For the better part of four months, many of us watched some exciting college lacrosse, whether it was on TV, online, or in person. There were good games, which included all of Championship Weekend, and there were bad games, such as low scoring affairs and of course, the horrendous winter weather. I take a look back at all 69 Division I teams and how they fared this season and what to look forward to in 2016.
I now move on to the season’s top 25 teams, which were decided by the final media poll of the season. If you missed any of my previous recaps, you can read all of them here!
COMPARING 2014 AND 2015 IN NUMBERS
| 2014 Record | 6-10 |
| 2014 Conference Record | 2-3 (4th in American East) |
| 2014 Scoring Offense | 11.63 Goals Per Game (15th in DI) |
| 2014 Scoring Defense | 12.19 Goals Against Per Game (61st in DI) |
| 2014 Goals Leader | #18 Brody Eastwood – Sophomore (40 Gs) |
| 2014 Assists Leader | #23 Challen Rogers – Sophomore (30 As) |
| 2014 Points Leader | #1 Mike Rooney – Junior (53 Pts) |
| 2014 Goaltending Leader | #45 Hayden Johnstone – Freshman (.490 SV %) |
| 2014 Faceoff Leader | #37 Kyle Rowe – Freshman (.625 FO %) |
| 2014 Ground Balls Leader | #37 Kyle Rowe – Freshman (160 GBs) |
| 2014 Caused Turnovers Leader | #36 Frank Lucatuorto – Sophomore (11 CTs) |
| 2014 Quality Wins | Rutgers (12-9), Sacred Heart (14-13), Hartford (14-10) |
| 2014 Bad Losses | Maryland (11-8), UMBC (12-11 OT), Albany (17-16 OT – American East Semifinal) |
| 2015 Record | 13-5 |
| 2015 Conference Record | 5-1 (2nd in American East) |
| 2015 Scoring Offense | 13.89 Goals Per Game (6th in DI) |
| 2015 Scoring Defense | 10.89 Goals Against Per Game (48th in DI) |
| 2015 Goals Leader | #18 Brody Eastwood – Junior (62 Gs) |
| 2015 Assists Leader | #1 Mike Rooney – Senior (63 As) |
| 2015 Points Leader | #1 Mike Rooney – Senior (111 Pts) |
| 2015 Goaltending Leader | #45 Hayden Johnstone – Sophomore (.416 SV %) |
| 2015 Faceoff Leader | #10 Jay Lindsay – Sophomore (.556 FO %) |
| 2015 Ground Balls Leader | #10 Jay Lindsay – Sophomore (70 GBs) |
| 2015 Caused Turnovers Leader | #44 Ben Randall – Freshman (20 CTs) |
| 2015 Quality Wins | Fairfield (10-9), Marist (14-10), Vermont (21-12, 16-13 – American East Semifinal), Princeton (13-10) |
| 2015 Bad Losses | St. John’s (13-8), Albany (17-15, 22-9 – American East Championship), Lehigh (12-11), Duke (17-11) |
YEAR IN REVIEW
The Seawolves bounced back from a disappointing 6-10 record in 2014 to improving to 13-5 and having a top 10 offense in 2015, led by senior and Third Team All-American Mike Rooney. Rooney was second in the nation with 111 points and 6.17 points per game, after a 53-point campaign in 2014. Rooney wasn’t alone this season on offense, as he had junior attackman and Honorable Mention All-American Brody Eastwood with him as well. Eastwood was tied for second in the nation with 62 goals and was third in the nation with 3.44 goals per game. The defense improved by giving up more than a goal less per game than in 2014, but still cost the Seawolves games such as St. John’s and Lehigh.
The Seawolves began the season with a dominant win over Manhattan 19-3, before taking on St. John’s. Stony Brook had leads of 4-1 and 7-4 early on, but the Red Storm scored seven unanswered to beat the Seawolves 13-8. The team rebounded with an 18-4 win over first-year program NJIT before a 10-9 win over Fairfield. Stony Brook notched two more wins against Marist and Rutgers to go 5-1 before their showdown with Albany in their American East conference opener. The game was tight throughout, but the Great Danes pulled away in the final quarter, beating the Seawolves 17-15.
Stony Brook would start up another winning streak, this time winning five straight, starting with UMBC. They would take care of Vermont, Quinnipiac, and Princeton in a huge victory, which was the school’s first win over a ranked opponent in three years, before dominating UMass-Lowell. But the Seawolves dipped in their final four games of the regular season. Stony Brook looked to be in contention for an at-large bid for the NCAA Tournament, but a one-goal loss to Lehigh and a 17-11 loss to Duke crushed those odds. The team then limped into the American East Tournament, beating Binghamton and Quinnipiac in overtime to clinch the #2 seed in the American East Tournament. But after a 16-13 win over Vermont, Stony Brook met Albany again, and were crushed 22-9.
Had the team defeated St. John’s and Lehigh, would the Seawolves have a better chance at getting an at-large bid? They definitely would, but would they be able to leap frog Georgetown and Princeton (who were close to making it to the tourney), or Brown and Ohio State? Probably not. The team loses Rooney next season to graduation, along with two other defenders, which is a need. But they will make improvements, especially the addition of UMass transfer goaltender Zach Oliveri. They might be able to make a run at the American East Championship in 2016 with the loss of Lyle Thompson at Albany, but the Great Danes still have Seth Oakes and Connor Fields, along with Blaze Riorden. In addition, don’t forget about Hartford and Vermont, along with another team or two in the AE.
LOOKING AHEAD TO 2016
| NAME | POSITION | HIGH SCHOOL |
| James Gerstner | Midfield/FO | Mineola (NY) |
| Dylan Crossan | Attack | South Side (NY) |
| Sean Seaberg | Defense | West Islip (NY) |
| James Kickel | Midfield | Ward Melville (NY) |
| Michael Cusmano | Midfield | Ward Melville (NY) |
| Daniel Comber | Goalie | Bethlehem Central (NY) |
| Conor Howell | Attack | Wilson West Lawn (PA) |
| Andrew Alejo | Defense | Syosset (NY) |
| Ryan Ozsvath | Attack | Half Hollow Hills West (NY) |
| Zach Oliveri | Goalie | Connetquot (NY) / Massachusetts (MA) |
| Owen Daly | Midfield | Shoreham-Wading River (NY) |
| Danny Hughes | Defense | Syosset (NY) |
| Bobby Amato | LSM | Sachem North (NY) |
| Ryland Rees | Defense/LSM | Terry Fox (BC) |
| Cole Anderson | Defense/LSM | Harborfields (NY) |
Stony Brook will have to replace three departing seniors with 15 incoming players, including Oliveri from UMass. Last season with the Minutemen, the redshirt junior recorded a .500 save percentage and helped the team to the CAA Championship game. Oliveri hopes to be a short upgrade over current goalie Hayden Johnstone, who recorded a .416 save percentage in a down sophomore year. With the other recruits, all except two (Conor Howell and Ryland Rees) went to high school in the state of New York, with two kids graduating from Ward Melville, along with kids from West Islip, Syosset, and Lynbrook.
