INDIANAPOLIS – The Great Western Lacrosse League’s (GWLL) 2008 annual awards were announced today. Included in the announcement were the All-League First and Second Team as well as the individual awards: Newcomer of the Year, Player of the Year and Coach of the Year. For the second consecutive year, Notre Dame and Ohio State each had four athletes who earned First Team honors. The Buckeyes had eight overall players make one of the two teams, the highest such number for any GWLL team. Ohio State, Denver and Quinnipiac also had players represented in the individual awards.
Archive for May 1st, 2008
Freezing cold temperatures, strong winds and snow flurries didn’t stop more than 21,000 people from enjoying a little lacrosse on Saturday. The second annual Toyota LaxFest kicked off at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park at 8:00 in the morning. Boys and girls teams in grades two through eight from the state of Colorado showed up to play at the premier sports park in the nation.
“It’s an unbelievable facility,” said Colorado Youth Lacrosse Association president Chris Clark about the complex. “[NDP Lacrosse] has done a phenomenal job of getting things set up for us.”
The event also included teams from southern Wyoming and one team from California. Over a twelve-hour period, 328 teams cycled through as part of the biggest lacrosse event ever west of the Mississippi River, bringing the Colorado lacrosse community together for one day in one location.
“It’s wonderful to see all these teams come together,” said Amy Moore, whose nephew, Josh, plays midfield for the Highlands Ranch Rams.
“One of the great things about lacrosse in Colorado is that it is a really close community,” added Colorado Lacrosse Club president and Colorado Lacrosse Foundation board member Heather Faircloth. “I think it’s good for the coaches and players to meet and they get the opportunity to do that here.”
More than 160 games were played on 18 fields, including teams managed by Colorado Mammoth transition player Josh Sims and Colorado Mammoth general manager Steve Govett.
Toyota LaxFest featured much more than just lacrosse. Toyota stepped up to offer a win-a-car contest, which put a 2009 fully-loaded Toyota Corolla up for grabs.
“Toyota has been really involved with the event,” said NDP director of operations Brian Tatum. “They are really the reason we’re able to pull this off each year.”
The contest was held at three locations throughout the complex. Winning the car required a contestant to hit six target holes in a specific order.
“If they’re giving away a car, I’m definitely going to give it a try,” said Dave Dreier, the coach of the 7th grade girls Panthers, “but I think I could only hit about four of the targets.”
Toyota LaxFest also debuted the 2008 Toyota Accuracy and Dick’s Sporting Goods Multi-Sport Challenge national contests, which will be featured at tournaments throughout the country this summer. The national contests offer participants the opportunity to win a trip to Florida, as well as a VIP pro lacrosse experience and a shopping spree.
In one year, Toyota LaxFest grew by 24 teams. NDP Lacrosse management says it expects continued growth on an annual basis.
“Increased participation strengthens the reputation of lacrosse in Colorado,” Tatum said about Toyota LaxFest. “The teams and players here are getting better, and a big event like this sends a message to the east coast.”
Not even 50 mile-per-hour wind gusts could stand in the way of stick-checks, saves, clears and highlight-reel goals at Toyota LaxFest.
“It’s a great opportunity for the kids playing,” added Rich Morgan, the scheduler for the Colorado Youth Lacrosse Association. “It’s a celebration of lacrosse in Colorado.”
USAFA, Colo. - A pair of Air Force players were honored as members of the Great Western Lacrosse League’s 2008 all-league team. Juniors Griffin Nevitt (Charlotte, N.C.) and Dan Gnazzo (Eden Prairie, Minn.) each earned first-team All-GWLL honors. Ohio State led the way with eight all-conference selections, including four on the first team. Notre Dame (four first-team picks) and Denver (two first-team selections) each added six all-league honorees. Air Force placed two players on the all-conference squad, while Quinnipiac and Bellarmine each had one second-team selection.
Nevitt receives the third all-conference honors of his career, earning second-team recognition at midfield in 2006 and first-team accolades in 2007. This season, Nevitt led the Falcons with 24 points on the year, recording a team-best 18 goals and six assists. The team’s leading scorer for the second-straight season and the leading goal scorer for the third straight season, Nevitt has tallied at least one goal or assist in 38 out of 40 games in his career. He was also named to the Pioneer Face-Off Classic team for the third-consecutive season and was one of two Falcons to score a man-down goal this year. In addition, Nevitt finished the season ranked second on the team with 45 ground balls.
Gnazzo, a three-year starter at the long-stick midfield position, receives the second all-conference recognition of his career after being named a second-team selection in 2007. This year, Gnazzo led the Falcons with 64 ground balls, ranking among the top 10 in the nation in that category with 5.33 per game, while also registering 23 caused turnovers on the season. Named to the all-tournament team at the Pioneer Face-Off Classic for a third straight year, Gnazzo also gave the team an offensive boost, scoring his first career goal against Brown before finishing the year with three goals and four assists.
In addition to announcing the all-league first and second teams, the GWLL’s individual awards (Newcomer of the Year, Player of the Year and Coach of the Year) were released Thursday as well. Player of the Year honors went to Ohio State’s Kevin Buchanan, a senior attack who led the league in scoring with 63 points (second in the NCAA). The conference’s Newcomer of the Year award went to the Denver attackman Jamie Lincoln, the leading freshman scorer in the nation. Meanwhile, Quinnipiac’s Eric Fekete was named the Coach of the Year after leading the Bobcats to an 8-4 overall record and berth in the first GWLL Tournament.
