Bulldogs enjoy another successful season in 2016

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Though it has spent just eight years at the Division I level, the Bryant University men's lacrosse program has certainly stated its claim as a national threat over the past few seasons thanks the guidance and engineering of what will be 11th year head coach Mike Pressler.

The Bulldogs have become a force in the Northeast Conference, winning four-straight league titles prior to this season with three-straight NCAA tournament appearances from 2013-2015. Behind what is now six wins over nationally ranked competition, including a pair in 2016, the Black and Gold have gradually shifted out from under the radar and into the collegiate spotlight.

Though not every preseason goal was met in 2016, the campaign that was full of parity across the DI landscape produced many highlights and positives, further proving that the Bryant program has the leadership and talent to compete with the nation's best year in and year out.

GET TO 10

Pressler has preached since the day he took over at the helm that a major key to each game is getting to 10 goals. This season was no exception, as the Bulldogs were 9-0 when scoring over 10 goals, and 1-5 when scoring 10 or fewer.

The season started with a 16-goal outburst and victory over Manhattan in front of the home crowd. But what would also become a factor during the season showed itself in the second game, that factor being uncontrollable occurrences. Frigid temperatures forced the second home game against Bucknell to be moved to an indoor facility in Taunton, Mass. The Bulldogs dropped the contest, 11-10, but responded with road victories over Providence College and eventual America East champion Hartford with scores of 12-10 and 16-11, respectively.

Bryant returned home for three-straight contests and what would be the first of three matchups with a top-10 Ivy League opponent during the course of the year. The battle of the Bulldogs was played on March 5, as No. 6 Yale came to Smithfield. It was the highest-ranked team that Bryant had hosted in program history, and the eventual Ivy League tournament champs dominated the game with a 14-4 win.

Pressler knew that his team had much more fight, and that it needed to move on quickly with a Tuesday night affair with No. 8/7 Harvard looming. The Crimson boasted a top-10 offense prior to the matchup, but brand new home uniforms, a raucous crowd and stellar defense would make March 8th memorable. The Bulldogs trailed, 6-4, at the half, but owned the final 30 minutes, outscoring Harvard, 8-3, as they netted 12 goals and defeated their second top-10 opponent in program history.

SECOND SEASON

Following a disappointing, 14-5, loss to Drexel, the Bulldogs recouped and made their way to Siena for a much needed road matchup. The second uncontrollable occurrence made its impact on the season, as more than half the team contracted an aggressive stomach virus prior to the game. The Siena game was cancelled, and the next two contests were postponed to a later date.

The Bulldogs did not return to action until April 2nd and missed three weeks of lacrosse, an experience that was unique to Pressler and his team. The first game back was at Robert Morris, and thought rust was shaken off throughout the affair, the Bulldogs prevailed, 13-12.

Bryant again had a tall order ahead of them just three days later against the nation's top scoring offense. No. 2/3 Brown and its offense averaging over 15 goals per game awaited in Providence with one of the nation's best attackman in the country's leading scorer, Dylan Molloy. The senior laden Bears were undefeated at the time and a scoring juggernaut, but the Bulldogs knew that the allure of Tuesday night and their defense that had already limited Harvard was up for the task.

The first half was evenly matched, with goals being traded until the final horn of the frame. The hosts took a 4-3 lead at the break, but the Bulldogs answered in the third period to knot things up at 4-4. Brown raddled off three-straight goals and took an 8-5 edge into the fourth.

The Bulldogs' three-goal deficit remained with just under three minutes to play, but a goal from Tom Kennedy (Farmingdale, N.Y.) and two from Ryan Sharpe (Poway, Calif.) tied the game, 9-9. The Bears recaptured the lead with 53 seconds remaining and the Bulldogs were forced to respond once again, as Tucker James (Essex Fells, N.J.) tied the contest with 27 seconds left.

Brown had the first possession in OT and its first shot was saved, allowing Bryant to work quickly in transition which set up a Shane Morrell (Glen Mills, Pa.) goal for the win. It gave the Bulldogs their second victory over a top-10 opponent of the season and their second win over a top-five team in program history. It was also the second time in three seasons that they had defeated and outscored the nation's top scoring offense on the road, defeating then-No. 13 Albany, 13-12, on March 15, 2014.

The Bulldogs won the first three games of their new season, capped off by an 18-3 triumph over Wagner on April 9. Though they dropped a 10-9 overtime decision at the hands of Saint Joseph's on the road on April 16, the Black and Gold won six of seven games in the month of April and headed to Philadelphia for the NEC Tournament as the No. 2 seed for a second-straight season.

Bryant also entered the top-20 according to the Cascade/Maverick Inside Lacrosse Media Poll on April 25, marking the first time it had been ranked since 2014's magical season.

