Ivy League 2019

[Typical Lax Dad]

Interesting to see the physical size differences in the leagues based on the IL preseason All-League selections.
Ivy team average size is 5'11" 189lbs.
ACC team average size is 6'0" 198lbs.
Big Ten team average size is 6'1" 197lbs.
I excluded G and F/O as well as LSM and SSDM because didn't include those for Ivy.
Yale last year and Brown in 2016 had some very big athletes which I think really made the difference for each team in the league as well as in the NCAA tourney. You can't coach size....

Did you check to see if teams update the size and weights each year? Some do and some don't.

Not sure what you mean, but each roster I looked at is 2019. To the extent some schools do and don't update weight and height, it should affect each of the leagues equally and shouldn't change the delta.
Yale's senior class was huge last year - 6'1.4" 205lbs average size. They made a huge difference and it always seemed Yale had a size advantage in the Ivies last year and even in the NCAAs.

I know. I was just wondering. The big ten schools in particular have tremendous resources and I was wondering if all of their schools update their rosters. Yale had good size athletes. So did Virginia.

[DALaxDad]

The face-guard of Teat makes it hard for him to do what he does so well: redirect the ball to a player who has a wide open shot. He has unusual vision and anticipation and he can distribute the ball very quickly. It is what makes him so much fun to watch. The usual tricks to eliminate the effect of a face guard, giving him the ball off an in-bound or setting a pick, are less effective in getting Teat back in the flow because it is the spontaneous of his distribution passing that makes him so unique. Those passes are more effective when he is simply getting the ball in the flow of the offense and can see what holes have been created by the slide package the defense is running. The face guard effectively limits those passes. I'm sure the Cornell coaches and Teat have been scheming so it will be interesting to see how it plays out.

[FannOLax]

After Yale & Cornell it's a real stew. Who will be healthy, who will get help from overlooked players, or players who make quantum leaps in improvement over earlier output, which goalies can steal an IL game- or two.

Just imho impressions: clock winding down on Penn? Were those OT losses to Yale in the tourney a few years back their high water mark for a while?
..."

Yes, I agree. Not only that 4 OT loss in the 2017 ILT, but Penn also played Yale very tough in 2016, taking a 9-4 third quarter lead in New Haven only to fall in OT. Last year Penn had plenty of talent, beat Duke and looked very strong winning at Princeton in an early Ivy game... but required a 2 OT win over Dartmouth to scrape into the ILT, where the Quakers capitulated against Yale in a 21-6 loss.

I also agree with the several people who mentioned "Shut Off Teat." Until Cornell shows it can effectively handle such a defensive strategy, I'd expect most teams to try some form of it against JT51. It will be interesting to see if Ierlan is as dominant for Yale as he was for Albany last year; if so, that could go a long way toward easing the graduations of Reeves, Warner, Keating, (of course) Conor Mackie etc. While the 2019 Elis have a lot of good players, that class of 2018 was quite special (with plenty of physical size).

Again, expect the Ivies to struggle in opening OOC games given League rules against formal pre-February practices.

[faircornell]

As an obvious point of note on the Ivy thread, Duke, Hopkins and Syracuse losing over the weekend could represent opportunity for the Ivies to gather highly meaningful early season wins that could matter on Selection Sunday.

[WildPride]

The previous year's ILT winner is what my suggestion is. So the upcoming ILT would be awarded to Yale.

Yes, last year's winner may not even make the ILT, but Columbia will never make the ILT if they don't even field a team...

Last year Columbia received $1.01 BILLION in donations. It would be great if they added men's lacrosse with some of that money. They could field a competitive team in a very short period of time.

[CU77]

Almost all of that money will be earmarked for something other than creating a brand new mens sports team (that will have Title IX issues as well).

Bottom line: Columbia is not getting a mens lax team unless there is a very deep pocketed donor who wants one, and who is also willing to support things that the admin actually wants, as well as paying for the team.

