Dec. 12, 2006

BALTIMORE, MD - The Johns Hopkins men's lacrosse team had seven players named to the 2007 Inside Lacrosse/Face-Off Yearbook Preseason All-America Team it was recently announced. The Blue Jays placed one player on the first team and two each on the second, third and honorable mention squads. Three of the honorees are coming off seasons in which they earned STX/USILA All-America status.

Junior midfielder Paul Rabil (Gaithersburg, MD/DeMatha) earned first team honors, while junior attackman Kevin Huntley (Towson, MD/Calvert Hall) and junior midfielder Stephen Peyser (Lloyd Harbor, NY/Cold Spring Harbor) were named to the second team. Senior attackman Jake Byrne (Potomac, MD/Landon) and sophomore defensman Matt Drenan (San Diego, CA/Rancho Bernardo) garnered third team status, while senior goalie Jesse Schwartzman (Owings Mills, MD/Pikesville) and senior defenseman Eric Zerrlaut (Gambrills, MD/St. Mary's) grabbed honorable mention status.

Rabil was one of just two non-seniors to earn First Team STX/USILA All-America honors last season and became the first sophomore midfielder at Johns Hopkins since A.J. Haugen (1998) to earn first team status. He finished second on the team in goals (25) and assists (13) and paced the team in points (38) last season. He has 21 multi-point games and 16 multi-goal games in his career and has tallied at least one point in 27 of 30 career games played. Rabil has career totals of 48 goals and 27 assists for 75 points and ranks second in school history in points scored by a midfielder through their sophomore year.

Huntley earned Third Team STX/USILA All-America honors last season. He started all 14 games on attack last season, led the team in goals (30) and finished second in points (36). He also tied for the team lead in extra-man goals (4) and game-winning goals (2) and registered at least one point in 13 of 14 games. Huntley's efforts last season improved his career totals to 53 goals and 12 assists for 65 points. His 53 goals are the most of any returning player on the team.

Byrne, who will serve as a team co-captain for the second straight year, finished third on the team in goals (18), assists (10) and points (28) last season. He finished the 2006 season with an eight-game goal-scoring streak and a 10-game point-scoring streak. Byrne has registered at least one point in 35 of his last 39 games and is Johns Hopkins' career active leader in assists (30) and points (78) and is tied for second among active players in goals (48). He has also registered at least one point in every NCAA Tournament game in his career.

Drenan emerged last season as one of the top young defensive players in the nation as he fueled a Hopkins defense that held nine of 14 opponents to nine goals or less and six opponents to seven goals or less. He started all 14 games on close defense and became the first Blue Jay freshman to start a season-opener since Chris Watson (2002). Drenan finished fifth on the team - and first among close defensemen - with 32 ground balls on the year, the most by a JHU close defenseman since Michael Peyser had 33 in 2002.

Schwartzman has twice earned Honorable Mention STX/USILA All-America status and was named the Most Outstanding Player of the 2005 NCAA Tournament. He has started all 30 games over the last two years and posted an 8.15 goals against average and a .563 save percentage last season. Schwartzman boasts a 27-5 record in his 32 career starts, including a 6-1 mark in NCAA Tournament games, and ranks ninth in school history in career saves (344).

Zerrlaut rounds out Hopkins' preseason All-America selections as he is coming off a solid season. He started all 14 games last season and helped JHU hold nine of 14 opponents to nine goals or less and six opponents to seven goals or less, while grabbing 23 ground balls on the year.

Johns Hopkins posted a 9-5 record and advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals in 2006. The Blue Jays will open the 2007 season on February 24 when they host Albany at Homewood Field.

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