Losing three-quarters of your scoring offense, including an All-American who ranked in the top 10 in the country in goals, is never an easy hurdle to overcome. However, the Clarkson University Men’s Lacrosse team has seen significant exodus before, and the program has always endured over the past decade. Though the Golden Knights will need to look for new scoring options in 2010, the coaching staff, headed by long-tenured coach Bill Bergan, expects the team to maintain its playoff streak as one of the top programs in the Liberty League.
Bergan, along with assistant coaches Don LaSala and Pat Mullin, guide a young team with just two seniors and only four returning starters, but the squad is brimming with talented underclassmen that are prepared to accept increased roles. Many of those players apprenticed under impressive seniors, a class that led the Knights to a 10-5 overall record in 2009, with four of the losses coming to teams ranked in the top 15 in the country. With two seniors, eight juniors, 11 sophomores, and 13 freshmen, Clarkson will be an unknown quantity to many opponents, and that could be an advantage in the early season contests.
Graduated seniors Greg Gibbons, Tom Ross, Brian Hoey, and Jon Cathcart accounted for 107 goals, including 86 from Gibbons and Ross combined, so the attack will need to find fresh options in 2010. Fortunately, sophomore Bryan Huff (Hillsborough, NJ) emerged as an option in his first collegiate season, placing third on the team in points with 15 goals and 15 assists. Classmates Kris Massaro (Allison Park, PA) and Ryan Esposito (Nanuet, NY) combined to play in 11 games as freshmen and will also be looked to for increased scoring with a season of collegiate experience under their belts. Freshmen Matt McCabe (Syracuse, NY) and Kyle Kasprzyk (Orchard Park, NY) will compete for starting jobs right away in the depleted attack section, while John Devine (Orchard Park, NY) should seen plenty of field time as well.
In the midfield, the plays will all begin with sophomore Pat Kilday (Westford, MA), one of the Knights faceoff men from a year ago with a .532 percentage (66-for-124). He competed in 13 of the 15 contests last year and will be the point man on faceoffs again this season. Junior Jon Furgal (New Hartford, NY) took the majority of the faceoffs last season, but he will see various roles in the midfield in addition to jockeying for the ball after scores.
For additional scoring punch, the Knights will look to junior co-captain Tyler Long (Liverpool, NY), who was third on the team in goals last season with 17, ranking fifth in points for Clarkson. Sophomore Matt Cyr (Cheshire, CT) contributed 10 points with six goals and four assists, and can be expected to add to both columns in his second year. Classmate Eric Gollands (Chelmsford, MA) is quick and can use his speed to dodge defenders, and he should see a dramatic increase in playing time from last season.
Juniors Mitch Collins (Baldwinsville, NY), Evan Miles (Onondaga, NY), Mike Simmons (Clinton, CT), and Josh Flacke (Schenectady, NY) combined to play in 20 games last season and that experience will be one key to Clarkson’s success in 2010 as the team steadies an inexperienced group of players. Sophomores Tim Sweeney (Highland, NY) and Corey Flanigan (Rochester, NY) played in five games as freshmen and hope to see more field time in their second seasons.
Adding depth to the midfield are freshmen Paul Dancy (Fairport, NY), Jeff Sciera (DeWitt, NY) and Jamie Stuhlinger (New Hartford, NY).
A pair of freshmen will likely start in the midfield right away for Clarkson, led by Brendon Shearin (Goffstown, NH) and Kane Henderson (West Linn, OR), who will start as a shortstick defensive midfielder.
Defensively, Clarkson is in solid shape thanks to the return of seniors Evan Renwick (Wappingers Falls, NY) and Steve Hislop (Fairport, NY). Renwick, one of three captains, started all 15 games last season and ranked among the team leaders with 39 groundballs and 10 caused turnovers. Hislop played in five games last season and will take a step forward as a leader this year.
In addition to the two seniors, the defense also has another leader in co-captain Mike Perkins (Baldwinsville, NY), who played in all 15 games and recorded 22 groundballs. Sophomore Matt Davidson (Hilton, NY) was on his way to a solid first season before suffering a season-ending injury, but he is back to 100 percent and is capable of winning a starting spot on defense for the entire season. Sophomore Shane Farrell (Rochester, NY) is also looking to see a more substantial role in his second season after playing in two games as a freshman.
Three newcomers will also look to crack the lineup in the defensive end, led by junior transfer Casey Dickinson (Mannsville, NY). Freshmen Tyler O’Brien (Liverpool, NY) and Bob Hennessey (Baldwinsville, NY) will join Dickinson as newcomers to Clarkson’s defense.
Historically, the Golden Knights have been talented and deep at the goaltender position, and 2010 is no different. Sophomore Pat Sweeney (Canton, NY) saw limited time as a freshman behind departed senior John Szvoren, but made 50 saves in 70 minute of action. Freshmen Ryan Cole (Orchard Park, NY) and Kyle Hohmann (Rochester, NY) are both precocious in their technical abilities and are very advanced in several other aspects of the game despite their lack of experience at the collegiate level. Talented first-year collegian Pat Briggs (Baldwinsville, NY) will also certainly be in the mix in a wide-open competition for playing time in the crease.
