HobbsDailyReport.com
ROCK HILL, S.C. – With four preseason all-conference players in the lineup, the Lenoir-Rhyne University men are the favorite in this year’s South Atlantic Conference (SAC) men’s lacrosse title race.
In voting by league head coaches released by the SAC in a Thursday press release, the Bears gained 71 votes and seven first-place votes as the conference favorite. Wingate was picked second, receiving 66 points and two first-place votes.
LRU’S SCHEDULE: https://lrbears.com/schedule.aspx?path=mlax
LRU has four preseason All-SAC first-team selections – attackers Joe Buduo and Myles Moffatt, a middie, Eric Dickinson, and defender Tyler Bane.
Buduo, a senior from Shrewsbury, Mass., broke the school record with 62 single-season goals and 91 single-season points last season for the Bears.
Moffat, a native of Airdie, Alberta, CANADA, won SAC Freshman of the Year after scoring 29 goals and having 29 assists last season.
Dickinson, from Charlotte, has been all-league in two straight seasons. Last season, he had 40 goals, 16 assists and 22 groundballs. He was the league’s Freshman of the Year in 2017.
Bane, from Warrentown, Va., was first-team all-conference last season. He played in 19 matches last season, retrieving 30 groundballs and causing 13 turnovers.
LRU, about to start the ninth season of its program, reached an NCAA Division II Final Four last season for the first time.
The Bears open the season on Feb. 9 with a 1 p.m. match against Limestone College in Hickory.
SAC MEN’S LACROSSE PRESEASON POLL
(as voted on by league head coaches)
School (First-Place Votes)
1. LENOIR-RHYNE (7) 71
2. Wingate (2) 66
3. Queens 56
4. Lincoln Memorial 52
5. Catawba 40
6. Tusculum l35
7. Coker 32
8. Mars Hill 28
9. Newberry, S.C. 16
PRESEASON ALL-SAC
First team
A – Joe Buduo, Lenoir-Rhyne
A – Kyle Arcuri, Lincoln Memorial
A – Myles Moffat, Lenoir-Rhyne
MF – Eric Dickinson, Lenoir-Rhyne
MF – Joe Barber, Catawba
MF – Conor Gronbach, Wingate
D – Nick Rizzieri, Queens
D – Ryon Bellamy, Queens
D – Tyler Bane, Lenoir-Rhyne
LP – Griffin Stechmiller, Queens
Spec. – Drew Flack, Queens
GK – Anthony Valenza, Queens
Second team
A – Dylan Mansur, Newberry
A – Cole Fanzo, Catawba
A – Bobby Padden, Wingate
MF – Robert Tucker, Lincoln Memorial
MF – Alex Llerandi, Wingate
MF – Ethan Irizarry, Coker (T)
MF – Justin Swick, Queens (T)
D – Kyle Dozzi, Mars Hill
D – Brad Chambliss, Newberry
D – Jake Coleman, Queens
LP – Reese Orman, Wingate
Spec. – Wyatt Weiseman, Wingate
GK – Chris Hagy, Coker