[molo]

While I hold no brief for the Ivies, I would love to see the Ivy with the best location get a men's lax team. Will there be much balance in the league this year, or is it going to settle out something like: Yale and Cornell at the elite level, Princeton pretty good, Harvard, Brown, and Penn a notch below, and Dartmouth bringing up the rear? Can anyone other than Princeton knock off Cornell or Yale?

[faircornell]

Molo: I agree with your analysis above in terms of the expected order in the league. Between injuries, challenging schedules and the uncertainty of the Ivy League Tournament, it's fair to say that there could be some surprises. While I am usually wrong with specific predictions, I've read some who predict Princeton will be stronger than expected. Penn, Brown and Harvard all have excellent talent and Dartmouth continues to rebuild.

[FannOLax]

Princeton brings back the terrific Sowers, and a very good soph Dman in Baughan... but lost to graduation All Ivy goalie Blaisdel and terrific middie Sims. FOGO was a weakness last year, and overall I've been a bit surprised to see Princeton in the national rankings this pre-season (well, still pre-season for the Ivies). So I'm wondering if Typical Lax Dad will be providing his detailed Ivy team previews as he did in previous years on LaxPower.

[Typical Lax Dad]

I am a little slow to get this up this season but hope to get every team up by next weekend. I generally like to post this overview before the first game is played. The teams are covered in the order predicted to finish by Inside Lacrosse. Dartmouth is always the last team to be covered and eventually that will change. In the meantime. First up is Yale.

Inside Lacrosse preseason Rankings
1. Yale
2. Cornell
3. Princeton
4. Penn
5. Brown
6. Harvard
7. Dartmouth

Preseason All-Ivy League
A- Jeff Teat,Cornell
A- Michael Sowers, Princeton
A- Jackson Morrill, Yale
M- Jake McCulloch, Cornell
M- Jack Tigh, Yale
M- Tyler Dunn, Penn
FO- TD Ierlan, Yale
LSM- Robert Mooney, Yale
SSDM- Ryan Bray, Cornell
D- Chris Fake, Yale
D- Mark Evanchick, Penn
D- George Baughan, Princeton
G- Phil Goss, Brown

Yale
For the third consecutive year, I believe Yale will be the favorite to win the Ivy League regular season title but I would say that Yale’s gap has been narrowed in 2019 as Cornell won the 2018 Ivy League Tournament and most of the key pieces return and Yale lost some key players and will be more reliant on players emerging. Yale is still at the top of the league, but going in and on paper, not as wide a gap as there was in 2018.

Yale had a potent offense in 2018 and finished #2 nationally at 13.90 goals per game. Interestingly 3 Ivy League teams finished in the top 5 nationally as Princeton was #3 at 13.62 and Cornell was #5 at 13.56. Brown was tied for 10th at 11.73. Back to Yale….. Ben Reeves departs taking his 62 goals and 53 assist with him despite being the number 1 player at the top of the opposing team’s weekly game plan. Really hard to guard do to a unique combination of size, speed and shooting on the move. Yale has a lot of offense returning as Reeves was the only major point producer that departed. Stepping up to fill his shoes will be junior Jackson Morrill who turned in 40 goals and 32 assists for a total of 72 points in 20 games which was 3.6 points per game. I took a look at Reeves’ stats as a sophomore and they were similar at 45g/34a but in 16 games for 4.9 points per game. Ben carried a heavier load that year. Morrill should respond to being the opposing team’s focus and he has a lot of very good players around him. He will be an Ivy League Player of the Year candidate along with Jeff Teat and Michael Sowers. Matt Guadet finished strong after getting off what seemed to be a slow 2018 campaign. Finished with (41g/7a) and was a tough inside finisher. Rounding out the attack will likely be Brendan Rooney (19g/3a) or Joey Sessa (19g/9a). Given the rule changes and the amount of time middies are spending between the restraining boxes, there may be some pressure to play Sessa more at attack.

