NEW YORK – Five-time regular-season champion Denver was picked first in the 2019 BIG EAST Men’s Lacrosse preseason poll a sixth time as the unanimous favorite among the league’s head coaches. The Pioneers’ No. 1 pick was supported by the preseason selections of both Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year. Junior attackman Ethan Walker earned preseason nods as Offensive Player of the Year while senior defender Dylan Gaines earned Defensive Player of the Year nods. Both Pioneer veterans were chosen unanimously by the other five men’s lacrosse coaches.
Marquette was selected second in the poll with 18 points, while Georgetown, the 2018 BIG EAST tournament champion was picked third with 17 points and earned the remaining first-place vote. Rounding out the league’s preseason standings were Villanova (15 points), Providence (10 points) and St. John’s (five points).
Denver has been undefeated in conference play for the past five years with a 26-0 BIG EAST slate. The Pioneers were also selected No. 7 in the Inside Lacrosse Faceoff Yearbook Preseason Top-25, which was released Dec. 5. Georgetown and Villanova were also picked in the poll at 21st and 22nd, respectively.
Along with the preseason coaches’ poll and awards, the BIG EAST also released the coaches’ picks for the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. Of the 14 players, seven were unanimous in a positional roster that included three attackmen, three midfielders, four defenders, a goalie, a long-stick midfielder, a short-stick midfielder and a face-off specialist. Nine of the 14 preseason honorees return to the field from the 2018 All-BIG EAST First Team.
Walker, the reigning BIG EAST Attack Player of the Year, led the Pioneers in points (70) and goals (48) and was second on the team in assists (22). He was a USILA Third Team All-American and a Tewaaraton Award Nominee as a sophomore in 2018. Walker scored a career-high nine points on a career-high eight goals and an assist in Denver’s 22-6 win at No. 7 Villanova last season. Nationally, he ranked 19th in points per game (4.12), seventh in goals per game (2.82), 20th in shooting percentage (.453) and 36th in man-up goals. Walker was also chosen unanimously the BIG EAST Freshman of the Year in 2017.
Also a 2018 Third Team USILA All-American, Gaines is also the reigning BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year. The senior, who often drew the opponent’s top attackman, was on the Watch List for the 2018 USILA Player of the Year last season. Gaines helped lead a defensive unit which was the nation’s third-best scoring defense (7.88 opponent goals/game). Individually, he picked up 36 ground balls and caused 22 turnovers. In 2018, Gaines led a defense that held all five BIG EAST opponents to six goals or less during the regular season, a combined 27 goals which is Denver’s lowest goals allowed in a five-game stretch since 1970. The stretch also marks the first time in Denver history that it has allowed six goals or less to five consecutive opponents.
Joining Walker and Gaines on the preseason all-conference team from Denver was senior midfielder Colton Jackson and senior defender Dylan Johnston, Jackson, a unanimous selection who was also a unanimous BIG EAST First Team honoree in 2018. Jackson was third on the Pioneers in points (34), goals (22) and assists (12), leading the Denver midfield in all three categories. Johnson, also a 2018 BIG EAST First Team pick, was honorable mention All-America as a junior last season. Johnson was second among the Denver defensemen in ground balls with 25 and caused turnovers with 17. Denver will be missing the familiar face of Trevor Baptiste this season, a four-time BIG EAST Midfielder of the Year. Baptiste, the Pioneers go-to faceoff specialist since 2015, was selected first in the Major League Lacrosse Draft last season. Denver finished 13-4 overall in 2018, making it to the NCAA Quarterfinals.
Marquette, picked second by the league coaches, had three players named to the preseason all-conference team with senior attackman John Wagner, junior defender Nick Grill and senior long-stick midfielder Noah Richard. Wagner, a first team all-conference player from 2018, led Marquette with 30 goals and 39 points last season with five game-winning goals, all scored in overtime or the final 10 seconds of regulation. In BIG EAST play, Wagner was the league leader in goals per game (3.00).Grill was all-conference second team last season as he started all 13 games for the Golden Eagles playing at close defense. He picked up 23 ground balls and was part of a defensive unit that held opponents to 9.71 goals per game. Richard was a unanimous selection to the All-BIG EAST First Team last season and tied for second in the league in ground balls (48), behind Denver’s Baptiste. He also caused 11 turnovers on the season, while adding a goal and a pair of assists. Marquette finished 6-8 last season, 3-2 in league play.
