Yale Picked 3rd in NEILA Poll

Feb. 19, 2008

FAIRFIELD, Conn.- The New England Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association announced their 2008 Pre-season Coaches poll along with their Preseason All-New England team Monday afternoon with the University of Massachusetts taking the top spot in a vote taken by the region's 12 teams. Dartmouth was picked second followed by Yale, Harvard, Brown, Fairfield, Vermont and Sacred Heart.

The Yale Bulldogs are ranked 19th in the Lacrosse Magazine Preseason Poll and open up this Saturday afternoon hosting Holy Cross. Senior defenseman Pat Grimm (Annapolis, Md.), senior face-off specialist Greg Duboff (McLean, Va.), junior midfielder Michael Karwoski (Greenlawn, N.Y.) and sophomore attackman Brendan Gibson (Pt. Lookout, N.Y.) found spots on this year's team. Grimm, a 2007 All-New England second team and All-Ivy honorable mention pick, is the Bulldogs top-returning defenseman after picking up 24 ground balls last season. DuBoff won 58.6% of his face-offs (160-273) last season and led the team with 64 grounders. Karwoski, a 2007 All-new England first team and All-Ivy honorable mention midfielder, returns after a 17 goal, eight assist sophomore season. Gibson is Yale's top-returning goal scorer after netting 31 as a freshman.

The Minutemen were picked to finish second in the ECAC Lacrosse League coaches poll and are ranked 20th in the NIKE / Inside Lacrosse media poll. UMass, the 2006 national runner-up, placed three players on the pre-season All-New England team in senior midfielder Rory Pedrick (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.), senior defensemen Sean Krygier (Madison, Conn.) and junior goalkeeper Doc Schneider (Massapequa, N.Y.). Pedrick is the Minutemen's top-returning midfielder after scoring 24 points on 11 goals and 13 assists last season. Krygier was named to the 2008 Preseason All-ECAC team as well after 23 ground balls in 14 games in 2007. Schneider returns after an All-ECAC sophomore year where he posted 7.94 goals against average with 159 saves. He was named the to the NEILA All-New England first team last spring. UMass will open the season on Saturday, February 23rd hosting Hofstra at 1:00 pm

Dartmouth was ranked 24th in the 2008 Face-Off Yearbook preseason rankings and opens the season this Saturday afternoon playing host to the Hartford Hawks. Big Green sophomores Ari Sussman (New Haven, Conn.) and Andy Gagel (Houston Tex.) nabbed spots on the All-New England Preseason team. Sussman was the Ivy League's Rookie of the Year, leading the Big Green with 33 goals, 17 assists for 50 points. He also earned an All-Ivy League honorable mention on attack. Gagel started all 15 games as a freshman defensively in 2007. He finished his rookie campaign with 26 ground balls.

The Harvard Crimson are under the direction of first year head coach John Tillman. The Crimson placed junior defenseman Max Gottschall (Swampscott, Mass.) and sophomore midfielder Jason DuBoe (Long Grove, Il.) on the All-New England Preseason team as they open their season on Saturday afternoon at Siena. Gottscahll was an All-Ivy honorable mention pick last season after starting 12 games defensively and recording 16 groundballs. In the midfield DuBoe returns after an 11 goal, one assist rookie campaign. Harvard will serve as the host institution of the 2009 NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship at Gillette Stadium.

Brown University opens the 2008 season this weekend hosting Lehigh on Saturday at 2:00 pm. Sophomore attackman Thomas Muldoon (Oakton, Va.) is the Bear's lone representative on the All-New England Preseason team. Muldoon led the team in scoring with 32 points coming on 23 goals and nine assists. He won the Ivy League Rookie of the Week award three times and won the Brown program's Vincent Marinelli Freshman Award.

The Fairfield University Stags tied with Yale for the most players on this year's NEILA preseason team with four representatives. The Stags will open up the 2008 campaign this Saturday on the road at Providence College. Seniors Travis Nelson (Oswego, N.Y.), Dan Boudreau (Canton, Mass.), Chris Atwell (Kennebunkport, Me.) and Matt Scanlon (Bel Air, Md.) all earned spots on the All-New England preseason team. Nelson scored 18 goals with 16 assists on attack last season and is the Stags leading returning scorer. Boudreau returns in the midfield after scoring 18 goals with six assists in 2007. Atwell was named an All-New England first teamer on defense last season after starting all 12 games with 27 ground balls. Scanlon was honored by the NELIA at long stick. He led the team with 22 caused turnovers on the year and was second on the squad with 37 ground balls.

The Vermont Catamounts and Sacred Heart Pioneers round out this year's NEILA Preseason top-eight. The Catamounts begin a new era under first year head coach Ryan Curtis and were picked to finish fifth in the America East preseason poll. UVM will open the 2008 season this Saturday taking on the #2 ranked team in the nation in the Duke Blue Devils. The Pioneers, picked to finish sixth in the Colonial Athletic Association preseason poll, open on Saturday at home hosting Presbyterian. SHU senior Tony Tanzi (Mahopac, N.Y.) earned a spot in the Preseason All-New England midfield and will serve as team captain for the second-straight season. Tanzi scored 14 goals with three assists while picking-up 23 ground balls in 2007.

The NEILA will release its weekly New England Top-8 poll every Monday along with the Player of the Week starting on February 25th.

2008 NELIA All-New England Preseason Team

Attack

Ari Sussman Dartmouth So. New Haven, Conn.

Thomas Muldoon Brown So. Oakton, Va.

Brendan Gibson Yale So. Pt. Lookout, N.Y.

Travis Nelson Fairfield Sr. Oswego, N.Y.

Midfield

Rory Pedrick UMass Sr. Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Tony Tanzi Sacred Heart Sr. Mahopac, N.Y.

Dan Boudreau Fairfield Sr. Canton, Mass.

Jason Duboe Harvard So. Long Grove, Il.

Michael Karwoski Yale Jr. Greenlawn, N.Y.

Defense

Max Gottschall Harvard Jr. Swampscott, Mass.

Andy Gagel Dartmouth So. Houston, Tex.

Sean Krygier UMass Sr. Madison, Conn.

Chris Atwell Fairfield Sr. Kennebunkport, Me.

Pat Grimm Yale Sr. Annapolis, Md.

Goalkeeper

Doc Schneider UMass Jr. Massapequa, N.Y.

Long Stick

Matt Scanlon Fairfield Sr. Bel Air, Md.

Face-off Specialist

Greg Duboff Yale Sr. 5-7/190 McLean, Va.

2008 NEILA Preseason Poll

1. Massachusetts

2. Dartmouth

3. Yale

4. Harvard

5. Brown

6. Fairfield

7. Vermont

8. Sacred Heart

Release filed by the NEILA