Lucas Cotler finished 2018 with (15g/ 7a) in 20 games which was solid but I thought going in to the 2018 season he would have an Eric Scott / Micheal Keasy like season after going (19g/4a) in 16 games as a freshman. Has a chance to have a huge junior year. Jack Tigh had a break out junior season going (35g/14a) in 20 games. A very heady player that is often in the right place and the right time. Likely to receive AA honors if Yale has the season they are expected to have. With the rule changes, Tigh should be fine but he too was a natural attackman like Sessa. Last year I predicted “John Daniggelis may develop into a prototypical two way middie as he had some offensive pop in high school”…Given the rule changes, this may be the year that I am right. He had an under the radar (15g/6a) in 20 games. His production has a chance to increase this year and he may pick up some of the slack resulting from the departures of Ty Warner and Jason Alessi. My guess is that Yale will feel the impact of losing those two athletes in the middle of the field. Very good players that contributed for four years. Brendan Mackie returns and he will provide help in the midfield as a guy that can play both ways. As was the case in 2018, offensive playing time will be hard for freshmen to come by in 2019.

On the defensive side of ball, for the first time in a few years, Yale does not have a question mark in the goal. Jack Starr answered those questions last season. With Aiden Hynes, Robert Mooney and Chris Fake anchoring the defense, Yale should be hard to score on. Bryce DeMuth is one of the freshmen that should see some time at close with Mooney likely to start at LSM. SSDM may be a question mark this season given early observations regarding the rule change. Warner, Alessi and Daniggelis was the best SSDM unit in the country last year. The other change to watch is the 20 second clock to clear the ball. Yale’s ride was lethal. Could make it even more difficult to clear against or Yale may not have as much time to get defensive personnel on.

Yale was given a gift in 2019 with the arrival or TD Ierlan. The freshman Neumann is also highly regarded but you never know with freshman. Ierlan is a proven commodity and what may have been a question mark in 2019 is now business as usual for Yale facing off as Mackie was lights out the last two years.

Graduated All Ivy Players
Ben Reeves – Attack
Tyler Warner – SSDM
Connor Mackie – FOGO
Chris Keating – Defense
Jason Alessi – SSDM
Jerry O’Connor – Defense

All Ivy Preseason
Jackson Morrill, Yale - Attack
Jack Tigh, Yale - Midfield
Robert Mooney, Yale – LSM
Chris Fake, Yale – Defense
TD Ierlan, Yale – Face-Off

Returning All Ivy Players
Jack Tigh, Yale (Jr., M – Garden City, N.Y.)
Chris Fake, Yale (Fr., D – Allentown, N.J.)
Jackson Morrill, Yale (So., A – Baltimore, Md.)
Robert Mooney, Yale (Jr., LSM – Princeton, N.J.)
Joe Sessa, Yale (Jr., M – Slate Hill, N.Y.)
John Daniggelis, Yale (Jr., M – Saint James, N.Y.)

Ivy League Road Games
At Princeton
At Penn
At Harvard

[The Orfling]

Awesome job, TLD. Your previews are great. A couple of notes on your Yale discussion:

1. On attack, in fall ball and in the two scrimmages a first-year player, Matt Brandau out of Boys' Latin, got a lot of time and seemed to connect well with Morrill. Andy Shay has never hesitated to give first-years playing time if he thinks they've earned it in practices and games (for example, both Gaudet and Morrill played a lot their first year in New Haven), so we can expect to see a lot of Brandau in addition to Gaudet, Morrill, and Rooney.

2. On defense, judging from scrimmages, in addition to sophomore Chris Fake and junior Aidan Hynes (2nd team all-Ivy as a freshman before missing much of 2018 with an injury) on close defense, we may see junior Will Weitzel rounding out the unit on close defense. He had a good year last year with time at D and on the face-off wing. Very heady player. Agree with you that first-year Bryce DeMuth may also see time at close D. Agree with you that Robert Mooney, who missed fall ball because he made the varsity soccer roster as a senior, should return at LSM. Dynamic, exciting player.

3. On face-offs, you never know, but I think the first-year Neumann will get meaningful reps throughout the season to spell Ierlan, much as Conor Mackie did his first two years with an experienced upperclass FOGO taking the lead. For face-off enthusiasts, circle Feb. 23, Yale v. Penn State, when Ierlan goes up against the great Gerard Arceri.

