Dec. 17, 2003

BALTIMORE, Md. -- The Johns Hopkins men's lacrosse team, which returns six starters, three All-Americans and six of its top eight scorers from last season, is ranked number one in the 2004 NCAA Division I Lacrosse Magazine Preseason Poll. The Blue Jays have ended the last two regular seasons ranked number one and have been the top seed in the last two NCAA Tournaments. Johns Hopkins will open the 2004 season on February 28 when its hosts the University of Pennsylvania at Homewood Field.

Johns Hopkins posted a 14-2 record and advanced to the National Championship game before falling to Virginia, 9-7 last May. The Cavaliers are ranked second in the Lacrosse Magazine Preseason Poll, while Maryland, Syracuse, and Princeton round out the top five. The Blue Jays will play each of the other four teams ranked in the top five as well as North Carolina (7th), Duke (12th), Towson (13th), Navy (14th), Hofstra (15th) and Loyola (20th) during the 2004 season.

All-Americans Kyle Barrie, Kyle Harrison and Kevin Boland return to spearhead an offense that led the nation in scoring last season. Barrie, a First Team All-American in 2003, led the team in scoring with 37 goals and 20 assists last season, while Harrison (22g, 14a) and Boland (21g, 25a) garnered Second and Third Team All-America honors, respectively.

2004 Lacrosse Magazine Preseason Poll (Division I):

1-Johns Hopkins, 2-Virginia, 3-Maryland, 4-Syracuse, 5-Princeton, 6-Rutgers, 7-North Carolina, 8-Georgetown, 9-Cornell, 10-Massachusetts, 11-Notre Dame, 12-Duke, 13-Towson, 14-Navy, 15-Hofstra, 16-UMBC, 17-Penn State, 18-Dartmouth, 19-Loyola, 20-Ohio State. Others Receiving Consideration: Harvard, Army, Denver, Villanova, Yale.

2004 Johns Hopkins opponents in italics

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