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Princeton University Athletics
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Men's Lax Update: Orban, Bonafede Honored; History; Rankings; Rutgers Notes
March 16, 2015 | Men's Lacrosse
A Monday men's lacrosse smorgasbord, as it were. If you want to skip ahead to the end and the game notes for Tuesday's Princeton-Rutgers game, you can simply click HERE. Also, note that face-off for the game at Yurcak Field is 6, not 7, as was originally listed.
To show you how good Kip Orban was against Penn in Princeton's 17-11 win last weekend, neither Ryan Ambler nor Mike MacDonald was nominated for Ivy League Player of the Week. And both of them were great.
Orban scored seven goals on seven shots and added two assists, giving him a career high in goals and points (with nine) and earning him Ivy League Co-Player of the Week honors, along with Brown defenseman Larken Kemp.
Of course, Ambler and MacDonald also had huge weeks. Ambler had five goals (career high) and three assists for eight points (career high), and MacDonald had three goals and six assists (career high) for nine points (career high tying).
For a little historical perspective on that, consider this: In the entire history of Princeton lacrosse, there had never before been a game in which two players had at least nine points or in which three players had at least eight points.
In addition, going back to when game-by-game scoring records were first kept, in the late 1980s, Princeton has never had a game where three players combined for at least 15 goals or 26 points. If you're wondering about Jesse Hubbard, Chris Massey and Jon Hess, the three All-America attackmen who led Princeton to three straight NCAA titles from 1996-98, the most goals they combined for in one game was 13 (done three times) and their highest point total was 23 (against Towson in the 1996 NCAA quarterfinals).
For that matter if you're wondering about the Thompsons at Albany - Lyle, Miles, and Ty, who are pretty much the standard for high-scoring offense in recent years - they twice combined for 15 goals in a game but never had more than 23 points in a game.
Orban was not the only Princeton player honored by the Ivy League after the Penn game. Sam Bonafede was named Ivy Rookie of the Week after his 17-for-28 performance facing off.
Bonafede also won 7 of 9 in the first quarter, as Princeton built a 7-2 lead and never trailed in the game. For the year, Bonafede has won 56.7% of his face-offs (55 for 97) for a team that won 46.6% of its face-offs a year ago.
Bonafede will have a huge challenge at Rutgers against the Scarlet Knights' Joseph Nardello, who is fifth in Division I, having won 68.2% of his face-offs. Nardello was 20 for 30 against Princeton a year ago.
And what impact did Princeton's win over Penn have on its ranking? Well, if you add up Princeton's ranking in the media and coaches' poll from a week ago, it came to 23, as in 12th in the media poll and 11th in the coaches' poll. After the 17-11 win? It's still 23.
This week, Princeton is 10th in the coaches' poll, up one spot. And the media? They were so impressed that they dropped Princeton one spot, from 12th to 13th.
Later on this week, Princeton will take on Yale in another key Ivy game - they're all key - in its first home game in a month. Yale will come to Sherrerd Field ranked ninth in both polls.
As for Princeton-Rutgers, here's the rest of the story:
Here's a little Princeton lacrosse history for you, both very old and very recent.
As for the older history, Harland (Tots) Meistrell is the one who helped get lacrosse restarted at Rutgers in 1920 and Princeton a year later. Since that 1921 season, Princeton and Rutgers have played every year except for the World War II seasons of 1944 and 1945. Since 1958, the winner of the game has received the Harland Meistrell Cup.
As for the recent history, Princeton comes into this game three days after Kip Orban, Mike MacDonald and Ryan Ambler made some of their own on Franklin Field in a 17-11 win over Penn.
In that game, Orban had seven goals (on seven shots) and two assists, MacDonald had three goals and six assists and Ambler had five goals and three assists. Never before had Princeton played a lacrosse game, in the entire history of the program, where two players had at least nine points or where three players had at least eight.