Big picture, as you note, it's simply impossible to replace a Ben Reeves -- although the offense appears capable of scoring goals in bunches still -- but the loss of the Warner/Alessi ssdm combo also looms large. It will be interesting to see who steps up for Yale in that department, including on the clears -- Warner and Alessi were formidable outlets for Jack Starr last year.

[FannOLax]

Interesting point on clears, Orfling. Warner's and Alessi's clearing was indeed top-notch; I'd add that last year Keating was about as poised and accurate in clearing as any D1 long pole. Yale will definitely need people to step up; it wouldn't surprise me to see Tevlin do so in midfield.
Thank you, Typical Lax Dad! Definitely looking forward to your prescient Princeton preview.

[Typical Lax Dad]

Awesome job, TLD. Your previews are great. A couple of notes on your Yale discussion:

1. On attack, in fall ball and in the two scrimmages a first-year player, Matt Brandau out of Boys' Latin, got a lot of time and seemed to connect well with Morrill. Andy Shay has never hesitated to give first-years playing time if he thinks they've earned it in practices and games (for example, both Gaudet and Morrill played a lot their first year in New Haven), so we can expect to see a lot of Brandau in addition to Gaudet, Morrill, and Rooney.

2. On defense, judging from scrimmages, in addition to sophomore Chris Fake and junior Aidan Hynes (2nd team all-Ivy as a freshman before missing much of 2018 with an injury) on close defense, we may see junior Will Weitzel rounding out the unit on close defense. He had a good year last year with time at D and on the face-off wing. Very heady player. Agree with you that first-year Bryce DeMuth may also see time at close D. Agree with you that Robert Mooney, who missed fall ball because he made the varsity soccer roster as a senior, should return at LSM. Dynamic, exciting player.

3. On face-offs, you never know, but I think the first-year Neumann will get meaningful reps throughout the season to spell Ierlan, much as Conor Mackie did his first two years with an experienced upperclass FOGO taking the lead. For face-off enthusiasts, circle Feb. 23, Yale v. Penn State, when Ierlan goes up against the great Gerard Arceri.

Big picture, as you note, it's simply impossible to replace a Ben Reeves -- although the offense appears capable of scoring goals in bunches still -- but the loss of the Warner/Alessi ssdm combo also looms large. It will be interesting to see who steps up for Yale in that department, including on the clears -- Warner and Alessi were formidable outlets for Jack Starr last year.

Thanks. I forgot about Weitzel. Yes I now recall reading about Brandau. I have learned that things change between Fall and Spring and that staff will play freshmen if they are ready to play.....as a matter of fact, I recall the first time I was told that Ben Reeves was the best player on the team. It was fall of his freshman year....

[Typical Lax Dad]

The teams are covered in the order predicted to finish by Inside Lacrosse. Dartmouth is always the last team to be covered and eventually that will change. In the meantime. Next up Cornell.

Inside Lacrosse preseason Rankings
1. Yale
2. Cornell
3. Princeton
4. Penn
5. Brown
6. Harvard
7. Dartmouth

Preseason All-Ivy League
A- Jeff Teat,Cornell
A- Michael Sowers, Princeton
A- Jackson Morrill, Yale
M- Jake McCulloch, Cornell
M- Jack Tigh, Yale
M- Tyler Dunn, Penn
FO- TD Ierlan, Yale
LSM- Robert Mooney, Yale
SSDM- Ryan Bray, Cornell
D- Chris Fake, Yale
D- Mark Evanchick, Penn
D- George Baughan, Princeton
G- Phil Goss, Brown

Cornell
My question for Cornell going into 2018 was how would the young coaching staff of Buczek and Stevens do? Judging by the results, the coaching staff had a great year. Cornell’s 2018 results surprised many nationally and the 2019 team will not sneak up on anyone. After winning the Ivy League tournament in 2018, I believe Cornell is a legitimate challenger to Yale’s regular season conference title.

