April 28, 2003

Villanova, Pa. - With the regular season complete the Villanova men's lacrosse program shifts its focus to the postseason. The 'Cats currently stand at 10-4 overall and 3-2 in the Colonial Athletic Association which earned them the #3 seed in the conference tournament.

Villanova will face Hofstra on April 30 at 7:00 p.m. in the semifinals of the CAA championship. On April 23 the 'Cats traveled to Hofstra and were defeated 9-5 in a rescheduled game from earlier this season. The Wildcats will look to return the favor and earn the right to move on to face the winner of Towson and Drexel who are also playing on April 30. The championship game will be held on Saturday May 3 at the highest seeds home field.

Hofstra has had a quality season up till this point compiling a 10-4 record and going 4-1 in the CAA. Recently the Pride has knocked off perennial powers Duke and Syracuse en route to a #9 ranking in the April 21st USILA poll.

WILDCAT LACROSSE NOTES

On Top of his Game: With the close of the regular season one Wildcat stands out on the national scene. Senior Brian Marks currently has 65 points on 43 assists and 22 goals. Not only are those numbers the best in his career but Marks is tops in the nation in points and assists. For his career Marks is the all-time assist leader in Villanova history with 114 assists at this juncture of his senior season.

Honors Abound: Villanova senior Brian Marks earned Co-Player of the Week in the CAA for the week of April 21. Marks helped the Wildcats to victories over Lafayette and Penn. Against Lafayette, Marks tallied seven points, on four goals and three assists, as Villanova was victorious 10-4. Marks continued where he left off against Penn scoring two goals in the 8-7 victory. Earlier this season Joseph Canuso (3/25) and Matt Starker (4/8) where named Rookies of the Week in the Colonial Athletic Association.

Senior Sendoff: In 2003 eight Villanova seniors have led the Wildcats on and off the field. The April 26th game against Delaware marks the last regular season game for those seniors and the last game to be played at Villanova Stadium in their careers. Brian Marks, Eddie Deegan, Owen Corso, Mike O'Donnell, Andrew Galano, Frank Falanga, Jeff Schmidt, and Sean Wall have all contributed much to the success of the Villanova men's lacrosse program and will be sorely missed.

Sophomore Surge: The Wildcats can attribute much of their success this season to the play of some young guns. Marc Creegan and fellow sophomore Jon Urbana have been staples in the Villanova starting lineup all year. Urbana has been shutting opponents down all season while Creegan has been Villanova's scoring threat on offense tallying 33 goals. Coming off the bench has been Dan Fanelli and Chris Kramer in the midfield position. Fanelli has notched five points and Kramer nine both in significant minutes. Graham Cloeter, a strong reserve defensmen, has recently been inserted into the lineup for Urbana who is out with a broken wrist.