All of this came one week after all three were shut out against Maryland. That game marked the first time all three had been shut out in the same game, and it ended several long scoring streaks - Orban had scored at least one goal in 29 straight games (fourth longest streak in Princeton history and the longest streak in Division I at the time), and Orban and MacDonald had at least one point in 31 straight games.
* * *
Princeton had 17 goals and 13 assists for 30 points against Penn.
Kip Orban, Ryan Ambler and Mike MacDonald combined for 15 of those goals and 26 of those points. Going back at least to 1990, no other trio of Princeton men's lacrosse players ever put up those numbers in a single game.
The most goals that Jon Hess, Jesse Hubbard and Chris Massey ever combined for in a single game was 13, which they did three times. Their highest point total was 23, against Towson in the 1996 NCAA quarterfnals.
The Thompsons at Albany - Lyle, Ty and Miles - twice had 15 goals in a game but never had more than 23 points in a game.
* * *
Kip Orban had seven goals (on seven shots, by the way) and two assists against Penn.
Ryan Ambler had five goals and three assists.
Mike MacDonald had three goals and six assists.
Here are the career highs they set or tied: Orban - career high in goals and points; MacDonald - career high in assists and tied career high in points; Ambler - tied career high in goals, career high in points.
* * *
Kip Orban has 95 career points. He needs five to become the 29th player in program history to reach 100.
Orban ranks 28th all-time at Princeton in goals scored with 72.
* * *
Kip Orban was named the Ivy League Co-Player of the Week after his seven-goal, two-assist, nine-point performance against Penn. It was the second time in his career that Orban has been honored by the Ivy League; he was Player of the Week last year after scoring the tying goal against Lehigh in the final seconds and then assisting on Tom Schreiber's game-winner in overtime.
Sam Bonafede was named Ivy League Rookie of the Week after winning 17 of 28 face-offs against Penn. Bonafede won 7 of 9 in the first quarter as Princeton built a 7-2 lead.
* * *
Princeton was ranked 12th in last weeks' media poll and then beat Penn 17-11. The Tigers dropped from 12th to 13th in this week's media poll.
* * *
Mike MacDonald now has 97 career goals. He needs three to become the 10th player in program history to reach 100.
If he does so, he will also become the third player to have at least 100 career goals and 50 career assists, along with Tom Schreiber and Dave Tickner.
MacDonald has 158 caerer points, leaving him five away from tying Tickner for 10th best at Princeton.
* * *
Mike MacDonald leads Princeton in assists with 15, more than the next two players combined. MacDonald led Princeton in assists a year ago with 22, givng him 37 in the last two seasons after having 24 in his first two years.
MacDonald had 67 goals and 24 assists in his first two years, or 2.79 goals per assist. Since then he has 32 goals and 37 assists, or 0.86 goals per assist.
MacDonald is second in Division I in assists per game at 3.0, behind only Penn's Nick Doktor.
* * *
The first men's lacrosse game in Princeton history was played in 1881. It was six years later that the game was first played by Rutgers.
Rutgers dropped its team in 1889. Princeton gave up on lacrosse a little after that, in 1893.
It's hard to imagine that neither school would have reinstated its program eventually. It's just tht one man sped up the process on both campuses.
Harland (Tots) Meistrell went from Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn to Rutgers in 1920, where he played varsity football as a freshman and also restarted lacrosse.
A year later, in 1921, he did the same at Princeton.
Today, he represents both schools in the U.S. Lacrosse Hall of Fame.
The 2015 meeting is the 93rd in the series, and Princeton brings a 60-29-3 lead into the game. The Tigers have won 26 of the last 27 meetings.
Princeton has played Rutgers more than any other opponent other than Yale, whom Princeton plays for the 99th time this coming Saturday.
* * *
Princeton and Rutgers were the only two Division I men's lacrosse programs in New Jersey for decades. Within the last two years, the number has doubled, as both Monmouth and NJIT have added programs.
