After posting a 14-1 record in 2009 and winning their second consecutive PNCLL Conference Championship, Simon Fraser will begin the 2010 season ranked No. 4 in the MCLA by the MCLA Lax Mag – Adidas Pre-Season Top 23 Poll. 
The Clan will look to win their ninth conference title this season and earn an opportunity to improve on back-to-back one-goal losses in the MCLA National Championship quarterfinals in 2008 and 2009.
In their sixth season under Co-Head Coaches Jeff Cathrea and Brent Hoskins, Simon Fraser will look to build upon three out of conference (OOC) wins in 2009 as they embark on one of the nation’s toughest schedules. 2010 features eight games versus OOC competition with nine opponents ranked in the Top 25, including eight of the top eleven and all four other teams ranked in the top five.
The Clan return ten of twelve starters, including four of six All-Americans and nine of thirteen All-Conference selections. With all five of their Top 5 scorers back for another year, a group that combined for 301 points in 2009, the Clan are one of several teams entering the 2010 season that must be considered a legitimate national title contender.
Of note, Simon Fraser will enter the season with two players sidelined due to injury. Senior midfield and face-off specialist, Ben Johnson (Calgary, AB/Berkshire Preparatory), a 2nd Team All-American in 2009, and junior midfield Ben Davies (New Westminster, BC/New Westminster Secondary) are questionable to return in 2010 after requiring off-season ACL knee surgery to recover from injuries suffered while playing box lacrosse this past summer. With the absence of Johnson and Davies, Cathrea and Hoskins will look to a strong freshmen class to step in early and contribute for the Clan in 2010.
ATTACK
Fraser returns all three starting attack, with senior Adam Foss (Cochrane, AB/Cochrane High School), senior Ben Towner (Port Coquitlam, BC/Terry Fox Secondary) and junior Chris Tessarolo (New Westminster, BC/New Westminster Secondary) expected to once again lead a high powered Clan offense that ranked first in MCLA scoring last season with an average of 18.13 goals per game, including 14.67 goals per game versus ranked opponents. SFU has scored in double digits 40 times in its last 42 games and is averaging 16.74 goals per game during that time (703 goals in 42 games). The high scoring trio, combined for 118 goals and 60 assists (14.83 ppg) in the 12 games they started together last season and will look to carry this pace forward against a much tougher schedule in 2010.
Towner led the MCLA Division I in goals per game in 2009 with 4.67 and finished 3rd in points per game with 6.00. Foss finished 6th in the MCLA in points per game with 5.27.
Towner was named a MCLA 1st Team All-American for the second consecutive season, while Foss was named to the MCLA All-America 2nd Team for the first time in his collegiate career. Additionally, all three players collected conference hardware with Foss and Towner named to the PNCLL All-Conference 1st Team and Tessarolo named to the PNCLL All-Conference 2nd Team. Towner was also named PNCLL Offensive Player of the Year for the second straight year, while Tessarolo was named PNCLL Conference Championship Final Four MVP.
Towner led the Clan with 70 goals and 90 points in 2009, while Foss finished first in assists with 42 and second in goals (37) and points (79). Tessarolo who played sparingly in the Clan’s 2009 wins over Washington State (28-2), Idaho (15-5) and Oregon State (20-3) finished fourth in team points (48) with 33 goals and 15 assists.
Also in the mix for the Clan is Bryan Scott (Guelph, ON/John F. Ross Collegiate), a junior who will add valuable depth up front and look to work in on Fraser’s left side.
MIDFIELD
Heading in to the 2010 season, freshmen Colton Dow (Coquitlam, BC/Heritage Woods Secondary), Stu Mills (Campbell River, BC/Timberline Secondary) and Eric Ransom (Sherwood Park, AB/Bev Facey High School), will compete with senior captains Kevin Riley (Coquitlam, BC/Gleneagle Secondary) and Russel Thomas (Nanoose Bay, BC/Ballenas Secondary), along with sophomore Rick Bezuidenhout (Campbell River, BC/Timberline Secondary) for time on the Clan’s top two midfield lines. All six players are expected to provide a secondary scoring threat through the midfield and play an important role towards Simon Fraser’s success this season.
Thomas, a MCLA 1st Team All-American in 2008 and 2009, and a two-time PNCLL 1st Team All-Conference selection, is set to build upon the 34 goals and 15 assists that he registered last season to once again lead the Clan’s top offensive unit. Riley will also look to build on a successful 2009, where he enjoyed a breakout season to finish fifth in team scoring with 20 goals and 15 assists for 35 points and was named a PNCLL All-Conference Honorable Mention. Bezuidenhout, who saw his minutes limited last season due to injury, will look to have a breakout year of his own after contributing with 5 goals as a freshman.
