Lehigh freshmen ranked as No. 8 incoming class in nation by Inside Lacrosse
9/24/2018 12:12:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – As attention on the program continues to rise, the Lehigh men's lacrosse program has been recognized prominently by Inside Lacrosse, with its current freshman class being ranked No. 8 nationally. In total, the Mountain Hawks feature three of the top 64 ranked incomers in the nation. In addition, eight are ranked among the best of their positions.
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"We're thrilled that our incoming class has been recognized by Inside Lacrosse with such a high ranking and we're obviously honored that they were able to put us in the top 10," said Lehigh head coach Kevin
Cassese. "We feel like we're able to attract a lot of top talent to our program and I feel that we've been doing it pretty consistently over the years, maybe sometimes without being noticed, and it's nice to get that notice this time around."
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As a team, Lehigh's class was ranked No. 8 nationally, directly ahead of Cornell and Denver and behind Duke and Maryland. Lehigh's class was ranked No. 1 in the Patriot League, ahead of Loyola at No. 15.
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In the power 100, faceoff specialist Mike Sisselberger came in at No. 13 overall (No. 1 for his position) while defenseman Patrick McIlroy stood No. 57 (No. 16 ranked defenseman) and Tommy Schelling stood No. 64 overall (No. 19 ranked attackman).
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Several others stood among the top-ranked incomers at their position: Cole Kirst (No. 29 attackman), Jesse James West (No. 35 attackman), Chad Kittaka (No. 34 midfielder), Judah Hicks (No. 27 defenseman) and Michael Venezia (No. 17 goaltender).
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The incoming class is looking to team up with a veteran group of returnees that advanced to the 2018 Patriot League Championship Game. Leading Lehigh's returnees are All-American defenseman Craig Chick and first team All-Patriot League attackman Andrew Pettit, along with first team All-League and Academic All-America honoree Conor Gaffney at faceoff.
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"Obviously, rankings are important but how they develop is even more important," said Cassese. "The fact that people notice they do have a lot of talent, and we obviously noticed that too, is one thing. Then, being able to take that talent and turn it into elite talent and high-level competitors is really what we're all about. Making the best possible team out of that talent is ultimately what we're trying to do."
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Like Lehigh men's lacrosse on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
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"We're thrilled that our incoming class has been recognized by Inside Lacrosse with such a high ranking and we're obviously honored that they were able to put us in the top 10," said Lehigh head coach Kevin
Cassese. "We feel like we're able to attract a lot of top talent to our program and I feel that we've been doing it pretty consistently over the years, maybe sometimes without being noticed, and it's nice to get that notice this time around."
Â
As a team, Lehigh's class was ranked No. 8 nationally, directly ahead of Cornell and Denver and behind Duke and Maryland. Lehigh's class was ranked No. 1 in the Patriot League, ahead of Loyola at No. 15.
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In the power 100, faceoff specialist Mike Sisselberger came in at No. 13 overall (No. 1 for his position) while defenseman Patrick McIlroy stood No. 57 (No. 16 ranked defenseman) and Tommy Schelling stood No. 64 overall (No. 19 ranked attackman).
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Several others stood among the top-ranked incomers at their position: Cole Kirst (No. 29 attackman), Jesse James West (No. 35 attackman), Chad Kittaka (No. 34 midfielder), Judah Hicks (No. 27 defenseman) and Michael Venezia (No. 17 goaltender).
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The incoming class is looking to team up with a veteran group of returnees that advanced to the 2018 Patriot League Championship Game. Leading Lehigh's returnees are All-American defenseman Craig Chick and first team All-Patriot League attackman Andrew Pettit, along with first team All-League and Academic All-America honoree Conor Gaffney at faceoff.
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"Obviously, rankings are important but how they develop is even more important," said Cassese. "The fact that people notice they do have a lot of talent, and we obviously noticed that too, is one thing. Then, being able to take that talent and turn it into elite talent and high-level competitors is really what we're all about. Making the best possible team out of that talent is ultimately what we're trying to do."
Â
Like Lehigh men's lacrosse on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
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