SEASON ACCOLADES & INDIVIDUAL SUCCESS

Despite falling short of a league title and an NCAA tourney berth for the first time in three years, the Bulldogs still captured a share of the regular season crown in the NEC with their 5-1 mark and secured double-digit wins for the seventh time under Pressler.

Bryant had nine players named to All-NEC teams, as both James and defender Kyle Mummau (Carlsbad, Calif.) were made first-team selections for the second-consecutive season. Netminder Gunnar Waldt (Freeland, Md.), Morrell, defenders Chas South (Lincroft, N.J.) and Anthony Johnson (Fairfield, Conn.) and both Kennedy and Sharpe were named to the second team. Defenseman Mike Vailas (Bedford, N.H.) was an All-NEC Rookie Team selection.

The offensive midfielders emerged as steady options throughout the year, particularly the play of Sharpe and junior Tom Forsberg (Huntington, N.Y.). The two finished third and fourth on the team with 36 (24g, 12a) and 25 (13g, 12a) points, respectively. Both middies more than doubled their point production from 2015 and will be relied upon heavily in their senior campaigns. Kennedy will also be an important piece to the midfield once again as a junior following his 19-point season (14g, 5a).

Perhaps the most pressing question heading into the season was how the void of faceoff specialist Kevin Massa ('15) would be filled. His brother, Kenny Massa (Huntington, N.Y.) was a long pole in 2015, but transitioned to the team's specialist in 2016. Though he was not as dominant as his brother, who will go down as arguably the greatest to handle the X that the sport has seen, Kenny Massa came into his own during the year. He went 186-for-337 at the faceoff, sporting the third-best winning percentage (55.2) in the NEC. He picked up 86 ground balls, and his 5.87 ground balls per game were tops in the league and 12th in the nation.

The stalwarts at attack were James and Morrell, as they were in 2014 and 2015. Morrell finished the season with 40 points on 30 goals and 10 assists, and he became Bryant's all-time leader in game-winning goals this season. James was the leader for the Bulldogs offensively with a career high of 55 points on 33 goals and a personal best of 22 assists, as he led the league with 1.47 helpers per game. James tied the program record for points in a game with 13 (6g, 7a) against Wagner and the two were named NEILA All-New England Second Team selections.

The offense averaged just over 11 goals per contest, but it was the defense that carried the momentum during the season and allowed the Bulldogs to knock off the likes of Harvard and Brown. The defense surrendered just 8.53 goals per game and caused 7.60 turnovers per game, both second in the NEC and 12th and 14th at the DI level, respectively. The trio of Mummau, South and Johnson were All-NEC selections and each started all 15 games. Mummau often covered the opposition's top player, as he caused 10 turnovers and picked up a career high 17 ground balls. Johnson caused 13 turnovers which was second on the team and picked up 19 ground balls and South led the team with 22 caused turnovers, while sitting third in the NEC with 1.47 per game.

The unit will need to play at an elite level once again next season due to the loss of the senior goalie Waldt. He exits the crease as the Black and Gold netminder following yet another sensational season in which he posted 12 double-digit save outings and six games allowing seven or fewer goals. He recorded 165 saves, allowed 124 goals and went 10-5 starting in all 15 games. Waldt led the NEC with 11 saves per game, ranking 18th nationally. He finished the season second in the conference in save percentage (57.1) and goals-against average (8.45), numbers that ranked eighth and 12th in the country, respectively. He turned away 17 shots against Brown's high-powered attack, good for the second most of his career. He and the Bulldogs defeated Hobart, 15-2, on senior day, matching the fewest goals that Waldt had allowed and the fewest goals that an NEC team had allowed since the inception of the league seven years ago.

The Freeland, Md., product became the program's all-time leader in saves during the season, as he finishes with 739. He sits in the top-10 all-time among Bryant keepers with an 8.37 goals-against average, 40 wins and a 57.8 save percentage.

Waldt added a plethora of honors to his list of achievements this season, including a USILA All-America Honorable Mention nod, an All-NEC Second Team selection, NEILA All-New England Second Team nod, four NEC Defensive Player of the Week honors and his second Tewaaraton Award Semifinalist pick.

ON THE HORIZON

The Bulldogs will no doubt have holes to fill in 2017. A new netminder will graze the crease for the first time in four seasons, Morrell will no longer be a relied upon option at attack for the first time in four years, and losses to the midfield like seniors Collins Gantz (Denver, Colo.) and Willy Gould (New Canaan, Conn.) will have an impact on the team both on and off the field. 

But with the return of the starting defenders, the emergence of the midfielders, the continued development of Kenny Massa at the X, the leadership of James at attack and another influx of incoming freshmen will put the Bulldogs in great position to get back to the forefront of the NEC.