As was the case in 2017 and 2018, Cornell returns the bulk of its offensive rotation players but will miss Jordan Dowiak (40G/7A in 18 games) and his ability to stretch the field with his shooting range. Dowiak shot 40% and many of those were from distance. He came in under the radar and really grew as a player year after year. Aside from Dowiak, Cornell did not lose much in the way of offense. Offensively, the team finished 5th nationally at 13.56 goals per game and the attack led by Jeff Teat received a ton of credit but the returning midfield of Donville (18g/17a), Fletcher (18g/9a) and McCullough (27g/15a) will be central to Cornell’s success in 2019. The attack of Teat (37g/62a in 18 games for 5.21ppg), Petterson (44g/19a) and Piatteli (16g/10a) will continue to be a handful. Cutting and off-ball movement was key to Cornell’s success.

The Cornell offense bogged down late in the season as teams crafted defenses to take the ball out of Teat’s stick. My guess is that Cornell will handle shut-offs, face guards and hard denials better. On the other hand, the 80 second shot clock could be problematic as the idea to shoot the ball, back it up and let Teat pick it up on the end line burns time negates his strength which is the left wing and two man games. Piatteli is poised to have a break out season. Playing time for freshmen may be hard to come by but John John Lombardi comes in with a big reputation and he is very likely to see time at midfield. Many considered him the hardest cover in all of the New England West Prep school league. Matt Liccardi (6g/5a) will also add some depth at midfield

On the defensive side of the ball, the two key losses are Jake Pulver (37gb/21CT), one of the best defenders in the league and Christian Knight (56% saves in 2018) an all Ivy caliber goalie. Caelahn Bullen is a very good goalie and demonstrated a 57% save percentage. Cornell should be strong in goal. Cornell will also miss Jack Bolen and Dan Bockelman at SSDM but Ryan Bray will be the main stay along with Harrison Bardwell. Bardwell could also have a break out season as a transition middie with the new rules as he was a good offensive player coming out of high school. Despite the losses, the combination of the returning SSDMs combined with the returning long poles bodes well for the Cornell defensive which was improved in 2018. In 2017, Cornell scored 71 goals but also gave up 71 goals. In 2018, Cornell scored 95 goals and gave up 67 for a 28 goal differential. Heading in to 2019, the defense could be stronger as Brandon Salvatore (39gb/20CT) , Dom Doria (11gb/20CT) and Fleet Wallace (37gb/10CT) return.

However, face-offs were a problem for Cornell in 2017 and 2018 and may continue to be a problem in 2019 as the team was 38.3% in 2017 and 44.3% in 2018. Paul Rasimowicz fared better in conference games. Lack of production facing off puts a lot of pressure on the defense. Just as Ierlan was a summer gift to Yale, Tim Graham was a January 2019 gift to Cornell. Discovered in the 2018 World Games last summer as a member of the Australian National team, Graham held his own against professional FOGOs and was competitive against Baptiste. I suspect face offs will be significantly improved for Cornell and that could be trouble for the rest of the league and may be enough for Cornell to knock Yale off. Both rosters are stacked with proven players.


Graduated All Ivy Players
Jordan Dowiak, Cornell (Sr., M – Long Valley, N.J)
Jake Pulver, Cornell (Sr., D – Manlius, N.Y.)
Christian Knight, Cornell (Sr., G – Baltimore, Md.)

All Ivy Preseason
Jeff Teat, Cornell - Attack
Jake McCulloch, Cornell – Midfield
Ryan Bray, Cornell - SSDM

Returning All-Ivy Players
Jeff Teat, Cornell (Jr., A – Brampton, Ont.)
Jake McCulloch, Cornell (Sr., M – Stony Brook, N.Y.)
Fleet Wallace, Cornell (Sr., D – Richmond, Va.)
Brandon Salvatore, Cornell (Jr., LSM – New Canaan, Conn.)
Ryan Bray, Cornell (Sr., SSM – Shoreham, N.Y.)
Paul Rasimowicz, Cornell (Jr., FO – Somerset, N.J.)

