2008 season preview

March 6, 2008

NORTON, MA- A new slogan, a new head coach and a large contingent of new players have infused new life into the Wheaton College men's lacrosse program this spring. "We've developed a little saying at practice, 'This is the best two hours of your day,'" said first-year head coach Mike McCaffrey, "and it should be. It's two hours to get away from the books, get out of the dorms and spend with people who have a similar interest in lacrosse."

Among 32 players are 14 freshmen, the program's largest first-year corps in its 17-year varsity history, as McCaffrey inherits a squad heavy on young talent. Additionally, 10 sophomores return for their second season after Wheaton went 4-10 overall last spring, including 4-4 in the Pilgrim League.

"We're so bottom-heavy with our large freshman and sophomores classes that, as a new coach coming in at the time that I did in November, it's kind of a blessing in disguise," said McCaffrey, "because I'm not walking into a highly veteran team that's going to potentially rail against change and not want to buy into a new system."

McCaffrey is no stranger to organizing pieces of a puzzle while starting fresh. He founded the boys' lacrosse program at Bishop Guertin High School in Nashua, New Hampshire, during the late 1980s before leading Division II American International College from 1993-97 and Division I College of the Holy Cross from 2000-04. In 2005, he coached Nashua North High School in New Hampshire during its first varsity season.

Having coached a variety of playing levels, McCaffrey already knows what kind of players he looks to place on the field. "I want quick thinkers, guys who can read and react to the situation at that point in time," said McCaffrey, "guys that can look up and see the numbers right away and know where they want to push the ball."

A self-proclaimed admirer of old-school lacrosse - he played for the University of New Hampshire in the 1986 NCAA Tournament - McCaffrey prefers an offense that can run and create pressure, forcing opposing defenses into mistakes, and favors strong one-on-one play in the defensive half. With all of that in mind, the Class of 2011's acclimation to the college game will be the focal point early on.

"With a young team, we need to be very cognizant that every mistake is not the end of the world," said the coach. "I told the guys if we're making the same mistakes that we make in the first half during our opener against Villa Julie on March 12 against Babson on April 26, then I haven't done my job, and neither have you."

Inside Lacrosse predicted in its Face-Off Yearbook a fourth-place regular season Pilgrim finish for Wheaton, a forecast McCaffrey thinks his team will match, if not exceed, especially considering perennial power Western New England College has left the conference.

"A goal for us going into the season is to be in the top four, and that's a reasonable goal to put out there, especially with a young team," said McCaffrey. "With WNEC moving on, it gives one other team in the conference an opportunity to crack the top four. We've talked about really putting our sights on that second or third seed."

Each of Wheaton's three seniors has been selected as a captain, as Richie Rasamny (Redding, CT/Joel Barlow) serves his second year, while Tom Ahern (Holliston, MA/Holliston) and Chris Hart (Center Harbor, NH/New Hampton School) are each in their first. A first-team all-conference selection in 2007, Rasamny led the Lyons in both goals (22) and assists (20) from the midfield, is tied for seventh in program history in career helpers (43) and stands 17 points short of 100. With 26 starts in his last 29 games, Ahern is the team's most experienced defender, while Hart is in his third season with the program and provides a veteran presence as a reserve midfielder.

McCaffrey thinks the strength of his team lies in its defense, with Ahern and junior F.J. Buckley (Duxbury, MA/Duxbury) anchoring the backfield and junior Marco Barbone (Newton, MA/Newton North) and freshman Phil Chapman (Shaker Heights, OH/Western Reserve Academy) rotating in another starting spot. Barbone scored 12 goals as an attackman last year. Freshman defender Mike Craig (Kennebunk, ME/Kennebunk) will be the primary long-stick midfielder, while sophomores Jeff Pereira (Miami, FL/Ransom Everglades School) and Kitt Watson (Stamford, CT/Saint Luke's School) and freshmen Drew Kirstein (Scarborough, ME/Scarborough) and Cody Powers (Scarborough, ME/Scarborough) also look for time at the position.

