ERIE, Pa – The No. 4 Mercyhurst men's lacrosse team will begin the start of their 2022 regular season tomorrow at No. 2 Wingate in North Carolina. The Lakers, who are coming off a season that saw them make it to the NCAA Semifinals, will be led into battle by head man Chris Ryan who begins his 22nd season at the helm of Mercyhurst men's lacrosse.
Season Outlook
After the Lakers one game trip to North Carolina, they will return home next Saturday, Feb. 19th for their home opener against Lewis. Following Lewis, the Lakers will head to Rochester for a rematch of their 2021 NCAA Semifinal match with Le Moyne, who is currently ranked first in the nation.
Mercyhurst will begin conference play on March 19th at Saxon stadium against Wheeling University, they will conclude their regular season on April 28th at Davis & Elkins.
Preseason Rankings
Mercyhurst has found themselves on all three of the Division Two National Preseason Rankings.The Lakers, who finished last season 12-2, were tabbed sixth in the Nike/USA Lacrosse Magazine preseason Top 20 rankings and are joined by Seton Hill as the only two members of the Great Midwest Athletic Conference to be listed in the national preseason rankings.
The Inside Lacrosse Poll saw the Lakers check in at number six in the 20 team rankings, while in the USILA preseason poll had Mercyhurst listed at their highest mark in any of the three national polls coming in at number five, they currently sit at the forth spot after the week one rankings were released.
The Lakers were also picked to finish first in the GMAC receiving five of the possible seven first place votes, Seton Hill picked up the remaining two.
Preseason All-American
Shawn Doran was picked to the first team USA Lacrosse Magazine preseason team. Doran was also named Preseason Faceoff Man of the Year in addition to his first team selection.
The Rochester, New York native is coming off a season that saw him post the second highest faceoff win percentage in the country at .758 % (201-265). Doran started all 14 games last season at the X for the Lakers, he did not shy away from bringing the ball up the offensive zone from his face off position scoring 10 points through four goals and six assists last season. Doran's dominance was prominent in the three playoff games that Mercyhurst played last year, going 55-65 from the X in postseason action against Lake Erie, Seton Hill, and Le Moyne.
Leading Returners
Along with Doran, head man
Chris Ryan will look to his leading returning point scores in Byrce Johnson,
Nicholas Mabe, and
Jacob Emerson to take charge of the Laker attack this season. Johnson finished the 2021 campaign with starts in every game, he was third on the team in goals (26) and assists (27). Mabe collected 12 goals and five assists as a junior and Emerson finished with 10 goals and 6 assists, his 16 points was 8th best on the team last season.
Scouting Wingate
Wingate finished last season as the NCAA Division II Runner Up. The Bulldogs have already played once this season, winning comfortably over Barton College by a 18-7 score.
Wingate returns its top four goal and point scores from last season in Willie Grieco (28G,64A), Adam Vodovnik (61G,14A), Boddy Padden (45G,28A), and Danny Riley (33G,10A). Grieco led the country last season with his 92 points, Vodovnik's 61 goals led the nation as well.
Up Next
Following this weekend's matchup with Wingate, the Lakers will return home to Saxon Stadium next weekend to host their home opener against Lewis University.
