Monday's entry is the sixth of a series taking a look at each of the seven Division I programs in this state according to their order of finish from last season. The Sun's men's lacrosse preview is set to be published Friday. This is Johns Hopkins' turn.
Overview: The independent pool got a lot smaller with the Blue Jays jumping to the Big Ten this season. Last year's team went 11-5, upset No. 8 seed Virginia in the opening round of the NCAA tournament, and fell to eventual national champion Duke in the quarterfinals. It was a firm rebuttal to critics who had harped on Johns Hopkins sitting out the 2013 tournament for the first time since 1971. The team will attempt to begin a new streak as a member of the Big Ten, the program's debut as a member of a conference. But league foes like Maryland, Penn State and Ohio State loom as obstacles in the path to the league's automatic qualifier to the NCAA tournament.
Reason for optimism: A defense that surrendered 8.9 goals per game last spring is poised to be just as stingy this season.
The unit returns two starting defensemen in senior John Kelly (38 ground balls and 12 caused turnovers) and Robert Enright (18 GB, 6 CT), two starting short-stick defensive midfielders in redshirt senior Phil Castronova (27 GB, 9 CT) and sophomore Joe Carlini (15 GB, 5 CT), one starting long-stick midfielder in senior Michael Pellegrino (27 GB, 13 CT) and its starting goalkeeper, fifth-year senior Eric Schneider (8.84 goals-against average and .547 save percentage).
The Blue Jays graduated just one major contributor: starting defenseman Jack Reilly (20 ground balls and six caused turnovers), and coach Dave Pietramala said sophomore Nick Fields has made the transition from long-stick midfielder to close defenseman.
"Nick Fields is going to fill that third spot," Pietramala said. "That's been decided through the fall, and Nick has earned that position. We've got a young man, [junior] Eddie Morris, who has really come along. And Travis Wood is a sophomore now. Those guys have developed and we feel like we've got to continue to develop those guys. If we can get them in a game and get them some experience, if we do have an injury, we're better prepared for it. As the weather gets hotter and as the season gets longer, those guys can really be a benefit for us."
Reason for pessimism: Among a group that includes senior Bronson Kelly, juniors Holden Cattoni and Connor Reed, and sophomores John Crawley, Cody Radziewicz and Kieran Eissler, Johns Hopkins would appear to have some depth in the midfield.
But with the season beginning Saturday against UMBC and a Thursday-Saturday format in the Big Ten tournament, Pietramala is insistent on developing a third midfield.
"You're not going to survive playing two midfields," he said. "You're going to run those guys into the ground and then if you earn a berth to the NCAAs, now you've got to turn around and play a week later? We have given this a lot of thought, and we do think it's important for us to play some more bodies at all of the positions because of the length of the season to keep guys fresher, to get more out of them late in the season. So whether it's one run per game or two runs game, running a third midfield will be very helpful to us."
Keep an eye on: Johns Hopkins ranked 15th among 67 Division I programs in faceoff percentage (57.0), and good deal of credit went to specialist Drew Kennedy, who ranked 14th in the country with a 59.0 faceoff percentage.
Injuries sidelined Kennedy from fall workouts, but the senior did take six faceoffs in a scrimmage against Denver on Jan. 24 and fared decently. Still, Pietramala said he is counting on Kennedy, junior Craig Madarasz and three other faceoff specialists to have an impact on the draws.
"I think an area we have to work on is the faceoff X," he said. "We've got to be better there."
What he said: The graduation of attackman Brandon Benn has opened a spot on the team's starting attack.
Sophomore Wilkins Dismuke and freshman Shack Stanwick are the leading candidates to fill that role and join a pair of returning starters in senior Wells Stanwick (Shack's brother) and junior Ryan Brown.
Dismuke has made considerable progress after a typical rough freshman campaign, but Pietramala said the younger Stanwick is making a case for himself, too.
"Both have shown very bright spots," Pietramala said. "There are areas both can improve upon, but nonetheless, we feel that we've got four guys down there that are capable. And it's not necessarily a situation where it's Shack or Wilkins. If one of those other guys is either injured or not performing, there is a comfort level to put one of these two guys that we're talking about in there for them. … It's a tough position, and you get the snot beat out of you all year. This gives us an opportunity to rotate four guys through and maybe keep all of them just a little bit healthier throughout the season."
