VILLANOVA WILDCATS (0-0) at LEHIGH MOUNTAINHAWKS (2-0)
The last time they met (February 16, 2013): Lehigh held on to claim an impressive 11-9 road win over Villanova. David DiMaria and Dante Fantoni combined for eight goals and 12 points while sophomore Dan Taylor added two goals and three points. Matt Poillon made 16 saves. The Wildcat’s Thomas Croonquist won 12-22 face-offs.
The Skinny:
Wildcats: It is a new dawn in the Big East conference. Gone are the powerhouses Syracuse and Notre Dame and in comes Denver. Adding to the challenge will be a tougher schedule that could sink or swim the Wildcats in the opening six games.
Their strength will come from an experienced and skilled defense. All-American longstick middie John LoCascio leads this deep unit along with a battle-tested group of senior short stick defenders. Seniors Christopher Conroy (23 GB, 19 CT) and Chris Piccirilli (30, 15) along with junior Christian Kolderup (31, 18) are one of the top close units in the nation.
Where they could struggle early on is replacing key pieces lost to graduation on offense. Coach Mike Corrado’s motion offense with non-stop movement is effective but will take time to master. Senior Kevin O’Neil (15 goals, 12 assists), the highest scorer returning, was moved to attack from the midfield. Outside of him, a host of players dealt with injuries in the off-season, including sophomores John Kluh, Jack Curren and Tim Mulrenan who were all contributors last season.
Mountainhawks: Lehigh is off to a 2-0 start entering Saturday’s contest. First they downed Furman 13-6 to open their season on the road. Cody Ferraro, Patrick Cobertt and Reid Weber all posted hat tricks in the win. They outshot the Paladins 42-15 and dominated groundballs 30-19. Matt Poillon made 12 saves. They also downed Marquette at home by the same score 13-6. The game was tied 2-2 before the Mountainhawks scored 11 of the next 13 goals to come out on top. Corbett scored a career high four goals on the day while senior Ryan Buttenbaum controlled the dot winning 17-of-21 face offs. Taylor also added four points while Souders scooped up four groundballs and caused two turnovers.
Difference Makers: Croonquist won 22-of-24 draws against Syracuse last season and finished with 56 percent on the season. Look for that to increase with their talented wingmen. John LoCascio, an All-American longstick middie, is one of the best at his position. He led the nation in caused turnovers (3.79), can lock down top midfielders and generate offense in a flash. Also watch for Villanova freshman Devin McNamara, who was Inside Lacrosse’s No. 52 incoming freshman.
Dan Taylor (3, 2) and Pat Corbett (7, 0) are an effective lefty, right combo with Tayler’s vision and Corbett’s finish. All-American close. Best cover guys in the business. Matt Poillon (6.14 GAA, 56 save percentage) is always a dependable goaltender.
