Lasers' Updates 03/18/2009

March 18, 2009

Men's Lacrosse

The men's lacrosse team started the 2009 season 1-3 in non-conference action, picking up their first win against UMass Boston on Saturday afternoon.  The Lasers fell to Roger Williams in their season opener, then played a top 20 team in the Tufts University men's lacrosse team and though they played well they were defeated 22-8. 

 

When Lasell faced UMass Boston, the Lasers dominated from start to finish, culminating in a 16-5 victory.  The final game of the week came against a tough NESCAC school in Trinity College and were overpowered by the Bantams 14-1.

 

Brandon Keith (Marston Mills, Mass.) is leading the pack for Lasell with 9 points this season, on 4 goals and five assist. Mike Maggio (Winchester, Mass.) has tallied the most goals this season so far, with 6, adding one assist for seven total points.  Both Ryan Koerner (Floral Parks, NY) and Chris Bulkley (Groton, Conn.) have six points on the season.

 

Lasell's goalkeeper Mike Kelliher (Weymouth, Mass.) has 65 saves in his four contests in the net for the Lasers. Adam Foss (Billerica, Mass.) has won 33 of 50 face-offs and scooped up 21 ground balls, leading the way for Lasell in both categories. Alex Engels (Weston, VT) and Maggio each have four caused turnovers.

Women's Lacrosse

The Lasers women's lacrosse team also started the 2009 season with a 1-3 record, having dropped their first three games in close matchups with non-conference opponents. 

 

Lasell opened at Curry College with a 21-9 defeat by the Colonels, though Lasell's Tina Canavan (Stonington, Conn.) scored four goals and Caitlyn Murphy (Katonah, NY) recorded three more. 

 

The Lasers then faced Westfield State on Grellier Field in their home opener and forced the contest into overtime as Chelsea Caren (Redding, Conn.) scored the final game tying goal.  In overtime, the Owls outscored Lasell 4-1 to take the victory.  Canavan notched 8 points against the Owls with seven goals and one assist, and Murphy added 7 more goals for Lasell.

 

At Nichols, the Lasers dropped another close 11-9 decision with Canavan and Murphy each tallying 3 goals, and Meredith Hessler (Middletown, RI) finding the net twice more.

 

In the Lasers first win of the season, Murphy's seven goals led the Lasers to an 18-3 triumph.  Hessler and Lexi Giatrelis (Mashpee, Mass.) each recorded three goals in the home field victory.

 

Hessler is also leading in ground balls with 17 total in the four games so far this year, while Hessler and Canavan each have 17 draw controls.

 

Kristin Coderre (Monson, Mass.) has picked up 41 saves in the net for Lasell, averaging more than 10 saves a game for the Lasers.

 

Baseball

In their first season as an NCAA program, the Lasers have already picked up two wins, sweeping a double-header with Saint Joseph's College (Brooklyn).  The Lasers have a 2-2 record after dropped a double-header to Purchase College of NY in the same weekend.

 

The Lasers have been led by Patrick Girard (Stonington, Conn.) who has six hits, four runs, and three RBI's so early in the season. Carl Lentini (Wilmington, Mass.) and Matt Mahoney (Rockland, Mass.) each have three runs to go along with three rbi's as well in the four contests, and Herb Chappell (Salem, Conn.) has four runs on three hits, one RBI and 21 put-outs.

 

Both Matt Mahoney and Josh Sullivan (Rockland, Mass.) have earned a win on the mound for Lasell, Mahoney in an 12-5 victory and Sullivan in an 11-8 win.

 

The Lasers are traveling to Fort Myers, Florida for their first ever spring training trip where they will compete in six contests over a four day stretch.

 

Softball

Fort Myers, Florida was also the location for the opening Lasell softball games of the 2009 season. In three days of games, the Lasers have split evenly going 1-1 each day, coming up with a 3-3 record to begin the year. 


Lasell's first win came over UMass Dartmouth on the first day of play, with Jackie Loseff (Point Pleasant, NJ) taking the victory on the mound.  The Lasers got runs from Loseff, Heather Rose (West Roxbury, Mass.), Jackie Saluti  (Braintree, Mass.), Kelly Silvia (Oaks Bluff, Mass.), and Kerrie Starkey (Keene, NH) in the 5-3 triumph over the Corsairs.

 

On day two, Lasell took a late 3-2 victory over SUNY Brockport in extra-innings.  Kirsten Mammola (North Reading, Mass.) was the starter on the diamond for the Lasers second win.   

