WEST POINT, N.Y. - The Army lacrosse team returns home from a three-game road swing to take on Rutgers in a matchup of long-time rivals Saturday at 12:00 p.m.
The Black Knights' second oldest adversary, the two squads have met 72 times since the first meeting in 1923 when Army capped the season with a 9-1 win over the Scarlet Knights to clinch its first national championship. The Black Knights lead the all-time series by a 53-18-1 record, including victories in 10 of the last 11 meetings. Only Navy has opposed Army more times on the lacrosse field than Rutgers, as next month's matchup will be the 87th all-time.
Black Knight Rewind - Air Force 8, Army 7 (OT)
Army freshman attackman Garrett Thul scored four goals, but it was Air Force picking up its first-ever win over the Black Knights with an 8-7 overtime decision, last Saturday in Colorado Springs, Colo. Trailing 6-2 early in the third quarter, three straight goals by Thul over a 7:47 span pulled Army within a goal heading into the fourth quarter. Back-to-back goals by junior attackman Jeremy Boltus and sophomore midfielder Devon Lynch gave Army its first lead since the opening minutes of the game, but a Falcon goal 50 seconds later would be the last in regulation. The Black Knights had possession for the first three minutes of overtime, but couldn't convert multiple game-winning opportunities. Air Force's Adam Paranka sealed the Falcons' first-ever win in 17 matchups opposite Army with a goal at 1:04 of the extra period.
Young Gun
Army freshman attackman Garrett Thul has made quite an impact on the Black Knight attack in his first season with the squad. The two-time Patriot League Rookie of the Week continued his hot start to the season by notching his third four-goal performance last Saturday at Air Force. Ranked 11th nationally among the country's top goal scorers with a 3.0 goals per game average, Thul also tallied four goals and an assist in Army's games at Cornell as well as versus visiting Bryant. He entered the week ranked first on the team and second in the Patriot League in goals per game while standing sixth in scoring (3.40 ppg)
Two Black Knights Named To 2010 Tewaaraton Watch List
Army juniors Bill Henderson and Tom Palesky have both been voted to the watch list for the 2010 Tewaaraton Award, which annually recognizes the top collegiate lacrosse player in the nation. The duo made up two of 64 total athletes named to this year's list across all three NCAA divisions by a selection committee of college coaches from across the country. A first-team All-Patriot League honoree as a sophomore, Henderson was voted a team captain for 2010 to mark the first time in program history an underclassman held the position. Palesky finished 10th nationally and led the Patriot League with a .591 save percentage while also leading the conference with 12.75 saves per game and finishing second with an 8.89 goals against average in 2009.
One-Goal Blues
Army has suffered a series of heart-breaking losses over the last two seasons. The Black Knights have come out on the short end of nine of the 10 one-goal games it has been involved in since the start of 2008, and own a 4-13 record in games decided by four goals or less during that same span. After going 10 years from 1999 to 2008 without losing an overtime game, Army is winless in its last five overtime games during the last two seasons, including a pair of double-overtime losses last year and consecutive OT losses at Cornell and Air Force the last two weeks.
About the Scarlet Knights
Rutgers won its third-straight game with a 10-9 win over Marist, Tuesday night in its fourth-consecutive home game. Tied 7-7 heading into the fourth quarter, the Scarlet Knights scored three unanswered goals, including two of junior attackman Kory Kelly's career-high six tallies, to take a 10-7 lead with 4:14 to play in the game. The Red Foxes scored a pair of goals in the final 1:07, but couldn't net the equalizer to take the loss. Kelly also logged an assist to lead the way with seven points, while senior midfielder Justin Pennington added a goal and three assists to pace the attack. Kelly is first on the team with 16 points and 13 goals, while Pennington is tops with eight assists.
