Opportunity knocks for SBU lacrosse
Steven Marcus, Newsday
April 2, 2007
The chance for instant recognition is extraordinary. Stony Brook University men's lacrosse team is hosting No. 2 Albany at 1 p.m. Saturday and the 18th ranked Seawolves could put their program all over the map in a sport that could use some fresh faces. We say: out with the old elites, in with the new upstarts.
Why not Albany or Stony Brook and why not now? All of this could be asking way too much from America East teams, where the best thing about the conference has always been its automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
"I won't deny I'm excited,'' first year Stony Brook coach Rick Sowell said. "I'm excited about every game in our league but certainly you look at Albany and see how they are doing and say 'I can't wait to get my shot at them.' It could be a fun opportunity for our program, not only as an in-league rival but a team having a pretty good year.''
Albany (8-0) started off by beating Johns Hopkins, one of those household names in college lacrosse. Lacrosse has gone to the dogs, the Great Danes of Albany, who are bidding to be make the unknown less so in a sport where the have nots are always trying to make a name. Stony Brook (5-1) is 6-8 all-time against Albany; 0-32 against the teams you know, which includes Princeton, Cornell, Duke and Virginia.
Facing Albany, no matter the ranking, is always a big deal for Stony Brook. The state school rivalry is always significant as a measuring stick of where each school stands. But the sweetener here is Albany's lofty ranking. "If we do well against Albany," Sowell said, "that will make us look that much better.'' What makes this intriguing is that Stony Brook is not facing the highfalutin uniform of the usual highly ranked team. No awe factor. "I think there is a difference of Albany versus a Hopkins, Virginia,'' Sowell said. But he can't underscore what Albany has done, running the table for opening day.
Albany is led by Merrick Thomson and Frank Resetarits, both of whom lead America East in goals with 20 apiece. Stony Brook's Bo Tripodi is second in the conference with 13. Teammate Ryan Hughes has six goals and eight assists. Stony Brook goalie Brendan Callahan leads the conference in save percentage (.630), while Albany Dan McKeon is second (.625). To stay with Albany, Stony Brook will have to cut down on its turnovers. It is fifth in the six-team league with 17 a game. Albany is second with a respectable 8.5.
Sowell hopes he is not facing a super team in Albany, saying, "I hope they are not separating themselves from our league. Its kind of been up for grabs league and I hope it stays that way for a couple years."
Sowell promises to stick around. "One thing the other programs have going for them is continuity," Sowell said of America East rivals. "We need some continuity.'' He was referring to the stability of coaching at other schools. The Stony Brook seniors are playing for their third coach. "I want to lock in,'' Sowell said.
Stony Brook women also on the move
The Seawolves are 8-1 in women's lacrosse and have a big game Saturday against America East rival Boston University. It starts at 4 p.m. Stony Brook is not yet a top 20 team, but that could be in the offing with a committed coach like Allison Comito. She was a star at a big program, Maryland. "I expect the same things of my girls that was expected from me at Maryland,'' she said. "That's the only reason I'm here; I didn't come to Stony Brook just to coach a Division I program. I want them to be better than okay.''