Bryant picked second in NEC preseason poll
SOMERSET, N.J. – The Bryant University men's lacrosse team was selected to finish second in the Northeast Conference in a poll of the NEC's seven head coaches, as announced Tuesday by the conference office.
Bryant, which finished second in NEC play a year ago at 5-1, placed behind 2018 NEC tournament champion Robert Morris, which was a unanimous first-place selection. Sacred Heart was picked third and followed by Hobart, Mount St. Mary's, Saint Joseph's and Wagner in the seven-team poll.
The Bulldogs return three of the team's top five goal scorers from a year ago – NEC Rookie of the Year Marc O'Rourke (Hingham, Mass.), All-NEC selection Trevor Weingarten (Allendale, N.J.) and Jake Buonaiuto (Miller Place, N.Y.) – in addition to starting goalie Kevin Beimfohr (Mountain Lakes, N.J.), All-NEC defenseman Zach Coffey (West Newbury, Mass.) and seven other players who appeared in at least 13 games in Black & Gold a year ago.
Bryant selected seniors Will Hamernick (Darien, Conn.) and Kevin Quigley (Fairfax Station, Va.) and redshirt-junior Jack Horan (San Rafael, Calif.) as the team's 2019 captains during the fall.
The Bulldogs begin the 2019 season, their 20th as an NCAA program and 11th in Division I, Sunday, Feb. 10 at Bucknell. Bryant will open its home schedule Saturday, Feb. 16 against Providence at Beirne Stadium, which will be the full-time home field of the Bulldogs after the addition of lights and FieldTurf following last season.
Follow Bryant University men's lacrosse on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to get an inside look at the program.