Ivy League Road Games
At Yale
At Harvard
At Brown

[faircornell]

Many thanks, TLD! Great summary. In his Alumni Update, Coach Milliman noted the 20 second clearing rule seems to be more of a challenge than the 60 second shot clock. Given Jeff Teat's strength as a rider, we may see other contributions from him in 2019.

[FannOLax]

Yes, Cornell and Yale both have some good OOC games scheduled, but darn, I just can't help but look forward to that Ivy opener when Cornell visits New Haven...

[Typical Lax Dad]

Many thanks, TLD! Great summary. In his Alumni Update, Coach Milliman noted the 20 second clearing rule seems to be more of a challenge than the 60 second shot clock. Given Jeff Teat's strength as a rider, we may see other contributions from him in 2019.

Absolutely. That is what I have noticed also. One strategy for a gimmick defense is to back up shots and let the shut off player (Teat) pick up ball on end line. Princeton did that with Sowers and Brown did that with Molloy. Cornell will do that with Teat, but he is just so lethal above GLE. Getting him to his sweet spot will take some time off the clock. The 80 second shot clock is far better than 60, in this regard. 60 seconds would have been a scramble.

[Typical Lax Dad]

I like to try to do this before the first games are played but I am a little late this season. I will get them all up by mid-week. The teams are covered in the order predicted to finish by Inside Lacrosse. Dartmouth is always the last team to be covered and eventually that will change. In the meantime. Next up Princeton.

Inside Lacrosse preseason Rankings
1. Yale
2. Cornell
3. Princeton
4. Penn
5. Brown
6. Harvard
7. Dartmouth

Preseason All-Ivy League
A- Jeff Teat,Cornell
A- Michael Sowers, Princeton
A- Jackson Morrill, Yale
M- Jake McCulloch, Cornell
M- Jack Tigh, Yale
M- Tyler Dunn, Penn
FO- TD Ierlan, Yale
LSM- Robert Mooney, Yale
SSDM- Ryan Bray, Cornell
D- Chris Fake, Yale
D- Mark Evanchick, Penn
D- George Baughan, Princeton
G- Phil Goss, Brown


Princeton
Princeton is coming off an odd 2018 which saw the team miss the Ivy League tournament for the 2nd time in four years. There was a 3 way tie for 3rd place and Princeton lost out on tie breakers and it was the first time in IL tournament history that a 3-3 team did not make it. For the first time in 7 seasons, Princeton is not replacing its defensive coordinator and this should be a big plus for a program that has had less than stellar results at that end of the field. Princeton had a potent offense in 2018 and finished #3 nationally at 13.62 goals per game. As noted before, 3 Ivy League teams finished in the top 5 nationally as Yale was #2 at 13.90 goals per game and Cornell was #5 at 13.56. Brown was tied for 10th at 11.73. On the other hand, the defense finished in the bottom quartile but made significant improvements down the stretch and contributed to a 5 game winning streak to close out the year. The 2019 offense should continue to be strong but will have to overcome the loss of two key pieces: Austin Sims (32g/16a for 48 points in 13 games for 3.7 ppg). Sims also contributed 23 gbs. Riley Thompson provided four years of steady play and finished his 2018 campaign with 14g/19a and 33 points in 13 games for 2.5 ppg. Thompson was a key distributor in man up packages.

2018 saw Princeton start out with a very young team. With 7 players basically seeing D1 playing time for the first time with two sophomores that had not played and 6 freshmen that were relied upon. The team also missed 1st midfield Charlie Durbin who put up 18g/4a in 2017 as a sophomore. Durbin returns and is expected to help anchor the midfield. The 2019 Princeton midfield will be very deep and very athletic. In addition to Durbin, Connor McCarthy (14g/5a) returns after coming on strong during his sophomore year. Luke Crimmins (8g/2a) had a very good freshman year as he missed the first 8 games with an injury and scored 10 points in 7 games. Replacing Sims and Thompson won’t be easy but Princeton has much more depth this year and the rules change should play to the team’s strength which will be midfield depth as the recruiting class includes a number of athletic two way box to box middies. No converted attackmen playing midfield which may be a problem for some teams over the course of the season based on early season observations. Expect Alex Vardaro and a couple of other freshmen middies to have an impact. Beau Pederson out of Utah has a ton of upside. In addition to Durbin and McCarthy in particular, Princeton returns three key attackmen led by junior Michael Sowers (27g/56a and 83 points in 13 games for 6.38 ppg which led the nation). Sowers set the single season scoring record at Princeton and will be on the Tewaaraton short list. Joining Sowers is junior Phil Robertson (33g/3a) who saw his first real game action and led the nation in shooting percentage at 63.5%. Chris Brown (23g/15a in 13 games) had a stellar freshman season and continued to improve over the course of the season. Emmet Cordrey and Dawson McKenzie adds depth as both have made starts over their careers. The Princeton attack unit will lead the team but midfield play and defense are likely to determine how far the team will go.

