder” mindset, which brings with it a determination to do whatever it takes to be successful.
“I see our intangibles to be just a little bit different than we’ve had the last couple years – just the depth, the chemistry, the way our guys have attacked the fall and the way they’ve attacked the preseason,” said Cassese. “The hope is that it translates into more wins.
“The coaching staff, captains and leadership team need to work hard to make that a reality.”
Strain’s return as a second-year captain is important while Apers, Mehok and Chick are assistant captains.
“Leadership structure is still ongoing; it always is when you’re dealing with 18-22 years old,” said Cassese. “We have captains and a leadership council in place. The goal is to get ourselves to the point where the team is moving forward as one team with one heartbeat.”
To have success, the Mountain Hawks need to get back to the behaviors that lead to winning. Focus on the process and the results will come.
“We want to embrace our values,” said Cassese. “We want to be passionate, we want to enjoy what we’re doing, enjoy practicing every day and enjoy the journey. We want to make sure that we’re selfless, we’re taking care of our teammates along the way and we’re lifting our teammates up. We want to be disciplined in everything we do, literally every single thing that we do and take care of the details.
“We want to be tough, both physically and mentally,” Cassese continued. “That has been where we’ve spent the majority of our time as coaches, as a team and as a family, to try and develop our toughness to the fullest so we can put ourselves in a position to achieve our goals.”