* * *
Princeton is playing its fourth straight road game, and three of those will have been against teams in the Big Ten.
Princeton defeated Johns Hopkins 16-15 in overtime and then lost to Maryland 11-4 in its other two games against the Big Ten. Princeton also defeated Penn 17-11 Saturday on the road.
* * *
This will be the final game before the official start of spring for both teams. This will be Rutgers' ninth game and Princeton's sixth, meaning the teams will have played a combined 15 games in the winter.
Of Princeton's five games, two have been played in snow and one has been played in rain. Another was played in sunshine but a temperature of 25 degrees. The nicest weather Princeton has played in to date was at Maryland, where it was sunny at 40 degrees.
* * *
Princeton has scored 14, 14 ,16 and 17 goals in its four wins and four in its one loss.
The Tigers did not score a fifth goal against Maryland. In their other four games, they scored their fifth goal in the first quarter three times and within five minutes of the second quarter the other time.
* * *
Princeton freshman Sam Bonafede won 17 of 28 face-offs in the win against Penn. He also won 7 of 9 in the first quarter as Princeton built a 7-2 win.
Rutgers' Joseph Nardella ranks fifth nationally, having won 68.2% of his face-offs for the year.
Bonafede ranks 20th nationally, having won 56.7% of his face-offs.
A year ago, Princeton won 46.6% of its face-offs as a team. Nardella was 20 for 30 against Princeton a year ago and is 42 for 74 for his career against the Tigers.
* * *
Sam Gravitte, Princeton's longstick midfielder, had the first goal of his career and the first by a Princeton longstick this year in the loss to Maryland. He also had two caused turnovers and three ground balls. He currently leads Princeton in caused turnovers.
In addition to lacrosse last weekend, Gravitte also performed at McCarter Theater in Princeton in the musical “Spring Awakening.” Gravitte was in the show Friday night and then drove to Maryland separately from the team, returning immediately after the game in time for the Saturday night show.
The last two performances of the show were the Thursday and Friday before the Penn game.
* * *
When Princeton defeated Johns Hopkins, it marked the third straight year that Princeton had played a 16-15 game.
In the entire history of Princeton lacrosse prior to that, going back to 1882, Princeton had played one 16-15 game, against Rutgers in 1979.
* * *
Princeton returns home Saturday to take on Yale and then is home again the following Sunday against Brown.
A year ago, Princeton lost 16-15 at Yale and 11-10 at Brown.
* * *
Will Reynolds, a preseason third-team All-America defenseman, will miss the rest of the season due to a concussion he suffered in the season opener against Manhattan.
Mark Strabo had started every game of his career before getting injured after the Manhattan game. He has not played since.
Jake Froccaro missed the Hofstra and Hopkins games due to injury, returned to play against Maryland (scoring a goal) and then missed the Penn game due to injury.
* * *
Princeton had two players selected in the Major League Lacrosse draft. Kip Orban was selected in the third round by Charlotte, while Mike MacDonald went in the sixth round to Rochester.
Princeton also has two players on the Tewaaraton Trophy watch list - MacDonald and Jake Froccaro.
* * *
What Can You Say About ...
