By James Rapp
jrapp@ursinus.edu
Spring is near and the Bears are back in action. As of February first, Ursinus Men’s lacrosse has officially embarked on another journey to win The Centennial Conference Championship. This year is big for the Bears as they lost a significant number of seniors last year including: Tyler Neal, Erik Ojert, and Jeremy Calabro. 3 players who were crucial to the Bear’s offense last year making up their starting attack line. Looking to fill those roles this year are Senior Captain Eddie Newman. Newman, a former midfielder for the Bears, had 27 points last season in a limited offensive role and looks to expand on that number this year in his new position. Assisting him on that line is another former Midfielder and USILA preseason all-American Chris Pucciarelli. Chris or “Pucc”, as his teammates call him, had 33 points last season and should see a lot more production going into his Junior season with the Bears. The Final addition to the Bears attack is First-year, Jared Laskin. Laskin, an attackman from Houston Texas, looks to join this line and be the final piece of the puzzle. Despite his status as an underclassmen, his ability to see the field is a crucial part of the Bear’s offense and he will most definitely be a name we hear a lot this season.
Coming out of the Midfield, the Bears look to their sophomore class to fill many roles. One of the names to keep an eye on this season is Harry Sweitzer. Sweitzer put up 12 points his freshman year appearing in every contest last season. He will be accompanied by Senior Midfielder Brett Wilkinson, one of the only Senior midfielders on the team in 2024. Wilkinson Also competed in every contest for the Bears last year earning himself 12 points in the 2023 season. Looking at the defensive side of the ball, the Bears are led by Close Defenseman and Senior Captain Jeff Douglas, as well as Junior Captain and Short Defensive MidFielder, Ryan Dever. Dever, arguably the team’s top defensive Midfielder, was elected by the team for the role of captain this offseason. Dever has been an impact player for the Bears since his freshman year in 2022. In his Sophomore season, Dever was responsible for scooping up 23 Ground balls as well as earning himself 14 caused turnovers. Dever will play a huge role in mentoring the less seasoned defensive midfielders this season.
Flipping down low to the Close defense, the Bears look to replace Chase Rondeau, a 4-year starter. As of right now, It looks like his replacement will be Nicholas Gram. Gram played a huge role for the Bears last year flipping back and forth between Long Stick Midfield and Close Defense. This season it is likely he will make the transition to Close Defensemen. Gram made himself well known throughout the Centennial Conference, putting up with an impressive stat line of 19 ground balls and 9 caused turnovers. The Bears look to use him as their number one cover defender this season. Assisting Nicholas will be the aforementioned Senior Captain Jeff Douglas. Douglas started off his career primarily as a man-down specialist but cracked the starting roster last season and has been a problem for opposing offenses. Douglas is an extremely poised defender whose understanding of the game is unmatched. The 3rd member of the Bears defensive unit is senior Paul Army. Army, the veteran of the crew, has been a key component of the defense since he earned a starting spot his Sophomore year. Towering over his opponents at 6 ‘2, 200 pounds, Army is a force to be reckoned with. Finally stepping back into the cage for his final season will be Veteran Goalkeeper, Jon Singer. Singer has started for the Bears for the last 3 seasons after winning the starting job in the second game of his sophomore year. This season, Singer looks to improve on his 55 percent save percentage and help the team win a conference championship.
The Bears first home game will be this Wednesday at 4 pm on Patterson field. Make sure to come check it out and bring a friend!