Lehigh men’s lacrosse team finishes season 6-9

The Lehigh men’s lacrosse team ended its season in the quarterfinals of the Patriot League Tournament with a 13-6 loss to eventual runner-ups Army West Point on April 26.

After a 4-1 start to the season, Lehigh (6-9, 4-4 Patriot) lost seven of its last eight games. Four of the team’s nine losses came from teams ranked in the top 20 nationally when Lehigh played them.

“There were many ups and downs,” Lehigh coach Kevin Cassese wrote in an email. “I was pleased with the start of the season, but not pleased with how we finished. A 6-9 record and quarterfinal exit in the Patriot League tournament is not OK by our standards.”

Cassese said throughout the year the team played 30 percent of the game on offense and 70 percent of the game on defense. Junior midfielder Cody Triolo said towards the end of the season the team struggled winning faceoffs and keeping possession throughout the game, which kept them on defense for long periods of time.

“We struggled with accepting the mindset that it was our reality that we weren’t going to get the ball much,” Triolo said. “On offense, that makes you grip your sticks a little tighter and on defense you start to get tired.”

However, the season wasn’t without its highlights, one such being a road win against Boston University, which was ranked 20^th in the nation at the time. Cassese called this game the high point of the season, which ultimately clinched them a spot in the Patriot League Tournament. He said winning a tight game with many players fighting through significant injuries was a big testament to their ability.

Another highlight was the three all-league players: senior attackman Reid Weber and senior defenseman Tripp Telesco earned first team honors. Senior attackman/midfielder Billy Oppenheimer was named second team all-Patriot League.

Weber was the statistical leader on the team for offense with 37 goals and 14 assists, while Telesco led the defense with 44 ground balls and 30 caused turnovers.

“Senior leadership was a big plus for us this year,” freshman attackman Tristan Rai said. “I give a lot of credit to the seniors this year, as they really stepped up and showed the younger kids on the team what it means to be a Lehigh lacrosse player.”

The Mountain Hawks were plagued by injury for most of the season, and a lot of young players saw playing time throughout the season. Cassese said they would often play seven or eight freshman in one game, which bodes well for the future of the program.

Freshman long-stick midfielder Craig Chick led the team in both ground balls and caused turnovers, with 59 and 37, respectively. Rai was second in scoring on the team with 31 goals and 10 assists.

While the team will be losing key players like Weber and Telesco to graduation, both Cassese and Rai were confident in the fact that the returning players will be able to step up next year to fill the shoes of lost starters.

Over the offseason, Cassese said the team will focus on getting faster and stronger, improving on faceoffs and earning and preserving possession. He said it will work on developing the lacrosse IQ of younger players to approach its ultimate goal of winning the Patriot League Championship and compete for national championships.

“Hopefully a lot of the guys will remember what it feels like to lose out in the first round against Army, and use that as motivation for summer and the upcoming fall,” Rai said. “We definitely have a lot of pieces that we can use to make a run next year.”