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The JuCo Report: Previews, Rings, Gear

Welcome to Week 2 of the JuCo Report – it’s going to be a memorable 2017 season, I can feel it already. Of the 28 teams playing NJCAA men’s lacrosse in 2017, not one has played a game yet. So let’s keep on prepping for the season with a look at the 2016 rings, a new coach at Nassau, big upcoming games, what Genesee brings back in 2017, some more sweet gear, and a link back to last week’s preseason poll post. Plenty of good stuff there as well!

As always, if you want to be featured in the JuCo Report, have gear to show off, videos you want us to post, photos, game recaps, etc, GET AT ME! Email it to me at Connor@LacrosseAllStars.com or tweet it to me @ConnorWilsonLAS on the old Twitterface. The JuCo Report lives for you, and through you.

2016 National Champ Rings!

We’ve got some great photos of Genesee’s national championship rings from 2016. It was a huge year for the Cougars, and they capped it off with the school’s first ever title in Men’s Lacrosse, and second ever NJCAA national title in any sport. Their rings are bang! It even says so on the ring. This is one is Head Coach David Hoover’s.

2017 njcaa lacrosse champs ring2017 njcaa lacrosse champs rings2017 njcaa lacrosse champs ring

Nassau’s New Coach – John Savage

Nassau CC has been coached by George Powers for what seems like forever. He actually only took the job in 2011 when Rich Speckmann departed, but Powers’ mark on the program was very real, and while NCC didn’t win a title, they were right up there with the best in the NJCAA each and every year. John Savage now takes over the program as the Head Coach, and Coach Savage is the real deal.

I’ve met him in person, he loves the game for the right reasons, and will be a fantastic fit at Nassau. He’ll take the best of what Powers was doing, and gladly use it. He’ll also add in another level of dynamic play, and as a younger coach, he should get along well with the guys playing for him. Savage is, as his name suggests, an animal, but it’s in a good way. He’s the kind of guy you want to play for. Last year he coached a public high school team and made a huge difference in the program in a very short period of time. Give him a chance, and he’ll make good with what he’s got right away. Give him time and he could do some truly great things for the Lions.

We’ll have more on Nassau as the season progresses.

Big Games – Feb 25th!

The first official NJCAA games will kick off on February 25th, and we’ve got some good ones. Delaware Tech vs Southern Maryland could be an solid match up, and Essex vs Suffolk is a nice Long Island vs Maryland battle. Always good early on! Ancilla plays Holy Cross College in their first game, and Nassau vs Army Prep should be a fun, but not full NJCAA game.

Game of the week has to be Onondaga vs Anne Arundel. North vs South, OCC’s revenge tour of 2017, and Anne Arundel hoping to make some strides forward against JuCo’s best program over the last decade. I like OCC to win no matter what, but I’m curious to see how this one plays out!

2017 NJCAA Preview: Genesee

The Genesee Community College men’s lacrosse coaching staff recently announced their captains and schedule for the 2017 season. Awarded the honor of leading the Cougars this spring are sophomores Darin Eakins (Hamburg, Germany), Chase Neibert (Hilltop, California), Pat Van Bortle (Fairport, NY), and Sherman Williams (Silver Creek, NY)

Darin Eakins started 16 games in goal last year and was selected as the NJCAA All-Tournament Defensive MVP, as well as Region III 2 nd Team. Darin played almost 800 minutes in net with a 62% save percentage and only 6.58 goals against average, which was 4 th in the country. Eakins also started in net for Team Germany in the European Championships this past summer.

Chase Neibert, a close defender, played in 12 games last year for the Cougars. Chase brings a tremendous amount of leadership and experience to the team. He will be looked upon to lead the young defensive unit.

Pat Van Bortle started all 19 games at attack last year. He was selected to NJCAA All American 1st Team, NCJAA All-Tournament Team Offensive MVP, and Region III 1 st Team. Pat led the country in goals with 69, 3 rd in assists with 49 and 2 nd in points with 118. Van Bortle had the National Championship winning goal in OT.

Sherman Williams, a midfielder played in all 19 games last year. He finished the year with 28 goals, 13 assists for 41 points. Sherman was selected to the NJCAA All-Tournament Team, helping the team win the National Championship with 3 goals in the National Semi-Final and 4 goals in the National Championship.

Davis Prince also returns at attack after scoring 101 points in his first year. Jonah Mohawk had 15 goals and 12 assists last year, and like Williams, he was a member of the Iroquois U19 team. He’s due for a breakout season. Bailey Skye played LSM last year with 44 GBs, 33 CTs, and 4 goals and 3 assists. Skye is likely playing short stick this year and will be a force in between the lines.

Look for newcomers like Baden Boyenko at attack, Jordan Brennan at midfield, Connor Harman at LSM, Seth Ferguson at midfield, and Alex Mack at attack, to all make an impact. Genesee has plenty of returning talent, and lots of fresh new faces ready to compete. It’s certainly not one and done for the Cougars by any means.

Genesee CC has players from Hamburg, Germany, Saskatoom, Saskatchewan, other parts of Canada, California, Delaware, and many Native players from Six Nations Ontario, Tuscarora Nation, NY, Carthage, NY, Gowanda, and Irving, NY areas/nations.

Let’s watch that 2016 NJCAA Title Game Highlight just one more time… remember, this is what you’re all playing for!

2017 NJCAA Lacrosse Gear

Ancilla College, in Donaldson, Indiana, has an NJCAA team. If you followed The JuCo Report last year, you already know this. If not, now you know this. There is JuCo lacrosse in Indiana. Very cool. They also have some pretty sweet helmets. Coach Brian Welch shared this collection of pictures with me:

I. Like. Them.

And the returning national champs, Genesee CC, also sent over photos of their helmets AND gloves for 2017. As usual, they are very nice!

genesee lacrossegenesee lacrossegenesee lacrossegenesee lacrosse

If you’re wondering why we feature so much Genesee stuff, it’s because they send us a lot of info! Onondaga also gets featured a lot, because they are active on social media and update their website. You too can be featured, just contact us via email or Twitter!

The JuCo Report rolls on… 2017’s season is almost upon us!