 

Salem State fell victim to the Lasers on the third day of competition, with Loseff once again donning the mound. Loseff struck out three, and though the Vikings attempted a late rally with 2 runs in the fourth, Lasell fought through the rest of the game to take a tight 6-5 advantage.

 

Over the three day opening, the Lasers fell to Plymouth State University (5-1), Franklin & Marshall (4-3), and Wisconsin-Superior (13-5).

 

The Lasers have two more days of competition in Florida before returning to Lasell for their home opener March 24th.

 

Men's Volleyball

Joe Lipski edited_1.JPG Lasell's men's volleyball team was awarded both the Player of the Week and Rookie of the Week honors by the Great Northeast Athletic Conference for the week ending March 16th. Lasell's senior libero and captain, Joseph Lipski (Burlington, Conn.) was selected as the Player of the Week while freshman setter Brendan McGourn (Southington, Conn.) was chosen as the Rookie of the Week.

Lipski (right) totaled 18 digs, averaging 4.5 digs per set, against University of http://www.lasell.edu/images/athletics/clip_image002_055.jpg New Haven this week in a 3-1 victory for Lasell. Lipski also broke the previous record and became the All-Time Leader in Career digs for Lasell College. Lipski's current record stands at 823 digs recorded over four years. This is Lipski's first honor as Player of the Week in the GNAC this year.

McGourn (left) averaged 11.75 assists per set, totaling 47 assists in the 3-1 win over New Haven. McGourn also picked up 8 digs, added 3 blocks, three kills,and an ace in the Lasers victory for an all-around strong performance. This is McGourn's third time being chosen as Rookie of the Week for the GNAC this season.

The Lasers downed University of New Haven for the second time of three season meetings this week in four sets.  Dave Rogers (Belchertown, Mass.) had fifteen kills and seven digs for the Lasers in the victory and Trevor Foster (Ashford, Conn.) had twelve kills, three blocks, and four digs.

 

Other News

In other Laser news, Lasell's Zach Gagne (Somerset, Mass.) of the men's soccer team was selected to play in the New England Intercollegiate Soccer League All-Star Game on May 9th at Clark University.  Gagne is one of 35 NCAA Division III players selected to play in the All-Star competition.

 

Only three GNAC participants were selected to play, and nine total forwards, Gagne being one of them.  Players are selected by the vote of head men's soccer coaches.

 

08-4216-5886.JPG Gagne (left) has been an All-Conference selection for all four years as a Lasell athlete. Gagne was named to the NAC All Conference 2nd team as a freshman in 2005, and then the 1st team in 2006, along with being the Player of the Week twice. Gagne was once again recognized in 2007 and 2008 as a first team All-Conference player in the GNAC, and has also been selected as Player of the Week twice in the 2008 season.

 

This season, Gagne led the team in points with 31, and was second on the team in goals scored (12). His presence on the field is immense as he can not only create his own offense, but he is a great distributer of the ball, leading the Lasers with 7 assists this season. He finished ranked 4th in the GNAC in total points and 5th in points per game (1.72). He is 5th in goals and goals per game (.67), and is fourth overall in assists (7).

 

Gagne is the men's soccer team's all time leading scorer at Lasell College with 121 total points. He has a career 8 game winning goals and a .573 shots on goal percentage. Gagne has been a four year starter for the Lasers, and a three year captain, beginning his sophomore year. During his time at Lasell, the Lasers have made appearances in the NCAA tournament and ECAC post season tournament. Gagne was also selected to the All-Tournament team in 2008 and was honored as the Lasell candidate for the All-Sportsmanship team.

 

Jose Guitian_edited-1.JPG Also continuing to make news for Lasell is Jose Guitian (Miami, FL), Lasell's senior forward and captain has been selected to the D3Hoops.com All-Region 1st team for the Northeast Region.  Players were nominated for these awards by the Sports Information Directors at the various schools. Three teams of five individuals were selected for the All-Region teams in each of the eight regions. All players selected to the first team will be eligible for All-American nominations.

 

Guitian was selected as the Great Northeast Athletic Conference Player of the Year and was a finalist for the 2009 Jostens Trophy. Guitian, a first-team all-conference selection last year, leads the league in scoring (24.1), rebounds (13.5), and blocked shots (2.3), and also ranks in the GNAC for field goal percentage (.511), assists (2.8), and 3 point field goals made (1.7). Guitian also made a mark nationally where he is ranked second for rebounding, seventh in scoring, and 18th in blocked shots per game. He has surpassed the 1,500 points and 1,000 rebounds this season. He earned GNAC Player of the Week nine times, ECAC Player of the week four times, and D3hoops.com Team of the Week three times this season.