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.
Check out previous recaps: NJIT Highlanders, UMass Lowell River Hawks, VMI Keydets, Manhattan Jaspers, Canisius Golden Griffins, Robert Morris Colonials, St. John’s Red Storm, Wagner Seahawks, Binghamton Bearcats, Bellarmine Knights, Jacksonville Dolphins, Furman Paladins, Lafayette Leopards, Rutgers Scarlet Knights, Mount St. Mary’s Mountaineers, Siena Saints, Delaware Blue Hens, UMBC Retrievers, Dartmouth Big Green, Providence Friars, Mercer Bears, Penn State Nittany Lions, Hofstra Pride, Michigan Wolverines, UMass Minutemen, Monmouth Hawks, Vermont Catamounts, Sacred Heart Pioneers, Holy Cross Crusaders
COMPARING 2014 AND 2015 IN NUMBERS
| 2014 Record | 11-4 |
| 2014 Conference Record | 4-2 (3rd in Ivy) |
| 2014 Scoring Offense | 10.60 Goals Per Game (23rd in DI) |
| 2014 Scoring Defense | 9.27 Goals Against Per Game (19th in DI) |
| 2014 Goals Leader | #22 Zack Losco – Senior (26 Gs) |
| 2014 Assists Leader | #20 Nick Doktor – Sophomore (19 As) |
| 2014 Points Leader | #20 Nick Doktor – Sophomore (42 Pts) |
| 2014 Goaltending Leader | #9 Brian Feeney – Senior (.547 SV %) |
| 2014 Face-Off Leader | #26 Danny Feeney – Senior (.498 FO %) |
| 2014 Ground Balls Leader | #26 Danny Feeney – Senior (96 GBs) |
| 2014 Caused Turnovers Leader | #4 Maxx Meyer – Senior (28 CTs) |
| 2014 Quality Wins | Denver (12-10), Harvard (7-5) |
| 2014 Bad Losses | Princeton (15-12), Drexel (16-11) |
| 2015 Record | 6-7 |
| 2015 Conference Record | 3-3 (5th in Ivy) |
| 2015 Scoring Offense | 10.08 Goals Per Game (30th in DI) |
| 2015 Scoring Defense | 11.69 Goals Against Per Game (T56th in DI) |
| 2015 Goals Leader | #33 Joe McCallion – Senior (22 Gs) |
| 2015 Assists Leader | #20 Nick Doktor – Junior (36 As) |
| 2015 Points Leader | #20 Nick Doktor – Junior (57 Pts) |
| 2015 Goaltending Leader | #12 Jimmy Sestilio – Junior (.485 SV %) |
| 2015 Face-Off Leader | #23 Chris Santangelo – Freshman (513 FO %) |
| 2015 Ground Balls Leader | #23 Chris Santangelo – Freshman (48 GBs) |
| 2015 Caused Turnovers Leader | #41 Matt McMahon – Senior (28 CTs) |
| 2015 Quality Wins | St. Joe’s (11-10 OT), Brown (14-11) |
| 2015 Bad Losses | Penn State (14-11), Cornell (10-9 3OT) |
YEAR IN REVIEW
The defending Ivy League Champion Quakers could not repeat their phenomenal 2014 season in 2015, falling to an under .500 record for the first time since 2012. The team graduated a ton of seniors, including Zack Losco, and All-American Maxx Meyers. Matt McMahon performed very well for the Quakers, being named an Honorable Mention All-American on defense. But although stayed nearly the same, including the return of leading goal scorer Nick Doktor, the defense gave up over two-and-a-half goals more per game than 2014.
Penn started the season ranked and were tested very early with tight wins over UMBC and a come-from-behind victory over Philly rival St. Joe’s in overtime. The Quakers faced their first big test against Maryland in College Park and fell 11-7 to the Terps, before heading up to Happy Valley four days later, which was a 14-11 downer. After a quick win over Lafayette, the Quakers started a horrible four game losing streak, first against Villanova, then starting Ivy League play with defeats against Princeton, a triple overtime loss to Cornell, and an eight goal loss to Yale. Facing a hot Brown team, the Quakers were able to pull off the upset over the Bears, 14-11, before notching wins over Harvard, and costing the Crimson a chance to play in the Ivy League Tournament, followed by a win over Dartmouth. They ended the season playing the last place team in the ACC, Virginia, at PPL Park in a 12-6 defeat, going scoreless for over 42 minutes after scoring the game’s opening goal in the first quarter.
It was certainly a disappointing campaign for Head Coach Mike Murphy, and the Quakers can certainly play better in 2016. But in the second toughest conference in the nation, it will be tough for Penn to get back into the Ivy League Tournament for 2016 if they can hang in with their fellow Ivy rivals during league play. The Quaker defense will have to step up their game in 2016 and play similar to how they did back when they won the Ivy League in 2014.
LOOKING AHEAD TO 2016
| NAME | POSITION | HIGH SCHOOL |
| Noah Lejman | Defense | Haverford School (PA) |
| Simon Mathias | Attack | Ridgefield (CT) |
| James Campbell | Midfield | Brien McMahon (CT) |
| Richie Lenskold | Midfield/FO | Bridgewater-Raritan (NJ) |
| Tyler Dunn | Attack/Midfield | Manhasset (NY) |
| Jared Warner | Midfield | Baldwin (NY) |
| Joe Licciardi | Midfield | St. Anthony’s (NY) |
| Alex Roesner | Attack | Loyola Blakefield (MD) |
The Quakers bring in eight recruits to replace 13 departing seniors, with about half of these recruits coming from the midfield position. Simon Mathias is Ty Xanders’s 26th best senior coming out of Ridgefield. Along with Mathias is Tyler Dunn of Manhasset, Xanders’s 40th best senior. Alex Roesner of Loyola Blakefield and Joe Licciardi of St. Anthony’s are #55 and #57 respectively on that same list. Mathias, Dunn, and Noah Lejman of top ranked Haverford School will be playing in the Under Armor All-American Game Friday night at 7 PM. Lejman was an anchor for the Fords’ defense, helping them stop talented offenses such as McDonogh, IMG Academy, and Culver. Although small in number, all eight bring a lot of talent to the table that very few coaches would turn down. Coach Murphy will be very pleased with how they perform before the season begins.