Bear Altemus #6
• playing in the second midfield
• had one goal in each of the first two games
• also had a goal against Maryland
• scored team's first goal of the season - and the first of his career - in the win over Manhattan
Ryan Ambler #14
• second-team All-Ivy League in 2014
• had five goals and three assists against Penn
• five goals against Penn tied career high; eight points were new career high
• had three goals and two assists against Johns Hopkins, including the tying goal with seven seconds remaining
• had four goals in the opener against Manhattan
• had two assists against Hofstra
• was second on the team in goals and third on the team in assists in 2014
• team's leading returning point scorer with 43 a year ago (24G, 19A)
• more than doubled goal total from freshman year to sophomore year (11 to 24)
• father Bob is the all-time leading scorer at Drexel
Austin deButts #30
• playing shortstick defensive midfield
• leads team with six caused turnovers
• had two caused turnovers against Hopkins
• had a caused turnover against Manhattan
Alistair Berven #40
• has started every game on defense
• played in two games a year ago
• a native of San Francisco who attended Lawrenceville Prep
Sam Bonafede #12
• has won 55 of 97 face-offs
• tied for the team lead with 21 ground balls
• won 17 of 28 face-offs against Penn to earn Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors
• won 7 of 9 in the first quarter against Penn as Princeton built a 7-2 lead and never trailed
• won 13 of 23 against Johns Hopkins
• had his first career point with an assist against Hofstra
• won 9 of 11 face-offs and had a team-best five ground balls against Manhattan
• won 68% of his face-offs during his high school career
• claims to be able to correctly identify the flag of every country on Earth
Zach Currier #25
• starting in the first midfield
• Ivy League Player of the Week after having two goals and three assists, while winning six of eight face-offs and having eight ground balls against Johns Hopkins
• had five points for the second straight game after tying career high with three goals and setting new career high with five points against Hofstra
• had two goals against Manhattan
• has seven goals on 11 shots for team-best .636 shooting percentage
• tied for the team lead in ground balls
• started his career with three point in 10 games; has 19 points in the eight games since
• had career highs with three goals, four points and five ground balls in the win over Dartmouth
• named Ivy League Rookie of the Week after the win over Dartmouth
Jake Froccaro #10
• preseason third-team All-America by Inside Lacrosse
• named to the Tewaraaton Trophy watchlist
• missed the Johns Hopkins and Hofstra games due to injury
• returned to have a goal against Maryland but then missed Penn game due to injury
• tied career-high with three assists against Manhattan
• second-team All-Ivy League in 2014
• first midfielder in program history to reach at least 50 goals by the end of sophomre year
• is the only midfielder at Princeton ever with at least 20 goals as a freshman and sophomore
• leading returning goal scorer after scoring 27 a year ago
• had 10 goals against Yale to tie 63-year-old school single-game record
• 2013 Ivy League Rookie of the Year
• 2013 honorable mention All-Ivy League
• had 24 goals and 10 assists as a freshman
Bear Goldstein #34
• is the only current player on the team to have started every game off his career
• had 11 ground ball and six caused turnovers as a freshman
Sam Gravitte #17
• team's No. 1 longstick midfielder
• second on the team in caused turnovers with five
• had his first career goal - and first by a Princeton longstick since Will Reynolds against Yale last year - as well as two caused turnovers against Maryland
• hda five ground balls and a caused turnover against Penn
• had four ground balls against Johns Hopkins, all on the wing on face-off wins
• can also face-off
• played against Maryland after appearing at McCarter Theater the night before and the night of the game in the musical “Spring Awakenings”