The Hoyas, the defending BIG EAST tournament champions, also had three players named all-league in the preseason awards with senior attackman Daniel Bucaro, senior midfielder Lucas Wittenberg and sophomore defender Gibson Smith. Bucaro was a 2018 All-BIG EAST First Team honoree and USILA Honorable Mention All-American. He scored a BIG EAST-high 34 goals to go with 21 assists for a career-best and league-leading 55 points last season, including three five-goal games. Wittenberg was a second-team honoree in 2018. He notched career highs in goals (23), assists (20) and points (43) last season for the Hoya midfield. Smith was a second team honoree as a freshman last year as he started all 17 games at close defense for the Blue & Gray. He helped the Hoyas hold opponents to just 8.12 goals per game last year, six goals or less in eight games. Smith collected 59 ground balls to go with 19 caused turnovers. Georgetown finished 12-5 overall last year, ranked 12th nationally. Georgetown (12-5) lost to Johns Hopkins in the NCAA First Round, 10-9 in overtime.
Villanova, also a 2018 NCAA Tournament team, had a pair of players on the preseason all-conference team with junior midfielder Connor Kirst and senior short-stick defensive midfielder T.J. Comizio. Kirst was a first team honoree from 2018. He netted 25 goals and dished out nine assists for 34 points with 32 ground balls and five caused turnovers. He also took some draws, going 10-for-45 from the X. Comizio earned All-BIG EAST Second Team accolades as he collected 51 ground balls and caused 18 turnovers as a junior last year. Comizio also dished out 16 assists. The Wildcats hosted last year’s BIG EAST tournament and finished the year ranked No. 17 with a 10-6 record, 3-2 in league play. Villanova lost 17-11 to Duke in the NCAA First Round.
Goalie Tate Boyce and face-off specialist Alex George represent Providence on the preseason all-league team. The Friars finished 5-10 last season, 1-4 in the BIG EAST. Boyce was a first team all-league honoree as he posted a 9.65 goals against average and .529 save percentage between the pipes. He totaled 162 saves and picked up 23 ground balls. George won 75-of-144 attempts from the face-off X for a .512 win percentage as a junior in 2018. George also picked up a team-high 47 ground balls and scored once for the Friars.
St. John’s finished sixth last season with a 6-8 overall record, 0-5 in the league.
BIG EAST men's lacrosse action officially starts Feb. 2 when Villanova travels to Penn State. The first big Saturday of will be Feb. 9 when all five of the six teams are in action. League play gets underway March 30. The 2019 BIG EAST Championship presented by Jeep will be hosted by Denver, May 2 and 4.
Follow all the action for BIG EAST men’s lacrosse this season with the hashtag #BIGEASTmlax.
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year
Ethan Walker, Denver, Jr., A ^
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year
Dylan Gaines, Denver, Sr., D ^
Preseason All-BIG EAST Team %
Tate Boyce, Providence, Sr., G ^
Ethan Walker, Denver, Jr., A ^
Daniel Bucaro, Georgetown, Sr., A ^
John Wagner, Marquette, Sr., A ^
Colton Jackson, Denver, Sr., M ^
Lucas Wittenberg, Georgetown, Sr., M
Connor Kirst, Villanova, Jr., M
Dylan Gaines, Denver, Sr., D ^
Dylan Johnson, Denver, Sr., D
Gibson Smith, Georgetown, So., D
Nick Grill, Marquette, Jr., D
Noah Richard, Marquette, Sr., LSM ^
T.J. Comizio, Villanova, Sr., SSDM
Alex George, Providence, Sr. FOS
^ - denotes unanimous selection
% - due to a tie in voting, there are four defenders on the preseason all-conference team
2019 Preseason Coaches’ Poll
First place votes in ( )
| |
Pts. |
| 1. Denver (5) |
25 |
| 2. Marquette |
18 |
| 3. Georgetown (1) |
17 |
| 4. Villanova |
15 |
| 5. Providence |
10 |
| 6. St. John’s |
5 |