UAlbany opens 2020 season against Cornell
ALBANY, N.Y. » The University at Albany kicks off its 2020 season this weekend with the first of three-straight home games. Saturday, #12 Cornell visits Casey Stadium.
Leading the Pack
UAlbany returns its top two scorers from last season in Jakob Patterson and Tehoka Nanticoke and open their season at home for the first time since 2009 against Denver.
UAlbany opens the season against an opponent other than Syracuse for the first time since 2015, but Cornell has three players selected as Inside Lacrosse Preseason All-Americans: Jeff Teat, Connor Fletcher, and Brandon Salvatore.
UAlbany is unbeaten against Cornell at home
Scouting Cornell
The Big Red pulled in the #11 ranking in the Inside Lacrosse preseason poll, and enter Saturday’s season opener ranked #12. Cornell finished 2019 10-5 overall, and 4-2 in the Ivy League, ultimately falling in the Ivy League semifinal against Yale. The Big
Red returns 20 letter-winners from last year’s team, including seven starters. Two of Cornell’s top three goal scorers from last season, John Piatelli and Jeff Teat, return to lead the 2020 offense. Since their first meeting at the Division I level in 2007, UAlbany is 4-3 in seven meetings against Cornell, winning four-straight before last season’s defeat.
Last Time vs. Cornell
In its third-straight road game to open the 2019 season, the Great Danes visited #3 Cornell after splitting their first two matchups against Syracuse and Drexel. Trailing by five heading into the fourth quarter after Cornell scored seven in the third, UAlbany stormed back to tie the game with Jack Burgmaster’s goal with 1:13 to go, only to see Cornell score in the final 14 seconds to clinch the game 17-16. Jakob Patterson led UAlbany with six points (three goals and three assists) while five other Great Danes added multiple goals each. UAlbany controlled the faceoff, with Austin Jones winning 25 of 37 attempts.
Around the America East
Four teams in the America East have seen their seasons begin already, with 2019 regular-season champion Stony Brook notching a victory over St. John’s, 13-12. UMass Lowell also won its season-opener, 10-9 over Quinnipiac. Hartford and Binghamton dropped their openers, to Sacred Heart and Marist, respectively. All seven America East squads will be in action on Saturday, with UAlbany, defending conference champion UMBC, and 2019 conference runner-up Vermont making their season debuts.
UAlbany is looking for its 10th conference championship. The Great Danes have won three of the past five titles, including two of the past three. UAlbany has a 34-5 regular-season record in the league dating back to the 2013 season, and the Great Danes haven’t lost a regular-season home game to an America East opponent since April 28, 2012 (Stony Brook, 12-11).
Schedule Strength
Once again, UAlbany features one of the toughest schedules in the country. The 2020 schedule includes five teams ranked in the preseason top-20, including three in the top five, and four in the top-11. Highlighting the schedule are trips to preseason #3 Yale and #4 Maryland, as well as the home opener against preseason #11 Cornell, and, for the first time in history, a home game against preseason #5 Syracuse.
Preseason Accolades
Senior attack Jakob Patterson, reigning America East Offensive Player of the Year, was selected as the America East Preseason Player of the Year by Inside Lacrosse. Patterson scored 25 goals and recorded 32 assists in 2019 to lead the team with 57 total points. He was joined as a Preseason All-Conference selection by junior Alex Burgmaster, who scored twice with two assists and 11 ground balls in 12 games for the Great Danes last year.
2019 in Review
One year following their historic run to the NCAA Final Four, the Great Danes had to replace all-time players in Connor Fields, who graduated, and TD Ierlan, who transferred to Yale. The Danes’ schedule featured five teams ranked in the top 20, including Maryland, Syracuse, Cornell, UMass, and defending NCAA champion Yale. After tying a program record with 16 victories, the team took a step back, finishing 2019 with a record of 5-9, and exiting the America East Tournament in the semifinal round. Jakob Patterson was named America East Offensive Player of the Year, and led the team with 57 points on 25 goals and 32 assists. Patterson led a total of four Great Danes on the America East First Team, joining Tehoka Nanticoke, Matt Perla, and Jack Burgmaster. On the Second Team, UAlbany landed Sean Eccles and Erik Dluhy.
Next
UAlbany stays at home to host Drexel on Saturday, February 22.