Complete Release
CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (Feb. 4, 2015) - Despite winning the East Coast Conference title last season, the LIU Post men's lacrosse team placed second in the 2015 ECC Preseason Coaches' Poll, released Wednesday afternoon.
The Pioneers, who were listed second in the Face-Off Yearbook rankings and third in the USILA Division II Preseason Poll, posted an overall record of 11-6 in 2014, and finished third in the league standings with a 6-2 mark.
LIU Post went on to defeat Dowling, 10-9, in the East Coast Conference Championship, before toppling then-No. 3 Le Moyne and No. 1 Adelphi in the NCAA Tournament, en route to reaching the national championship game.
The green and gold bring back half of their All-ECC selections from last year. Senior defensemen
Robbie Chiocco (Massapequa, N.Y.) and
Justin Woodley (Bloomington, Minn.) combined to total 43 ground balls and 31 caused turnovers last season, while limiting opponents to the second-lowest goals-against average in the conference.
In the midfield, senior
Connor Drost (Wading River, N.Y.), the 2014 ECC Tournament Most Outstanding Player, ranked ninth in the league in assists (19). He also had 17 goals to his credit, nearly half of which came in the postseason.
Junior attackmen
Matty Beccaris (North Babylon, N.Y.) and
Ryan Slane (North Babylon, N.Y.) round out the Pioneers' returning All-ECC honorees. Beccaris tallied the seventh-most points in the conference in 2014 with 55 (33 G, 22 A). His 22 assists ranked in the Top-10 in the league, as well. Slane was the green and gold's third-leading scorer last year. He collected 24 goals and 18 helpers for a 42-point output.
LIU Post received three of a possible nine first-place votes and 74 points in the poll. NYIT earned the remaining six first-place nods and 78 points to top the ledger. Molloy, Mercy and Dowling rounded out the preseason's Top-5.
Head Coach
John Jez and the Pioneers open the 2015 season next Saturday (Feb. 14), when they face Queens (N.C.) in a Valentine's Day matinee in Severna Park, Md. at noon.