College Crosse Prospectus: Syracuse Scrimmage Recaps; Van Arsdale Ready At Loyola

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Johns Hopkins defensemen Patrick Foley will not play for the Blue Jays this season due to academic issues and is not enrolled at Hopkins for the spring.

How does it feel to have a ton of lacrosse, even though they’re just scrimmages?

Lacrosse The Nation

I was at the Syracuse-Hofstra-Le Moyne scrimmages yesterday. Mainly because I’m a manager for the Orange.

So let’s go to those scrimmages. Syracuse beat Hofstra, 7-6, in scrimmage number one. Hofstra then took care of Le Moyne, 11-8, and the Orange defeated the Dolphins, 8-3, in three quarters.

The Daily Orange has some takeaways from the scrimmages.

Syracuse’s up-beat offense flowed against quality goaltenders, even though the scoreboard didn’t indicate it

Early in SU’s 7-6 win over Hofstra, Pride junior goalie Jack Concannon made a handful of point-blank saves. He racked up 14 saves to keep his team in the game despite SU’s diversified attack and a strong start from [Matt] Lane, who scored two of Syracuse’s first three goals. Lane’s first goal came on the run off a dodge, kickstarting the SU offense in its first game against an opponent since last year’s NCAA tournament loss to Maryland.

“He shoots the ball really, really hard,” [John] Desko said. “So to see him stick and place it well against that hot goaltender is good.”

Nine Syracuse players combined for 15 goals. The attack surrounding senior attackman Jordan Evans, who tallied three assists, included [Bradley] Voigt (four goals), [Nate] Solomon and Tyler Ford (two each) and one goal each from Sergio Salcido, Nick Mariano, Stephen Rehfuss, Ryan Simmons and Brad McKinney. Ford scored the game-winner in the first game.

Syracuse.com’s Lindsay Kramer writes about the defense’s version of #22 in #11 and this year’s recipient, Scott Firman, who’s transitioning from LSM to close defense this season.

"Scott's a very intelligent player, good on ground balls. He's had a lot of experience now playing for Syracuse,'' Orange coach John Desko said after the scrimmages. "It is a somewhat new position. But he's a very good position player, doesn't make a lot of mistakes, communicates pretty well. He's a good leader.''

No. 11 has previously been worn by defensive stalwarts such as Brandon Mullins (one of the key losses from last year), Brian Megill, Joel White and Steve Panarelli.

"It's kind of something for our defense,'' Firman said. "They (offensive players) have 22, and that's big. They get to score goals and everything. But we've got 11 on our end, and it's kind of something nice within.''

Firman said Mullins spoke with him at the end of last season and indicated the recent SU No. 11s wanted him to carry on that tradition.

"It was pretty humbling. To have him ask me was really nice. It's a huge privilege,'' Firman said. "For the previous elevens to grace me with the opportunity is pretty nice. It's a burden, though, to come out and lead. It's a big opportunity. It's exciting.''

Here’s Desko talking to the media after the scrimmages:

Edward Lee of the Baltimore Sun previews Loyola and what to expect from this season.

Lee also writes on the new addition of former Virginia assistant Marc Van Arsdale as offensive coordinator.

“It’s actually been really good coming to this place,” he said in an interview at Ridley Athletic Complex, the Greyhounds’ home stadium in Baltimore. “The work side of things, after being so long in one place, I wasn’t really looking to make change until it happened and the hand was dealt. But I felt really fortunate to find a place like this, and after 15 years in one place and 21 years in two stints there, coming somewhere new has been energizing in some ways. I’m seeing new ways of doing things and being around different people has been a real boon.”

Van Arsdale is the program’s third offensive coordinator in four years, but [Charley] Toomey said he was intent on landing Van Arsdale, calling him “the biggest recruit I had all summer.”

“He was the most important piece of the puzzle for Loyola because I do think we have enough talent in our locker room, and I couldn’t look at bringing someone in whom I would have to keep a watchful eye on when I’m on the other side of the field,” Toomey said. “I brought in an established guy that I know will run with it and embrace it and who the kids will play hard for.”

Van Arsdale inherits an offense that ranked 22nd in scoring at 10.9 goals per game a year ago and 18th in man-up percentage at 43.2. He also gets sophomore attackman and second-team All-American Pat Spencer, who tied Gary Hanley’s single-season record of 89 points set in 1981, and senior midfielder and honorable mention All-American Brian Sherlock.

Penn State’s head coach Jeff Tambroni says his team’s effort against Army West Point on Saturday was ‘average.’

Jacksonville has some highlights from their scrimmage against Tampa:

#78 on Jacksonville (could be junior FOGO Hunter Forbes, who’s listed at 5-6) is a shrimp, like Darren Sproles.

Folks, it’s game week.

Quint Kessenich for Inside Lacrosse offers up his preseason top 20. There are surprises in there.

18. Navy The injury to middie Casey Rees (34G) is worth a significant drop in ranking. The Midshipmen were injury-depleted in a Jan. 21 scrimmage loss to Penn State, but they played much better on Jan. 28 at UNC with Jack Ray in the mix. Chris Fennell, Matt Rees and Steve Hincks lead what should be a stingy defense. Remember, Navy only allowed 7.38 goals last season. Freshman Ryan Kern (Salesianum, Del.) might get the nod between the pipes. Scoring goals in settled sets could be challenging. Midfielder Greyson Torain draws the pole, while Colin Flounlacker becomes a barometer player. Navy opens up at Johns Hopkins on Tuesday, Feb. 7 at 5 p.m.

17. Bucknell The Bison were sharp in a scrimmage win over Virginia, and if Navy isn't what many people expect heading into the season, perhaps Bucknell is the second-best team in the Patriot League. Coach Frank Fedorjaka will rely on Will Sands (64 pts) and Tommy O'Connor to generate goal-scoring chances. Sophomore goalie Christian Klipstein (58%) is coming off a fantastic rookie year, and he bears watching nationally in a year without standout goalies. Bucknell debuts on Feb. 4 at Delaware with a non-conference schedule that includes Fairfield, Bryant and Villanova.

16. Duke Inconsistency and disappointment defined an 11-8, NCAA First Round finish in 2016. The offense will have a new look as Myles Jones, Deemer Class, Case Mathias and Chad Cohan have left the building. Players like Villanova transfer Sean Cerrone, Sean Lowrie and Jake Seau must take the next step to greatness. Freshmen Joey Manown (No. 7 Power 100), Reilly Walsh (No. 12), Terry Lindsay (No. 13) and Kevin Quigley (No. 17) may be pressed into action immediately on offense. The Blue Devils play five games in February and will be hanging their hat on strong face-off play and defense.

You can find the complete media poll here.

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