2011 Fisher Men’s Lacrosse Preview The St. John Fisher College men’s lacrosse program has emerged as a national contender over the last 10 years and looks to continue its success in 2011.
“We need to keep Erich healthy this year,” Johnson says. “He had some big shoes to fill last year and rose to the occasion and did an outstanding job.”
Fisher, who began playing as an NCAA Division III program back in 2002, enjoyed its first winning season in 2006 under first-year head coach John C. Johnson. In 2007, the Cardinals went 10-7 and in 2008, Fisher broke the Collegerecord for wins in a season yet again, going 11-5. The 2009 season was another banner year, as the Cardinals posted a 15-3 overall record and advanced to the title game of the Empire 8 Conference Championship.
If Rassow can get Fisher the ball, its midfield and attack should be able to find the back of the net. Junior All-American Kyle Denhoff returns after recording 58 points on 46 goals and 12 assists. Denhoff will be joined by fellow sniper Ryan Schmidt, who tallied 42 goals and 12 assists last spring. “Kyle and Ryan played extremely well last year and we’re counting on them to lead us again this spring.”
Last season, Fisher jumped out to a 12-0 record, won the Empire 8 Conference regular-season title and set the College record for wins in a season for the sixth straight year, finishing with a 16-2 overall record.
Senior Eric Klein will also see time at midfield, as will returner Ethan Acey. Transfer Mike Byrnes, who registered 13 goals and nine assists over the last two years at LeMoyne College, will see time right away, as will MCC transfers Tyler Kleehammer and Nick Mooney, and first-year players Mike Utz and Greg Ramsden.
“When I started here, we knew this was going to building process, so it’s been important that we get better and better each and every year,” says Johnson, who won 357 games over 26 years at Canandaigua Academy. “We’ve taken a step forward each and every year and in my mind, the next step for our program to take is to win the Empire 8 Conference and go to NCAA’s.”
At attack the Cardinals graduated Dave Malone and Chris Schmidt, who combined for an amazing 411 points over the last four seasons, but several scorers still return. Juniors Mitch Ritchie and Connor Henderson, who combined for 59 points last spring, are back, as are Zach Fayette (four goals) and Kory Smart (seven goals, four assists).
Fisher has the players it needs to take the next step. The Cardinals return three of its top four scorers from the Empire 8’s No. 1 rated offense, one of the nation’s top faceoff specialists, and all three starting defensemen from the Empire 8’s No. 1 ranked defense. Fisher has also brought in a very talented freshman class, as well as a handful of transfers that will bolster an already potent program.
Freshman Jeff Wester, who totaled 172 goals and had 202 assists in four varsity seasons at Livonia, along with MCCtransfer Ryan Leonard, will also be a big factor at attack. “Obviously when you lose players like Dave Malone and Chris Schmidt, you’re going to be a little concerned about offensive production, but I think we will be OK,” Johnson says.
“I think one of biggest strengths going into this year is our depth and experience,” Johnson says. “We’re going to play probably around 30 or so players each game and there’s not a big drop-off in the level of play between our first and third lines.”
The defense should not be an area of concern for Johnson. Fisher returns its top three defenders from last year – Andrew Knoblauch, Alexander Bopp and Mitch Bailey – who combined to start in 51 of a possible 54 games. Freshman Gregory Bell will also look to work his way into the defensive rotation.
For Fisher, it all starts at the X, where faceoff-specialist Erich Rassow figures to get the job done. Last season, Rassow was given the job of filling the void left by 2009 All-American Dave Wood, and did a remarkable job by going 272-for-388 (70.1%) in faceoffs, while scooping up a team-best 135 ground balls. Only one player in NCAA Division III won more faceoffs than Rassow, while his winning percentage ranked fifth nationally.
Defensive midfielder Mike Cummins returns for his fourth year and will also see plenty of action, as will scrappy returners Paul Leonhard and Scott Campbell. Long-stick midfielders Aaron Gregory and David Haseley will work to keep the opposition’s attacker at bay. 4