Friday, May 2, 2008
No. 19 Denver vs. No. 10 Ohio State, 5:30 p.m. MT
Seaholm High School Birmingham, Mich.
Game Overview
Denver earned the No. 2 in the GWLL Tournament and Ohio State received the No. 3 after the two teams split the GWLL regular season title three ways with Notre Dame. The winner of the DU-OSU semifinal will face the winner of the Notre Dame and Quinnipiac semifinal game, which will be played at 3 p.m. MT.
The Series vs. the Buckeyes
This is the 14th meeting between the two clubs and the first in postseason play. The Pioneers trail Ohio State 4-9 in the series. DU is 4-2 at home, and 0-7 in Columbus, but the two teams have never met on a neutral field. The two teams met two weeks ago with OSU winning 20-13 in front of an NCAA regular season record crowd of 29,601.
GWLL Newcomer of the Year
Freshman Jamie Lincoln (St. Cathariens, Ontario) was named the GWLL Newcomer of the Year. The attackman earned first team honors with his record-setting rookie campaign of 44 goals and 48 points. Lincoln has already set the DU Division I record for goals in a season.
GWLL Honors
Joining Lincoln on the first team was sophomore defender Dillon Roy (Denver, Colo.), who has 19 caused turnovers and leads the Pioneers with 14 penalties this season. Junior Cliff Smith (Surrey, B.C.) earned second-team honors at attack and is Denver’s second leading scorer with 24 goals and 35 points. Sophomore Ilija Gajic (Burnaby, B.C.) and junior Joey Murray (Denver, Colo.) earned all-GWLL honors for the second consecutive season, this year earning second team honors at midfield. Freshman Brendan Deblois (Narragansett, R.I.) was also named all-GWLL second team at defense.
Fourth Quarter Magic
Denver has scored 52 goals in the fourth quarter this season, 10 more goals than their next highest output at 42 in the third period. DU has allowed just 33 fourth quarter goals.
National Exposure
The Pioneers are ranked in the top-20 in five in seven of the NCAA categories. Denver is eighth in scoring offense, averaging 11.47 goals per game, win percentage (11th-66.7%), man-down defense (13th-76.7%), scoring margin (16th-1.8), and man-up offense (18-34.1%).
Individually, four pioneers are ranked in the top-50, led by Lincoln, who is fifth in the nation in goals per game (2.93) and 26th in points per game (3.20). Sophomore Ben Wahler (Denver, Colo.) ranks second nationally in ground balls per game (6.47) and 27th in face-off win percentage (53.2%). Junior Austin Konkel (Aurora, Colo.) and sophomore Charley Dickenson (Dallas, Texas) rank among the top-50, as well.
Game Winners
The Pioneers have gotten game-winning goals from six different players this season. Smith leads the team with three, while Charley Dickenson and Gajic have two apiece. Seniors Brett Koll (Fort Collins, Colo.) and Andrew Bourke (Denver, Colo.) each have one.
The Assist Goes to
Charley Dickenson is the team leader with 18 assists on the season, part of 25 points on the year. Dickenson had six assists in all of 2007. An additional trio of Pioneers have reached double figures in assists this year in Gajic (12), Murray (11) and Smith (11).
Overtime Thrillers
DU is 2-0 in overtime games this season after the 10-9 win over Harvard on March 29, when Smith recorded the game-winner with 1:03 remaining in the overtime period. Koll scored the game-winner against Penn on March 9.
Ranked Opponents
Denver is 2-4 against ranked opponents this season, defeating then-No. 16 Colgate and then-No. 7 Notre Dame, and losing to then-No. 9 North Carolina, then-No. 20 Towson, then-No. 7 Cornell and then-No. 11 Ohio State.
DENVER – Freshman Jamie Lincoln (St. Cathariens, Ontario) was named the Great Western Lacrosse League Newcomer of the Year and six members of the No. 19 GWLL co-champions University of Denver men’s lacrosse team earned All-Conference first and second team honors, the league announced today.
Lincoln earned first team honors with his record-setting rookie campaign of 44 goals and 48 points. Lincoln set the DU Division I record for goals in a season.
Joining Lincoln on the first team was sophomore Dillon Roy (Denver, Colo.) at defense. Roy has 19 caused turnovers on the season and leads the Pioneer.
Junior Cliff Smith (Surrey, B.C.), the Pioneers second leading scorer with 24 goals and 35 points, earned second team honors at attack. Sophomore Ilija Gajic (Burnaby, B.C.) and Joey Murray (Denver, Colo.) earned all-GWLL honors for the second consecutive season, both being named to the second team at midfield. Gajic has 12 goals and 12 assists on the season, while Murray has 13 goals and 11 assists. Freshman Brendon Deblois (Narragansett, R.I.) was named all-GWLL second team defense.
Ohio State’s Kevin Buchanan was named the GWLL Player of the Year, while Quinnipiac head coach Eric Fekete was named the GWLL Coach of the Year. The Buckeyes placed eight players on the all-conference first and second teams, while GWLL co-champion Notre Dame had six players earn postseason conference honors.
DU, who split the GWLL regular season title with OSU and Notre Dame, will play No. 10 Ohio State at Seaholm High School stadium in Birmingham, Mich., in the semifinals of the GWLL Tournament on Friday, May 2 at 5:30 p.m. MT.
