Rutgers lacrosse shoots for the next level
Young team taking on some of the top programs in the nation
BY DOUG McKENZIE Staff Writer
The Rutgers University (RU) football team has established itself as Big East power under head coach Greg Schiano, while at the same time, the RU wrestling team is also on the verge of emerging as a national contender under head coach Scott Goodale.

But there may soon be another Scarlet Knight men's team ready to share the stage with those two blossoming programs, as the men's lacrosse program prepares to compete with the elite teams in the nation. Next season, the Scarlet Knights will have four classes of scholarship athletes for the first time, and with the increase in talent, the RU team is beginning to resemble the type of team that head coach Jim Stagnitta has envisioned.

"It's a process," Stagnitta said of watching the program grow. "We're extremely young, with only three scholarship classes, so we've got between 15-18 freshmen and sophomores on the roster. That being said, we've played some very competitive games, and we're showing great progress."

With the rapid rise in popularity in the sport of lacrosse throughout New Jersey, and the Northeast in general, the Rutgers men's program looks to be benefiting from the improving level of play in the surrounding area.

With a number of players returning from last year's team, combinedwith the influx of several talented newcomers, the current Scarlet Knights roster is loaded with both talent and depth, with the promise of even better numbers on the horizon.

"We've got one of the top 12 freshman classes in the nation this year, and next year's class is looking to be extremely strong as well," the coach said. "And we play a top 10 schedule every year, so with young, impressionable players, we can't help but get better against that quality of competition. We're young, but extremely talented, and our young guys have improved dramatically."

After finishing last season with three wins in its last four games, the Rutgers entered this year hoping to pick up right where it left off. With 27 letter-winners (including eight starters) returning, the Scarlet Knights entered the season with some experienced players to help groom what has been labeled one of the top contingents of freshmen in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC).

Yes indeed, this is an exciting time for Rutgers men's lacrosse, as the Scarlet Knights look to follow the trend started by the other men's teams in recent years - becoming a national power in a relatively short period of time.

That is not to say the Scarlet Knights have not enjoyed any success in the past. Stagnitta has led the Scarlet Knights to a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances in his six years at the helm and has consistently had his squad on the verge ofmaking the RU team the type of team capable of competing for anECACtitle every year. Last year, the Scarlet Knights faced four ranked opponents, won two more ECAC contests than the previous year to finish with a 7-6 overall record and a 4-3 mark in conference play. It was the first winning season for the program since 2004 and earned Rutgers a final ranking of 18th in the USILA Poll and a No. 19 spot in the Nike/Inside Lacrosse rankings. The ScarletKnights alsowent 4-0 in one-goal games, compared to the team's 2- 4 record in one-goal games during the 2006 campaign.

In individual accolades, three players earned All-ECAC honors, highlighted by Hunterdon Central's Justin Pennington's Rookie of the Year award. Pennington had one of the most successful rookie campaigns in recent Rutgers history, scoring 19 goals, good for second-best on the team, and handing out eight assists, also the second-highest total for Rutgers.

Defender Chris O'Dougherty, a junior from Seton Hall Prep, also had a phenomenal year in 2007, being named Second Team All-ECAC, after helping hold opponents under 10 goals in six games, including threestraight contests fromMarch 31-April 7.

Both Pennington and O'Dougherty received numerous preseason accolades, with both being named 2008 Preseason All-ECAC and to the Faceoff Yearbook Preseason All-Conference team.

In addition, O'Dougherty was picked as a Preseason Third Team All-American and Pennington garnered HonorableMention All-American accolades.

Neither has disappointed either, as Pennington has tallied 17 goals and seven assists in 10 games, while O'Dougherty has been every bit as good as a year ago in helping to solidify the RU defense.

While Rutgers has plenty of other talented players back, Stagnitta has also added eight talented freshmen to provide depth at every position. No freshman has had a bigger impact than South Brunswick's Kory Kelly, who was one of the top scholastic players in the state a year ago, and has already given every indication that he will be one of the top collegiate attackers before long. Kelly, who was the focus of the oppositions' game plan throughout his high school career, has adjusted nicely to the college game, leading the Scarlet Knights with 21 goals and two assists.

"Kory still has a lot to learn, but like other young guys on this team, he was thrown into the fire with us," Stagnitta said. "Consistency is the key for him right now. He went from the top of the heap [in high school] to the bottom in a hurry, and even with as talented and physically strong as he is, he's got to understand that he's not going to be as dominant as he was in high school. Once he develops that level of consistency we're looking for from him, he'll be a very special player."

Kelly's emergence as a force has helped RU immensely, and as he continues to understand the differences in the collegiate game, he will only get better.

That can be said of RU's offense in general as well.

"We are very young and still have some room to grow," Stagnitta said. "I think it's going to depend on how quickly a couple of these young guys come around."

Tad Stanwick's return from an ACL injury has also helped solidify the RU attack, as the sophomore from Baltimore,Md., has added seven goals and seven assists, while sophomoreGerhard Buehning, also of Seton Hall Prep, has added 13 goals and seven assists. Mike Dugan is also a force on the attack, after tallying 15 goals and eight assists in 2007, making him the team's secondleading returnee in goals, assists and points.