Keeping The Fans In Their Seats
Looking at the scores of Army's first five games of the season, it seems last season's trend of close calls has carried over into 2010 campaign. The 2009 Black Knights lost by an average of 2.8 goals per game, including five one-goal losses, three overtime shortcomings and a pair of two-goal setbacks. This season, Army has lost by a goal three times, including last Saturday's overtime heartbreaker at Air Force, while the season-opening margin of victory against VMI was by only two goals.
Next Up For The Black Knights
Army will open the Patriot League portion of the 2010 schedule on Tuesday by traveling to Bethlehem, Pa. to take on Lehigh in a 7:00 p.m. showdown. The Black Knights will be looking for a little revenge following last season's 13-12 overtime loss to the Mountain Hawks at Michie Stadium that saw the visitors make up an eight-goal deficit with 3:15 left in the third quarter en route to the win. Army is the only Patriot League team that has yet to play a conference game this season.
Palesky Named Patriot League Goalkeeper Of The Week
Army junior goalkeeper Tom Palesky lauded Patriot League Goalkeeper of the Week honors on March 29 following his standout performance in Army's 12-7 loss at top-ranked Syracuse. His 21 saves were one short of the career-high 22 saves he made exactly one year earlier in a 9-8 shortfall to Cornell at Michie Stadium. This year's performance at Syracuse included seven stops in the decisive third quarter with the Black Knights battling back to tie the score, 5-5, with less than seven minutes to play. It was Palesky's second double-digit save effort of the season after also stopping 11 shots in the season-opener against VMI. He has compiled 10-or-more saves in 15 of the 19 games he has started since taking over the job at the start of the 2009 campaign.
Old Glory
It is tradition for an Army player to lead the team onto the field before every game carrying the American Flag. For the rest of the season, the Black Knights are using a special one, sent directly from the battlefields of Afghanistan. Former Army lacrosse midfielder and 2006 graduate CPT Jon Burton has been serving with the 1st Battalion, 1-17th Infantry Regiment, 5-2 Stryker Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division in the Arghandab Valley district of Kandahar Province for the last seven months in support of Operation Enduring Freedom where some of the heaviest fighting of the war has taken place. He recently mailed the flag that was carried on a patrol in honor of the 2010 Army lacrosse team to the head coach Joe Alberici "in hopes you could have the team run onto the field with it to honor those soldiers from the 1-17th who made the ultimate sacrifice for everything this flag represents. Tell the men they represent more than just the Black, Gold and Gray - they represent everyone who is fighting under the Red, White and Blue."
Brother Act
The 2010 Army lacrosse team sports two pairs of brothers, as junior Bill Henderson (a first-team All-Patriot League defenseman in 2009) plays alongside his younger sibling, sophomore Tim Hendeson (a second-team all-conference LSM last year). Sophomore Larry LoRusso has started the first two games of the season on the Black Knight defensive unit, while older brother and classmate Brian LoRusso lists on the second midfield line. Their older brother, Kevin LoRusso, who was a two-time all-conference midfielder for the Black Knights before graduating last season, currently serves as the team's athletic intern, while the oldest of the four LoRusso brothers, Nick LoRusso, was a back-up goaltender at West Point from 2004-07.
Pulling Rank
Army was ranked No. 22 in the 2010 Inside Lacrosse preseason poll. Five teams on the Black Knights schedule joined them on the list, including two others from the Patriot League. Army squared off with No. 2 Syracuse, No. 5 Cornell, No. 10 Hofstra, No. 12 Navy and No. 19 Bucknell, during the season.
ITT Knight Vision To Carry Full Slate Of Army Lacrosse Games
Army lacrosse fans will once again be able to watch and listen to a full slate of Black Knight action live on the Internet this year. All five home contests as well as an audio broadcast from this season's Army/Navy showdown in Baltimore, will be carried on ITT Knight Vision, the official multimedia wing of Army Athletics. Additionally, fans that live in the Hudson Valley will also be able to listen to four Army lacrosse games on the radio for the second-straight season. Selected games will also be carried live on WEOK (1340-AM) and (WALL 1390-AM). Check goARMYsports.com for a complete multimedia schedule.