Adam Hardej #16
• has started four of five games on attack
• had a goal against Johns Hopkins
• had his first two career points with a goal and assist against Manhattan
Mike MacDonald #8
• selected in the sixth round of the Major League Lacrosse draft by Rochester
• named to the Tewaraaton Trophy watchlist
• has 158 career points (94G, 55A), 11th all-time at Princeton, five points away from the top 10
• with three goals would be the 10th player in school history to reach 100 for his career
• also needs three goals to become the third Princeton player (Wick Sollers, Tom Schreiber) to have at least 100 career goals and 50 career assists
• had three goals and six assists to tie career high with nine points against Penn
• has 12 goals and 15 assists in four games against Penn
• had three goals and two assists against Johns Hopkins
• Ivy League Player of the Week each of the first two weeks (shared the award with Harvard's Deke Burns in Week 2)
• tied career-high (set originally against Cornell in the 2013 Ivy tournament) with nine points against Hofstra with five goals and four assists; had one assist in the first half and then eight second half points, including a four-goal, three-assist third quarter
• had a two goal, three-assist, three caused turnover performance against Manhattan
• missed the fall after having arthroscopic surgery on both hips to repair bi-lateral torn labrums; recovery took six months
• 2014 second-team All-Ivy League
• 2014 Tewaaraton Trophy watchlist
• 2013 first-team All-Ivy League
• 2013 honorable mention All-America
• had 43 goals in 2013, the sixth-best single-season total in school history and the most by a Princeton player since Chris Massey had 45 in 1997
Gavin McBride #50
• playing in first offensive midfield
• has nine goals and five assists in four games after having no points as a freshman
• is the only player to have at least one goal in every game this year
• had three goals and two assists against Johns Hopkins, including the game-winning goal in overtime for his first overtime goal since his junior year of high school
• also scored against Hopkins to tie the game at 14-14 in the fourth quarter
• had a goal and two assists against Penn
• had two goals and an assist against Hofstra
• had two goals - the first two of his career - against Manhattan
Kip Orban #13
• team captain
• drafted in the third round of the Major League Lacrosse draft by Charlotte
• leads team with 16 goals and is second on the team wtih 21 points
• had career high seven goals and career high nine points in the win over Penn to earn Ivy League Co-Player of the Week honors
• nine-point day against Penn came one week after steak of 29 straight games with at least one goal was snapped against Maryland
• has the fourth-longest streak in program history, behind Chris Massey (46 games), B.J. Prager (31) and Jason Doneger (30)
• had a career-high four goals and, with two assists, career-high six points against Johns Hopkins
• had three goals and an assist against Hofstra
• had two goals against Manhattan
• 2013 second-team All-Ivy League selection
• had 27 goals and eight assists in 2013, including the game-winning goal in the Ivy League semifinal against Cornell in overtime
Brian Pickup #33
• can play longstick midfield or close defense
• the No. 2 longstick midfielder with Will Reynolds out with injury
• returned to play against Hofstra after missing all of last year and the opener this year due to injury
Rob Posniewski #41
• senior playing on the man-down defensive unit
• had a caused turnover against Penn
Will Reynolds #7
• preaseason third-team All-America by Inside Lacrosse
• will miss the remainder of the 2015 season after suffering a concussion in the opener against Manhattan
Aran Roberts #35
• freshman who has start the last three games
• Ivy League Rookie of the Week after the Johns Hopkins game
• had two caused turnovers against Hopkins, including caused turnover and ground ball that regained possession in overtime and led to the game-winning goal