Set to make an impact are a trio of freshman who will all be asked to contribute immediately. Dow, Mills and Ransom each have impressive box lacrosse resumes and will look to make a quick transition to the collegiate field game. They will all add to a dynamic midfield that will include multiple scoring threats for the Clan.
Other contenders include freshmen Frank Davalos (Moose Jaw, SK/Albert E. Peacock Collegiate) and Eric Dufresne (Surrey, BC/Ecole Gabrielle-Roy) who will both add speed and much needed depth to the SFU midfield.
LONG STICK MIDFIELD
Gone is three-time All-American and two-time PNCLL Most Valuable Player Curtis Manning, but the Clan will look to a familiar face to once again carry the bulk of minutes at LSM in 2009 in junior Luke Genereux. Genereux was named to the PNCLL All-Conference 1st Team as a LSM in 2007, before taking a year off to coach field lacrosse overseas in England. Genereux, who played closed defense for the Clan as a sophomore in 2009, was one of only four SFU players to receive All-Conference recognition in 2007 and he will undoubtedly look to challenge for this honor again in 2010.
CLOSE DEFENSE
The Clan will look to returning starters Curt Brown (Lantzville, BC/Dover Bay Secondary) and Nathan Clare (Ladner, BC/Vancouver College) to anchor their starting corps of close defenders in 2010. Brown, a PNCLL All-Conference 2nd Team selection in 2009, brings size and strength to add a physical presence to the Clan’s back line; while Clare, named to the PNCLL All-Conference 1st Team last season, is an athletic, shut down defender who is also adept at taking away the ball.
Brown and Clare, both entering their junior year, will be joined by sophomore defender Dan Patterson (Erin, Ontario/Erin District High School). Patterson who came to Simon Fraser as a highly touted recruit out of the Ontario Edge lacrosse program will move into a starting role in 2010, after receiving a PNCLL All-Conference Honorable Mention as a freshman.
Senior captain Aiden Inglis (Edmonton, AB/Ross Sheppard High School) will contribute important minutes off the bench, while freshmen long poles Sam Biagioni (Surrey, BC/Fraser Heights Secondary) and Mitch Frank (Burnaby, BC/St. Thomas More Collegiate) will look to add depth defensively.
GOALIE
Cathrea and Hoskins have named junior Dean Stewart (Duncan, BC/Claremont Secondary) as Simon Fraser’s starting goaltender for 2010. Stewart, who split time in net for most of last season, has backstopped the Clan to consecutive PNCLL Conference Championships.
Senior Mike Ripley (Saskatoon, SK/E.D. Feehan High School) will provide valuable experience in goal and will give Fraser a solid second option as a back-up while, freshman Kyle Middleton (Nanaimo, BC/Woodlands Secondary) adds considerable depth in between the pipes for the Clan.
FACE-OFFS
A strong face-off percentage is always key to success and the Clan have options when it comes to finding a winning combination at the faceoff box. With 2009 starter, Ben Johnson currently sidelined by injury, sophomore midfield Ryan Hodge (San Antonio, Texas/Texas Military Institute) will begin the spring season as the Clan’s starting draw man. Senior captains, Kevin Riley and Aidan Inglis also have experience taking face-offs and will provide the Clan with additional options, capable of winning valuable possessions.
ABOUT SIMON FRASER MEN’S LACROSSE
Simon Fraser University men’s lacrosse is in its 15th season and competes in the Men’s Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA). During the 2010 season, 2008 and 2009 PNCLL Coaches of the Year, Jeff Cathrea and Brent Hoskins (6th season), look to lead the Clan into the Pacific Northwest Collegiate Lacrosse League (PNCLL) Final Four Conference Championships for the 13th time in team history. The team has captured eight Conference Titles (1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2008 and 2009) and has earned nine National Championship appearances, placing 2nd in 1999 and most recently reaching the 2008 and 2009 MCLA Quarterfinals.
http://www.laxpower.com/laxnews/news.php?story=16851
During his hour and a quarter commute to UC Santa Barbara every day, Mario Waibel has plenty of time to think. Sure, he satisfies his cell phone obligations to recruits and others, but some of the time is dedicated to pondering what this season holds.
The view is a lot better – or perhaps ‘stable’ is a more apropos word – now than the last time Waibel reflected about the Gauchos.
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