With Pennington leading the way, the Rutgers midfield has been solid, as expected.

"I think themidfield is probably the second strongest area of the team," said Stagnitta. "There's a lot of depth and experience there. Even though it's young experience, it's still experience because all of the sophomores played a great deal last year. It's definitely an athletic group and I think we want to use that athleticism to dictate the pace we play and how we play. I also think a lot of our success on the offensive end [depends] greatly and significantly on howthat group plays."

Pennington was expected to lead the group as hewas the team's leading returnee in goals (19), assists (eight), points (27) and groundballs (49). He has done that and more, as Stagnitta says that he has the ability to impact and dominate all aspects of the game. Pennington is so athletic that the coaching staff tends to use him in almost every situation.

Jeff Rommel, the team's third-leading returnee in goals, assists and points, has also played well for the Scarlet Knights, with 10 goals and four assists. A three-year starter, Rommel, of Syracuse, N.Y., has gained a wealth of experience and now has a vast knowledge of the game. Sophomores Taylor Bottar andHunter Burnard also solidify the midfield, after scoring a combined 25 games as freshmen. So far this year, they have combined for eight goals and nine assists.

With O'Dougherty leading the way, the Rutgers defense is every bit as good as expected this season.

"We had some pretty high expectations defensively, because that's where we have the most experience," Stagnitta said. "We thought this would be the strongest part of the team, butwe've had a couple of guys sick or injured. But some of the younger guys have stepped up here as well."

Stagnitta calls O'Dougherty "one of the premier defenders in the country" as he routinely plays against the other team's best attackman. Stagnitta notes that his stick work has improved greatly and he has grasped the team defense concept that paced the 2007 squad.

Senior leadership is also playing amajor factor as the Scarlet Knights return both Nick Filippone and Mike Sissler. Filippone has seen significant playing time in each year of his career at Rutgers and has really developed into a leader with a wealth of experience and knowledge. Stagnitta says, "He's improved dramatically individually and I think he's playing the best lacrosse of his career right now."

Sissler, a fifth-year senior who has started since arriving at Rutgers, played excellent for the ScarletKnights in 2007.Wantagh, N.Y.'s Will Stone, a junior who Stagnitta called the most improved player last year, is an added threat on the defensive side of the field. Stone has terrific speed and can handle the stick extremely well. Sophomore SeanHover, of BelleMeade, and junior ChrisGammello, of Rockville Center, N.Y., also provide a great deal of depth on defense, while Stagnitta also has a good group of underclassmen who have shown promise.

Sophomore Billy Olin led the team with six wins and an 8.12-goals-against average in 2007, and has seen the majority of the time in the net this year, allowing just over nine goals per game. Junior Peter Pantages has also played some goalie once again, and is allowing nearly 11 goals per game. As both players continue to log minutes, their improvement can only help to strengthen what is already a good Rutgers defense.

With plenty of talent scattered throughout the lineup, Rutgers is close to competing with some of the elite teams in the nation.

"We're right on the edge," Stagnitta said. "We're building a program here, and we're doing it the right way.We're not taking any shortcuts, and there's going to be some growing pains with that - mostly in the form of a lack of consistency. We only have four seniors on this team, and I ama big believer that seniors are really important to the success of a team."

This past weekend, the Scarlet Knights had a good chance to see just howthey stack upwith an elite teamwhen they hosted topranked Syracuse. Rutgers pulled to within four goalswith just under sevenminutes remaining in the game, but a potent Syracuse attack proved to be too much as the topranked Orange picked up a 17-9win atYurcak Field Saturday afternoon.

"We competed, but we were just a little overmatched defensively," Stagnitta said. "I don't think you can necessarily compare Syracuse to any other team we're played this year."

Against the Orangemen, Rutgers was led by Pennington, who scored three goals, his third hat trick of the season, while Kelly and Bottar each netted two goals for the Scarlet Knights.

The Scarlet Knights, who fell to Loyola (Md.) in their previous game, have dropped back-to-back games to top 20 opponents after winning two straight, and are now 4-6 on the year.

"The tables have turned a little bit from last year, in terms of those close games," Stagnitta said. "We lost toArmy and Princeton by one goal each, and if we had won those games, we're sitting at 6-4, and possibly right back in the top 15 in the nation."

With just three games left on their ECAC schedule, Rutgers is hoping to finish strong, as they did last year. With the lessons learned in their last two showings against ranked teams, RU can end the season with a sense of optimism as they point to what could be big things in the near future for the program.

On Sunday, RUwill travel to Penn State to take on the Nittany Lions (also 4-6), before returning home on April 26 to host Georgetown (7-3). Georgetown is currently battling Loyola (6-4 overall, but 5-0 in conference play) for the top spot in the ECAC, but has already made its statement this year with an 8-2 upset of top-ranked and unbeaten Duke back in March. Rutgers' schedule will wrap up onMay 3 with a road game against the University of Massachusetts (5-5) in Amherst.

"We not exactly focused on judging where we are from the last two weeks," Stagnitta said. "We know what we're trying to build here, and we're looking forward to these next three games to continuewith the progress we've already enjoyed."