Juniors SeanPaul Jones (Cambridge, MA/New Hampton School) and Nate Mauer (Alexandria, VA/Episcopal) lead a group of defensive reserves, as they will be joined by freshmen Will Cuppett (Austin, TX/McCallum) and Garrett McLean (Randolph, NJ/Randolph).

Sophomores Schuyler Horn (New Hartford, CT/Kingswood-Oxford School) and Alex Lewis (Westfield, NJ/Westfield) are in contention for the goalkeeping job, with Horn initially set to start. Lewis posted an 8.23 goals against average last year during four contests, while Horn appeared in nine games, making seven starts.

In the midfield, Rasamny leads a youthful but talented unit, joining sophomore Drew Schaffer (New Haven, CT/Loomis Chaffee School) and freshman Duncan Smith (Centerport, NY/Harborfields) in the starting lineup. Schaffer posted 16 assists a year ago. First-year middies Bobby Barry (Duxbury, MA/Duxbury), Peter Buongiorno (Pittsburgh, PA/Winchester Thurston School) and Alex Voucas (Fairfield, CT/Fairfield Ludlowe) each look to make an offensive impact off the bench.

On the defensive side of the ball, Hart and sophomores Andrew Brunhofer (Westfield, NJ/Westfield), Connor Compton (Deering, NH/Saint Mark's School) are all slated to contribute in the midfield. McCaffrey said freshman Corey Best (Brentwood, TN/Ravenwood), who just completed a season with the swimming and diving team, will work his way into the midfield as the season progresses.

Junior Jeff Gomer (Duxbury, MA/Duxbury) and sophomore Warren Garceau (Guilford, CT/Canterbury School) will handle face-off responsibilities, as Gomer earned all-conference honors a year ago after placing second in the league in draw victories (116) and face-off winning percentage (.577). He also tied for the team lead with 56 ground balls, tying for seventh in the Pilgrim.

McCaffrey looks for the first line of attackmen to run together for the next three years while chasing some program records. Sophomore Tim Horan (Cheshire, CT/Cheshire), who notched 10 goals and 14 assists in 2007, is the veteran in a trio that will also include freshmen Ben Cederberg (Duxbury, MA/Duxbury) and Chris Landers (Manchester, MA/Proctor Academy). Horan and Smith could also switch between attack and midfield during the course of a contest. Sophomore Conor Whitney (West Hartford, CT/Kingswood-Oxford School) and freshman Will Henry (Alexandria, VA/T.C. Williams) will add an offensive punch in backup capacities.

"We have some very talented freshmen," said McCaffrey, "and they're going to surprise us and impress a lot of others throughout the season with their abilities. But you don't ride freshmen to an automatic qualifier for the NCAA Tournament, and you don't ride them to every win. When they become juniors and seniors, you can begin ramping up the pressure and developing higher expectations."

Wheaton's non-conference schedule will prove to be tough, and it begins at Villa Julie College in Maryland on March 12 against a team that was the runner up in its conference last year and ranked 20th in the latest United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) poll. Endicott College, which is 16th nationally and qualified for the 2007 NCAA Tournament, is the opponent on March 18. On April 1, the Blue and White faces another 2007 NCAA team, Keene State College, while one other conference tournament finalist and Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Tournament runner-up Roger Williams University dot the slate.

Springfield College, another 2007 league finalist, is scheduled to be Wheaton's first Pilgrim foe during McCaffrey's tenure when the teams meet on March 29 in Springfield, as the contest kicks off the Lyons' seven-game conference docket. The four-team Pilgrim League Tournament begins on April 30.

"The key is coming together as a team," said McCaffrey, "and focusing on one game at a time, one face-off at a time, one half at a time, one quarter at a time, one possession at a time. We need to boil it down to those little things, and hopefully at the end of the game we've won enough of those little battles that it'll add up to a victory."

This page is maintained by Scott Dietz. Last updated on 3/6/08.
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Upcoming Schedule

11-Mar Wed Keene State A 4:00pm
14-Mar Sat Elmira (NY) A TBA
17-Mar Tue Colby A 6:00pm