Princeton brought back former team captain and Hobart defensive coordinator Jeremy Hirsh in 2018 and the defense made strides over the season. The first 5 games Princeton’s goal differential was +3. The final 5 games it was +34. Princeton should be improved defensively as the team has a strong set of SSDMs with Chase Williams, Mike Morean, Jasper Arnold and several freshmen that will make key contributions. Jake Stevens may see time in a SSDM/two way role early. Another Culver product that will compete between the lines. The rule change may be very impactful to Princeton as the team may decide to push middies both ways and not sub on SSDM specialist as much. Time will tell. At close, Princeton is experienced with Armand Medghalchi, a career starter and former All Ivy League player, Aran Roberts, who has made many starts during his career, Charlie Tarry has significant experience and George Baughan who excelled as a freshman and is an AA candidate. Baughan did unbelievable defensive jobs on Reeves, Cheek and Teat to close out the season. All three were held significantly below their averages when covered by Baughan. Andrew Song was a freshman LSM and also had an exceptional season. The second year with the same defensive coordinator should pay dividends. Goalie Tyler Blaisdell graduated and was strong between the pipes in 2018. Golaie competition is tight going into 2019 with the junior Jon Levine the likey starter in waiting but he may be pushed by Erik Peters. A late blooming goalie with great quickness and ball stopping ability. Sam Bonafede, FOGO, graduated and that spot may be handled by committee with Jack Henry Vara being the main draw taker. Rule change likely to add some relief.

Graduated All Ivy League Players
Austin Sims, Princeton (Sr., M – Fairfield, Conn.)
Tyler Blaisdell, Princeton (Sr., G – Hanover, Mass.)

All Ivy Preseason
A Michael Sowers, Princeton
D George Baughan, Princeton

Returning All Ivy Players
Michael Sowers, Princeton (So., A – Dresher, Pa.)
George Baughan, Princeton (Fr., D – Wyndmoor, Pa.)
Andrew Song, Princeton (Fr., LSM – Canton, Mass.)

Ivy League Road Games
At Penn
At Dartmouth
At Cornell

[DocBarrister]

Amusing tidbit ... was watching briefly the Harvard-North Carolina game. Both announcers had Southern accents and apparently were more accustomed to calling baseball games than lacrosse.

After a Crimson goal scored on a shot that was described as a “changeup,” one of the announcers proclaimed, “That was a good goal by the Harvards.”

Yes, yes it was.

Best of luck to The Harvards this season.

DocBarrister

[Can Opener]

Thank you, TLD. Great stuff and much appreciated. I am a big admirer of what Coach Shay has built at Yale. I have weighed in before, however, on why the preseason #1 ranking was probably not deserved. You simply can't lose a transformational player like Reeves and expect to keep rolling. In fact, over the past 10 years, every team that graduated a Tewaaraton Award winner got worse the next year. Basically the only exception in the history of the award was Syracuse. They won the NC when Mike Leveille won the Tewaaraton in 2008. They came back to win the NC in 2009. Otherwise, every team loses steam when they lose their Tewaaraton guy. Again, no disrespect to Yale, but you just don't lose a Reeves and expect to recreate the magic from 2018. As a fan of the Ivies, I hope I'm wrong, but today seemed to indicate that you can't beat history.