Syracuse/Hofstra Scrimmage; Deleware opens season with 13-5 win

Well start with the very early season victory by Delaware over Detroit Mercy, 13-5.  10 different players scored for the Blue Hens.  Delaware looked pretty good in all aspects of the game, minus the fact they gave up all their goals with a man down.  Delaware was penalized six times and it cost them five times. 

Dan Cooney was very impressive at the faceoff X for coach Bob Shillinglaw's squad, going 15-21 on the day.  Senior goalie Noah Fossner had a strong first game, making 12 saves. 

Syracuse and Hofstra squared off on Saturday, as both teams played their first scrimmages since the fall (both teams also played Division II Le Moyne as well). 

While it is still very early, both Coach Desko and Tierney saw some bright spots throughout the days games, as well as some ugly play.  There was a bit of a lack of offense, as the Pride "beat" the Orange 6-5.  As expected, both coaches knew the mistakes would happen and from here on out, the coaches have about two weeks to figure them out and get their respected teams on track.

  The attack duo of Jay Card and Jamie Lincoln will be one of the more exciting tandems in the country this year.  Card has gotten better each year at Hofstra and once Lincoln transferred from Denver, Card had his best season, posting 53 points on 31 goals and 22 assists.  It will be interesting to see how the two will fair this season.

The Hofstra midfield also was also a unit that stood out.  Tierney has a very deep unit and isnt afriad to mix up his lines and run three lines deep.  At times, this gave the S.U. defense a bit of trouble.

Jovan Miller displayed his ability to the Carrier Dome crowd and made a case for why he should be known around the lacrosse world as one of the top midfielders in 2011.  Miller finished the day with four goals (one aginast Le Moyne).  It also should be noted that the first midfield line for the Orange (Miller-Josh Amidon -Jeremy Thompson) will be a tough unit to defend against in '11.  While Miller is a true all-around midfielder, Amidon is right there with Miller as an all around guy. Amidon had a goal and an assist on the day.  While Thompson didnt get on the scoreboard, he was finding openings and there is no doubt this unit will get there bearings straight come game one against Denver.  

While the Hofstra offense did get their chances, senior long pole John Lade and sophomore Brian Megill will be just fine in '11.  The third spot is still up for grabs but senior Thomas Guadagnolo has his eyes set on the spot.  Guadagnolo is a captain for the '11 Orange and has the ability to make it as the teams third long pole.  Redshirt sophomore David Hamlin also looked good Saturday, as he did in his limited time in 2010. 

The second line for the Orange has their holes.  Senior Jeff Gilbert is almost a lock to have a spot on the unit but after that, it seems as if Desko is still weighing his options.  Justin Ianzitto wasn't all that impressive and Peter Coleman has tons of potential, but was held scoreless on Saturday.  A few freshmen (Scott Loy and Jake Bratek) made some noise with their first goals in the Carrier Dome.  Dont be surprised if this now opens up an even bigger door for Johns Hopkins transfer Tom Palasek to join the second midfield unit.  Palasek, along side Gilbert and Coleman wouldn't be too shabby. 

The attack unit looked as if they were still getting used to one another.  Jojo Marasco was held scoreless but showed his potential behind the cage.  Tim Desko was his normal self (one assist), a very reliable option for Coach Desko. Stephen Keogh added a goal for the Orange. 

The face-off unit was off and on throughout the day.  Senior Josh Knight, who has big game expeience, went 5-6 on the day.  Thompson, the teams top face-off man, went 1-4 against Hofstra.  Some freshmen really stood out as well.  Ricky Buhr went 6-7 and his classmate Chris Daddio was 6 of 12.  With senior Tim Harder in the mix as well, the unit should come together in time for the opener.