STATE COLLEGE, Pa., May 9, 2003 - The Eastern Coast Athletic Conference released its 2003 men's lacrosse All-ECAC first and second team squads ECAC officials announced today. Six Nittany Lions were honored for their performances throughout the year. Senior captain Matt Zappia (Canandaigua, N.Y./Canandaigua Academy) earned first team All-ECAC defenseman. Zappia started in every match this season and was fifth on the team in ground balls with 30. He tallied one shot against Virginia and was the leader for the defensive unit. This is the second time in his career Zappia earned All-ECAC honors. Last season he was honored as a second team defenseman and also earned second team ECAC All-Academic honors. Five Nittany Lions were named to the All-ECAC second team. Freshman Nate Whitaker (Alexandria, Va./Thomas Jefferson) and senior Luke Ogelsby (Bryn Mawr, Pa./The Haverford School) earned spots on the second team as attackmen. Whitaker started in all 13 games as a freshman and led the team in points (33), goals (23), shots (73) and was second on the team in assists with 10. He scored at least one point in every match this season and was named ECAC Rookie of the Week after his five-goal and one assist effort in an 11-10 upset over Massachusetts. Luke Ogelsby led the Lions in assists (19) and was second on the team in points (32). He finished the regular season second in the ECAC in assists with a 1.58 assists per game average. Ogelsby finished in the ninth spot on the Penn State career assists list with 63 assists and finished with over 100 points in his career. Senior captain midfielder Marshall Feldman (Davidsonville, Md./Severn) was the third Nittany Lion named to the All-ECAC second team. Feldman was second on the team in goals (19) and third in points (26). He was honored to the ECAC Weekly Honor Roll after scoring two goals and one assist against Rutgers. Junior Rob Bateman (Sparks, Md./Hereford) earned the lone long-stick midfielder spot on the second team. Bateman competed in all 13 making eights starts. He led the ECAC in ground balls (90) and ranked fifth in the NCAA in ground balls per game (6.92). Bateman also tallied eight assists on the year, which is third best on the team. Last year, Bateman earned second team All-ECAC honors and was a USILA Honorable Mention All-American. Rounding out Penn State's second team selections was senior captain goalkeeper Chris Garrity (Annapolis, Md./St. Mary's). Garrity was the started in goal in all 13 games. He leads the ECAC in save percentage in conference games only and was third on the team in ground balls (42). Garrity was named ECAC Defensive Player of the Week twice this season. His first honor came after he made 14 saves in the 7-6 upset over Rutgers and his second designation came after he made 14 saves against Ohio State as he secured the fifth spot on the Penn State career saves list with 428 career saves. The Lions earned its first NCAA Tournament bid in school history this past week. Penn State will travel to Towson, Md. on May 10 to take on the Towson Tigers at 7:30 p.m. at Towson University Stadium. The Tigers lead the all-time series over the Nittany Lions, 11-4. Penn State on the last meeting in 1995 with a 15-10 victory in Towson, Md. 2003 Major Awards: Offensive Player of the Year
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