While Christmas isn’t for another few days, we have the next best thing ... The College Crosse 2018 Preseason Top 20 Poll! This year we have Jack Goods (The Buffalo News) & James Simmons (Troy Nunes) voting alongside Chris, Marisa, Ryan, Adam, Jake, & myself. Additionally, this season we’ll be averaging out everyone’s votes to make an official poll for the site as well (Shout out to Adam for the idea originally).
Directly below you can find each of our top 20 votes and the graph below that is our College Crosse 2018 Preseason Top 20. Below both graphs you can find plenty of comments from Jake and Adam as well. Let us know your thoughts about who should be in our poll in the comments section.
2018 Preseason Votes.
Rank | Adam Epstein | Ryan McDonnell | Jake Nazar | Rank | Safe Fekadu | Chris Jastrzembski | Marisa Ingemi | Rank | Jack Goods | James Simmons |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rank | Adam Epstein | Ryan McDonnell | Jake Nazar | Rank | Safe Fekadu | Chris Jastrzembski | Marisa Ingemi | Rank | Jack Goods | James Simmons |
1 | Duke | Albany | Duke | 1 | Maryland | Duke | Duke | 1 | Duke | Albany |
2 | Denver | Duke | Albany | 2 | Denver | Albany | Denver | 2 | Albany | Denver |
3 | Maryland | Denver | Maryland | 3 | Albany | Maryland | Maryland | 3 | Denver | Duke |
4 | Rutgers | Maryland | Yale | 4 | Rutgers | Rutgers | Albany | 4 | Maryland | Maryland |
5 | Albany | Yale | Rutgers | 5 | Duke | Denver | Rutgers | 5 | Notre Dame | Rutgers |
6 | Yale | Rutgers | Denver | 6 | Syracuse | Yale | Notre Dame | 6 | Yale | Yale |
7 | Notre Dame | Notre Dame | Penn State | 7 | Ohio State | Notre Dame | Yale | 7 | Rutgers | Penn State |
8 | Penn State | Penn State | Notre Dame | 8 | Yale | Syracuse | Syracuse | 8 | Syracuse | Notre Dame |
9 | Syracuse | Towson | Ohio State | 9 | Towson | Ohio State | Ohio State | 9 | Ohio State | North Carolina |
10 | Johns Hopkins | Syracuse | Syracuse | 10 | Penn State | Johns Hopkins | Towson | 10 | Penn State | Syracuse |
11 | Ohio State | Ohio State | Johns Hopkins | 11 | Notre Dame | North Carolina | Johns Hopkins | 11 | Johns Hopkins | Virginia |
12 | Loyola | North Carolina | Army | 12 | Johns Hopkins | Loyola | Loyola | 12 | North Carolina | Ohio State |
13 | Towson | Johns Hopkins | North Carolina | 13 | North Carolina | Army West Point | North Carolina | 13 | Loyola | Johns Hopkins |
14 | North Carolina | Loyola | Loyola | 14 | Loyola | Penn State | Penn State | 14 | Towson | Towson |
15 | Army | Army | Towson | 15 | Princeton | Towson | BU | 15 | Army | Loyola |
16 | Virginia | Brown | Virginia | 16 | UVA | Brown | Army | 16 | Brown | Army |
17 | Hofstra | BU | BU | 17 | Providence | Boston University | Brown | 17 | Virginia | Brown |
18 | Richmond | Villanova | Navy | 18 | Binghamton | Virginia | Providence | 18 | Providence | BU |
19 | Princeton | Providence | Princeton | 19 | BU | Providence | Virginia | 19 | Villanova | Navy |
20 | Providence | Richmond | Providence | 20 | Army | Villanova | Princeton | 20 | Marquette | Princeton |
College Crosse 2018 Preseason Top 20.
Rank | College Crosse |
---|---|
Rank | College Crosse |
1 | Duke |
2 | Albany |
3 | Maryland |
3 | Denver |
5 | Rutgers |
6 | Yale |
7 | Notre Dame |
8 | Syracuse |
9 | Ohio State |
10 | Penn State |
11 | Johns Hopkins |
12 | North Carolina |
13 | Towson |
14 | Loyola |
15 | Army |
16 | Virginia |
17 | Providence |
18 | Brown |
19 | BU |
20 | Princeton |
Top 5 notes - Duke led the pack with an average vote of 1.88. Next came Albany at 2.5 and then we had a tie at the #3 slot with Maryland & Denver coming in with a 3.13 average vote. Rutgers rounded out our top 5 with an average vote of 5.00.
Comments
Adam
- Duke: Best roster top to bottom in the country with a coach who knows how to get it done in May.
- Denver: Ethan Walker is a legit first team All-American candidate. Loads of young talent. And as long as they have Baptiste, the Pios are a Final Four contender.
- The Terps lose perhaps their three most important players to that championship run (Rambo, Muller, IDA) but still plenty of talent on this team—most importantly Mr. Tillman.
- Rutgers: Possibly the best attack in the country. Lose little from a team that went 10-4, beat Ohio State, and really should have beaten Maryland. This is their year.
- Albany: Fields, Reh, Nanticoke, Ierlan, Colarusso. Ridiculous firepower but fair to question how well their soft schedule prepares them for the NCAA tournament.
- Yale: Rock solid, balanced team at every position. Reeves is a stud, Gaudet will only get better. One of the most underrated FOGOs in the game in Mackie.
- Notre Dame: They lose their best middie, defenseman, FOGO, and goalie, but a loaded incoming freshman class adds to an already impressive arsenal of underclass talent. Offense should (theoretically) open up a bit with the personnel Corrigan has to work with.
