SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Defending Southern Conference champion Air Force was narrowly selected as the favorite to claim the 2017 Southern Conference men’s lacrosse title, as voted by all eight of the league’s coaches. The coaches also voted on a 14-player preseason all-conference team for the conference’s third season of men’s lacrosse.
Air Force nabbed seven first-place votes and 48 total points to take the top spot in the poll. The Falcons, who finished last season with a 15-3 mark, including 7-0 in SoCon play, claimed three representatives from three different positions to the preseason all-conference team in senior attackman Chris Walsch, junior midfielder Andrew Tien and sophomore defenseman Brandon Jones.
Walsch, the 2016 SoCon Offensive Player of the Year, finished last season first in the league in points (64) and assists (29) and was second in goals (35). Walsch’s mark of 64 points is the second-most in the program’s modern era. The Finksburg, Md., native’s signature performance in 2016 came in a seven-point effort in a 10-9 upset at then-No. 9 Duke. Walsch notched the game-winner in the waning seconds of overtime to clinch the win for the Falcons over the Blue Devils.
Tien registered 28 points on 20 goals and eight assists for the Falcons last season. The San Diego, Calif., native took 47 shots in 2016, 34 of which were on goal, and tallied two hat tricks on the season, both of which were against 2016 SoCon runner-up Richmond. Tien’s efficient sophomore campaign earned him both All-SoCon Second Team and all-tournament honors in 2016.
Jones, the 2016 SoCon Freshman of the Year and an All-SoCon Second Team selection, started all 28 contests for the Falcons last season. As a freshman in 2016, Jones was a major contributor to an Air Force defense that allowed 7.59 goals per game, an achievement that was good for second in the league.
Richmond finished second in this year’s preseason coaches’ poll, garnering one first-place vote and 43 points after posting an 11-5 overall record and a mark of 6-1 in conference play last year. The Spiders placed a league-high six players on the preseason all-conference team: senior attackman Mitch Goldberg, senior midfielder Jean Luc Chetner, senior defensemen Ryan Dennis and Brendan Hynes, senior faceoff specialist Peter Moran and junior longstick midfielder Austin Cates.
Goldberg, an All-SoCon Second Team selection last year, represents Richmond among the attackmen. Goldberg is the first Spider in program history to score 60 goals and tallied 19 goals and six assists in just 10 games last season.
Fellow senior and 2016 All-SoCon Second Team selection Chetner represents the Spiders on this year’s preseason all-conference midfield line. Chetner ranked fifth in the conference in assists per game (1.50/game), tied for eighth in points per game (2.25/gam) and nabbed two game-winning goals in 2016.
Dennis, a two-time All-SoCon Second Team selection, started all 16 games for the Spiders in 2016, picked up 41 ground balls and caused 29 turnovers for a stout Richmond defense that posted a conference-best 7.35 goals against per game.
Hynes, the 2015 Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Year and a 2016 All-SoCon First Team honoree, was second in the league in ground balls last season with 70 in 16 games for the Spiders. Hynes was second in the nation in caused turnovers with 36 (2.25/game) last season.
Moran won 139 faceoffs in 2016, allowing the Spiders to gain possession 55.8 percent of the time when facing off for Richmond. The senior midfielder ranked third in the conference in faceoff win percentage, good for 23rd in the nation. Moran also picked up 52 ground balls and caused three turnovers.
Cates represents the leagues’ longstick midfielders after being named to the 2016 All-SoCon Second Team last season. The Corning, N.Y., native collected 32 ground balls and caused 21 turnovers for the Spiders in 2016.
High Point collected 37 points and claimed the No. 3 spot in the preseason poll after finishing last season with a 9-6 overall record and a 5-2 mark against SoCon opponents. High Point senior Michael LeClair joins Walsch and Goldberg as the third attackman selected by the league’s head coaches. LeClair scored in every contest for the second straight year last season and has recorded at least one point in the past 41 contests for the Panthers. The Elkridge, Md., native garnered second-team all-conference honors in 2016. Teammate and starting Panther goalie Tim Troutner Jr. joins LeClair on this year’s preseason all-conference team after posting the league’s second-best save percentage (.555) as well as saves per game average (12.25/game) last season.
Bellarmine claimed the fourth spot with 29 points in the preseason poll. The Knights landed senior midfielder Tucker Ciessau to the preseason all-conference squad after he registered a team-high 23 goals and 13 assists last season.
Mercer was tabbed to finish fifth with 17 points and saw sophomore midfielder Lucas Wittenberg named to the preseason all-conference team. Wittenberg was named to the SoCon All-Freshman Team in 2016 after tying a team-high 24 points off 12 goals and 12 assists. The Kennesaw, Ga., native was the only Bear to reach double figures in goals and assists last season.
Furman was picked to finish sixth with 17 points, while Jacksonville and VMI round out the poll with 16 points and seven points, respectively.
Jacksonville sophomore goalie Ben Gleichenhaus was selected by the league’s head coaches to the Preseason All-Conference Team after leading the nation in saves last season with 178. The junior goalie was named to the All-SoCon Second Team in 2016.
The 2017 season opens up on Thursday, Feb. 2, with Furman hosting Vermont at 5 p.m. Mercer will then host Vermont on Saturday, Feb. 4, at 12 p.m. Four teams open their 2017 seasons on Saturday, Feb. 11, with Air Force traveling to Durham, N.C., to take on Duke, Bellarmine traveling to Robert Morris, Richmond hosting Fairfield and Jacksonville hosting Lehigh. The VMI Keydets will kick off their season on Monday, Feb. 20, at Army West Point at 12 p.m.
2017 Men’s Lacrosse Preseason Coaches Poll
School (First-Place Votes) Total
1. Air Force (7) 48
2. Richmond (1) 43
3. High Point 37
4. Bellarmine 29
5. Mercer 27
6. Furman 17
7. Jacksonville 16
8. VMI 7
2017 Men’s Lacrosse Preseason All-Conference Team
Attack
Chris Walsch, Air Force, Jr.
Michael LeClair, High Point, Sr.
Mitch Goldberg, Richmond, Sr.
Midfield (tie)
Andrew Tien, Air Force, Jr.
Tucker Ciessau, Bellarmine, Sr.
Lucas Wittenberg, Mercer, So.
Jean-Luc Chetner, Richmond, Sr.
Defense
Brandon Jones, Air Force, So.
Ryan Dennis, Richmond, Sr.
Brendan Hynes, Richmond, Sr.
Goalkeeper (tie)
Tim Troutner Jr., High Point, So.
Ben Gleichenhaus, Jacksonville, Jr.
Faceoff Specialist
Peter Moran, Richmond, Sr.
Longstick Midfielder
Austin Cates, Richmond, Jr.
-www.SoConSports.com-