A Gentleman And A Scholar
Army senior captain Andrew Maisano was named a candidate for the 2010 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. Maisano is the owner of a 4.0 grade-point average and ranks 19th academically in the USMA Class of 2010. A Systems Engineering major, he has received the Superintendent's Award for Excellence every semester at West Point, recognizing the top-five percent of cadets based on the combination of academic, military and physical GPAs. A three-time Patriot League Academic Honor Roll selection, Maisano has been named to the Dean's List every semester at West Point. A member of the Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society and Golden Key Honor Society, he is also a member of the Society of American Military Engineers. Maisano sits on the Brigade Chain of Command, serving as the chair of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee and is also a company tutor, working with underclass cadets on their studies.
Cut From The Same Cloth
Army sophomore attackman James MacGibbon and sophomore midfielder Sean O'Sullivan are second-generation Black Knight lacrosse players. James' father Kevin MacGibbon (USMA ‘80) was a two-time All-America goalie for the Black Knights in 1979-80, while Sean's dad, Patrick O'Sullivan (USMA ‘85) was a two-time All-America midfielder for Army in 1983 and 1985.
Alberici Named Assistant Coach For U.S. National Lacrosse Team
Army head coach Joe Alberici was named an assistant coach for the U.S. National Lacrosse Team that will compete at the 2010 World Lacrosse Championships in Manchester, England this July. Alberici will join Philadelphia Barrage head coach Tony Resch and Stony Brook University head coach Rick Sowell on the team's staff, put together by Bryant University head coach Mike Pressler, who was selected head coach of the all-star squad last summer.
Leaders Among Leaders
Senior midfielder Andrew Maisano and senior defensive midfielder Alex Gephart, along with junior defenseman Bill Henderson were selected team captains for the 2010 season. Maisano, who hails from Lakeview, N.Y., and Gephart, a Glen Rock, N.J. native, were appointed to lead the Black Knights this year, along with Tully, N.Y. resident Henderson, who was voted the first junior captain in the 93-year history of the program.
Saving The Day
Junior goalkeeper Tom Palesky stopped 204 shots in his first season as the Black Knights' starting goalkeeper in 2009 for the third-highest single season total in Academy history. Matt Darak set the record with 227 saves in 2004, while Jack Torrence's 1955 total of 209 still ranks second all-time.
Our Nation's Best
Former Army lacrosse All-American Adam Fullerton ‘08 was selected to the 2010 U.S. Men's National Team. The Black Knights' all-time leader in saves was named one of 23 players, including two goalkeepers, that will comprise the American roster for the Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) World Championship in Manchester, England from July 10-24, 2010. An original list of 84 invitees (including eight goalies) was pared down to a 41-player training team that competed to determine the FIL-mandated 23-man roster.
Army Picked To Finish Fourth In Patriot League Preseason Poll
Army was picked to finish fourth in the Patriot League Lacrosse preseason poll of the conference's coaches and sports information directors. The top-four slots in the poll were identical to how the teams finished the 2009 season. Navy was predicted to defend its 2009 title after receiving 71 votes, including 11 first place nods. Bucknell, who lost to the Midshipmen, 9-8, in last year's championship game, received 63 votes, including three of the first-place variety. Third-place Colgate received 48 votes, three more than fourth-place Army (45), which was toppled in last year's semifinal game by Bucknell, 10-8. Lehigh (33), Lafayette (22) and Holy Cross (12) rounded out the seven-team field.
Four Black Knights Named All-Patriot League in 2009
Four Black Knights landed spots on the 2009 Patriot League All-Conference teams, including two returning players. Current junior defenseman Bill Henderson and younger brother, sophomore Tim Henderson each landed their first all-conference nods with first and second-team recognition, respectively. Graduated seniors Kevin LoRusso and Jason Peyer, who were both named second-team honorees, lauded all-league honors for the second year in a row. LoRusso was named to the first team in 2008, while Peyer landed on the second team.
Courtesy: Army Athletic Communications