- Penn State: Defense showed some signs of improvement late last year and Ament/O'Keefe is as good a tandem as there is. Arceri should keep them in every game.
- Syracuse: Lose top three scorers and question marks all over: midfield, faceoffs, goal. Losing Williams hurts but they get a good defender back in Mellen. Rehfuss is going to be very good. Get rid of the dumb #22 jersey.
- Johns Hopkins: Simply put, they need to be better on defense and in goal to make a real run. If they get that, they'll have a chance. They're going to put up a lot of points. Get Foley back on D and a healthier Moreland at the faceoff dot. Tinney the biggest X-factor in lacrosse.
- Ohio State: We're gonna find out how much Fannell, Carey, and Withers meant to that finals run. Also lose some underrated midfield scoring in Pearson, Shanks, Blubaugh, Pfister. But Tre LeClaire will score 60 goals and Randall is the best returning D-man in the country.
- Loyola: They lose a lot of leadership (and some scoring) in Sherlock, Dennis, Sirico, as well as stud faceoff guy Savio. But Pat Spencer is somehow only a junior, which means they're going to win a lot of games. Stover solid in net.
- Towson: I expect the Tigers to take a small step back, given they're losing almost their entire offense, plus Jack Adams and Tyler Mayes. But doubt Shawn "The GOAT" Nadelen at your own peril. He'll at least have them back in the playoffs, if not more.
- North Carolina: A team that went .500 last year loses their best defender, second best attackman, FOGO, goalie, best SSDM. and some other important role players. Obviously still loads of talent on that roster but I don't see much of an argument for a top 10 preseason ranking.
- Army: A team many thought should have made the playoffs last year. David Symmes is a vicious, vicious beast. Johnny Surdick is a name to watch on D. You know Alberici will have them playing good defense.
- Virginia: There is too much talent on this team for them to not be top 20 despite the lackluster 2017 season. But first the Hoos have to figure out how to prevent the other team from putting the ball in their net. Kraus and Aitken are a stellar duo to build around.
- Hofstra: Hofstra was overrated for much of '17 but I think they come into '18 a tad underrated. Best goalie in the country in Concannon. Some nice young offensive players in Tierney, Alderman, and Kavanagh. Should beat up on a weak schedule again.
- Richmond: 34-14 over their last three seasons. Losing Pugh and Hynes is tough, but like Army it seems like they always play good D. Hatfield is a legit attackman.
- Princeton: Currier is irreplaceable. He was good for at least a couple wins on his own. But Sowers is a bona fide #Tewy candidate and Madalon clearly has them on the rise. Some other good pieces around Sowers in Thompson and Sims.
- Providence: Team that nearly snuck into the NCAA tournament last year returns its top three scorers and a fantastic goalie in Tate Boyce.
Jake
- Duke: Return 87% of their scoring from 2017 and several talented, young defenseman. Best Danowski team since 2014.
- Albany: 3/4 of their scoring returns from last year, including the best returning playing in Connor Fields. And they add Nanticoke, who will score 60. Marr's best team yet.
- Maryland: The gold standard of college lacrosse. Return two preseason All-American midfielders and a future star in Jared Bernhardt. Have the best coach in America.
- Yale: Young team from last year will only get better and more experienced. Excel at every position on the field.
- Rutgers: May have the best attack in the nation by the end of the year with Mullins, Heningburg, and Charalambides. All-American D in Michael Rexrode is a big key as well.
- Denver: Ethan Walker was the best attackmen they had by the end of the year. Always incredibly deep, and Baptiste is the best FOGO of all time.
- Penn State: The best returning attack unit in America. Almost the entire defense and Gerard Arceri return. Will push for a Final Four berth.
- Notre Dame: A lot of scoring from last year returns, and a great freshman class comes in. Always good on defense, but the offense will need to be reinvented again after stagnation the last two years.
- Ohio State: Lot of great talent leaves, but they return the best defenseman in America, a future First Team AA in Tre LeClaire, and some quality depth as well.
- Syracuse: Their 5 best players are all gone. That's rough. But there is some underrated talent on offense still around, Nick Mellen's back, and they always recruit well.
- Johns Hopkins: We'll see how much good Petro's big changes did. There's still a lot of talent on offense. Defense and goaltending has been mediocre for too long.
- Army: Best team in the PL for the balance of last year. Return 4 of Top 5 scorers, but need depth. Have a tremendous defense.
- North Carolina: Let's be honest. They haven't been good in 2 years, even with the title run. But they have a coming back on offense, and Lambert and Rowlett will make up for the loss of Pifani.
- Loyola: Lose some key experienced talent, but Spencer is a First Team AA and McGovern is a good dancing partner. Stover's a rock solid net minder.
- Towson: They lose so much from the attack that'll be hard to replace. But the defense will be as terrific as always and Zach Goodrich is a First Team AA.
- Virginia: They can score like nobody's business. Aiken is a First Team AA, and Kraus is a borderline elite attackmen. But it's been years since they played defense there.
- BU: They played a lot of seniors last year. But they return 66% of their scoring and they don't beat themselves
- Navy: A team hampered by injuries last year still returns 3/4 of their scoring, gets Casey Reese back, and hopefully a healthy Jack Ray. Always good on defense.
- Princeton: Zach Currier was one of the greatest lacrosse players to ever live. He is irreplaceable. But there is some really good young talent here, and Michael Sowers could win the Tewaaraton.
- Providence: Solid all-around squad that has a phenomenal goalie in Tate Boyce. Feels like they're close to maybe stealing a bid in the BE Tournament.