Hobart Picked to Win NEC East
29 January 2020 Hobart Picked to Win NEC East
The Hobart College lacrosse team was picked to win the Northeast Conference East Division in a preseason vote of the leagues coaches. The Statesmen were the unanimous choice, while Robert Morris got the most votes to win the West.
Bryant was picked to finish second in the East followed by Sacred Heart. The Merrimack and Wagner tied for fourth place. RMU got six first place votes in the West, Saint Josephs received three first place votes and is picked to finish second. Mount St. Marys got the other first place vote and landed third in the West. New Jersey Institute of Technology and Long Island University rounded out the poll.
Hobart was also picked to win theNEC East byInside Lacrosse. ILs preseason All-NEC team included senior attackmanEric Holden, senior midfielderJustin Scottand sophomore defensemanMichael Christiansen.
I hope weve taught our men well enough to understand preseason polls are meaningless, says Head CoachGreg Raymond, who is preparing for his seventh season at Hobart. It may sound redundant and unoriginal, but we will focus on today and then attack tomorrow when it comes.
With the addition of three new members for mens lacrosse, the NEC will have two divisions for the first time this year. LIU, Merrimack, and NJIT give the league 10 teams in mens lacrosse. Teams will play the other four teams in their division as well as three of the five from the other division.
Hobart is coming off an 11-5 season in 2019. The Statesmen went 4-2 in the NEC, finishing tied for second in the regular season standings. Hobart reached the NEC Tournament Championship game for the fourth time in six seasons in the league with a 14-13 semifinal win over Sacred Heart. The Statesmen fell to the Colonials 11-10 in the title game.
Hobart returns 36 letter winners, including eight starters from last seasons team. Holden tied the programs Division I era record for goals in a season with a team-leading 45 and shattered the mark for points in a DI season with 67. Scott enters his final collegiate season 13 goals away from 100 for his career. Since 1995, only two Statesmen have scored 100 career goals, Alex Love 15 and current Denver OutlawChris Aslanian19.
Hobart scored 223 goals last season, the most in the programs Division I era and the most by any Statesmen team since 1990 (290). The 2019 team had seven players produce 25 or more points. With six of the seven returning, Hobarts fire-power and depth promptedUSLacrosse Magazineto include Hobart in its5 Bold Predictions for 2020. The magazines staff speculated that the Statesmen have the potential to lead the nation in scoring.
Hobart begins its 118th varsity season Feb. 8, when the Statesmen host Canisius.