• had a caused turnover against Penn, Hofstra and Manhattan
• grew up in Ireland (sounds like it) before attending high school in California (doesn't sound like it)
Will Rotatori #27
• started first eight games on attack a year ago
• now playing in the second midfield
• had an assist against Hofstra
• had five goals and an assist a year ago
Eric Sanschagrin #31
• has a .523 save percentage
• made a career-high high 16 saves in the win over Hofstra
• made 12 saves against Johns Hopkins
• made 10 saves against Penn
• made nine saves while allowing two goals in three quarters against Manhattan
• started the last five games of the 2014 season
• started the last four games of the 2013 season
Austin Sims #4
• freshman shortstick defensive midfielder
• had three ground balls against Hofstra
• missed the Maryland game due to an injury
• was a high school All-America
Mark Strabo #3
• had started every game of his career on defense before missing the last four games due to injury
• had 22 ground balls and seven caused turnovers a year ago
Riley Thompson #24
• plays mostly with the extra-man unit
• had two assists against Johns Hopkins, including cross-crease feed to Gavin McBride for the game-winning goal in overtime
GAME BY GAME
MANHATTAN (W, 14-4)
GOALS - Ambler 4, Orban 2, MacDonald 2, McBride 2, Currier 2, Altemus 1, Hardej 1
ASSISTS - MacDonald 3, Froccaro 3, Hardej 1
GOALIES - Sanschagrin (45:00 min, 2 goals-against, 9 saves); O'Connor (7:54 min, 0 goals-against, 3 saves); Blaisdell (7:06 min, 2 goals-against, 2 saves)
HOFSTRA (W, 14-12)
GOALS - MacDonald 5, Orban 3, Currier 3, McBride 2, Altemus 1
ASSISTS - MacDonald 4, Currier 2, Ambler 2, Rotatori 1, Orban 1, Bonafede 1, McBride 1
GOALIES - Sanschagrin (60:00 min, 12 goals-against, 14 saves)
JOHNS HOPKINS (W, 16-15)
GOALS - Orban 4, MacDonald 3, Ambler 3, McBride 3, Currier 2, Hardej 1
ASSISTS - Currier 3, Ambler 2, Orban 2, Thompson 2, McBride 2, MacDonald 2
GOALIES - Sanschagrin (60:00 min, 15 goals-against, 12 saves)
MARYLAND (L, 11-4)
GOALS - McBride 1, Froccaro 1, Altemus 1, Gravitte 1
ASSISTS - none
GOALIES - Sanschagrin (60:00 min, 11 goals-against, 8 saves)
PENN (W, 17-11)
GOALS - Orban 7, Ambler 5, MacDonald 3, McBride 1, Connors 1
ASSISTS - MacDonald 6, Ambler 3, Orban 2, McBride 2
GOALIES - Sanschagrin (60:00 min, 11 goals-against, 10 saves)
PRINCETON RECORDS
Career Points
247 Kevin E. Lowe (73G, 174A) 1991-94
232 Ryan J. Boyle (70G, 162A) 2001-04
215 Jonathan A. Hess, (82G, 133A) 1995-98
211 Jesse H. Hubbard (163G, 48A) 1995-98
200 Thomas M. Schreiber (106G, 94A)......... 2011-14
192 Christopher G. Massey (146G, 46A) 1995-98
182 David J. Heubeck (83G, 99A) 1977-80
174 Joseph S. (Wick) Sollers (114G, 60A) 1975-77
164 P. Justin Tortolani (120G, 44A) 1989-92
163 David H. Tickner (94G, 69A) 1975-77
158 Michael S. MacDonald (94G, 55A) 2012-present
153 Gerald P. Ronon (97G, 56A) 1980-83
152 Peter J. Trombino (98G, 54A) 2004-07
148 Sean P. Hartofilis (127G, 21A) 2000-03
Career Goals
163 Jesse H. Hubbard 1995-98
146 Christopher G. Massey 1995-98
126 Sean P. Hartofilis 2000-03
120 Justin P. Tortolani 1989-92
118 William J. Prager 1999-2002
114 Joseph S. (Wick) Sollers 1975-77
106 Thomas M. Schreiber 2011-14
105 Jason M. Doneger 2001-05
103 Joshua S. Sims 1997-2000
98 Peter Trombino 2004-07
97 Michael S. MacDonald 2012-present
97 Scott R. Conklin 1992-95
97 Gerald A. Ronan 1980-83
94 William M. Chaires 1973-75
94 David H. Tickner 1975-77
94 Lorne D. Smith 1996-99
90 Joseph P. McBride 2008-11
86 Jeff J. Froccaro 2010-13
84 Mark L. Kovler 2006-09
83 David J. Huebeck 1977-80
82 Jonathan A. Hess 1995-98
78 Samuel D. Hill 1947-50
77 Tommy Davis 2006-09
76 Scott D. Reinhardt 1991-94
74 Robert M. Thomas Jr. 1977-80
74 Rovert A. Palumbo 1985-88
73 Kevin E. Lowe 1991-94
72 Christopher A. (Kip) Orban 2012-present
70 Phillip S. Allen 1960-62
68 Andrew N. Moe 1988-89, 1991-92
65 Christopher R. McHugh 1988-91
63 Ralph N. (Bo) Willis 1951-53
59 Torr J. Marro 1990-93