Canandaigua: 2009 Preview

March 24, 2009 -

Canandaigua



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March, 2009 - Canandaigua ended their league season first in Finger Lakes Division I with a 6-0 record (18-0 overall). Seeded first in the Class A tournament, the Braves defeated Irondequoit 18-5 to become the Section Five Class A Champions. The Braves lost to West Genesee (Section 3) in the second round of the state tournament 11-10. Canandaigua comes into 2009 after being named the "Season in the Balance" team for 2009. With the changes to Class cutoffs, Canandaigua drops to Class B this year and will join Irondequoit, among others, in a battle for the title.

ca champs Canandaigua graduated ten seniors, seven of which were named to the 1st team All County. Eight out of ten continue playing lacrosse in college; three are at St. John Fisher (Andrew Knoblauch, Connor Henderson and Justin Tomzak), three are at Hartford (Austin Rogers, Ben Knapton, Scott Bement), Nick Munn is at Ithaca College and Evan Roth is at Harvard. Bement will be difficult to replace in the cage. He was named All-American, All tournament team, 1st team All-County and Defensive Player of the Year last year.

The upcoming senior class is also looking ahead to college lacrosse with Marshall Johnson signing a letter of intent to play at Fairfield, Will Johnson is set to play at Eastern College, Tanner Scharr is heading to Belmont Abbey, Brian Scheetz is heading to Mercyhurst, Chris Tauterouff is heading to FLCC, Evan Burley is heading to RIT, Matt Smith is heading to Cortland and Sean Regan is committing to Hobart. Additionally, junior Tom LaCrosse has an early commitment to Penn State.

Coach Ed Mulheron says "Our strength this year should be our depth. We have 33 players on our roster, 14 seniors and 19 juniors. Of those 33 players, 19 of them were with the varsity for all or part of last season and the other 14 join the varsity after going undefeated for two consecutive years at the JV level."

Offensively, the Braves will look to All Tournament team MVP Marshall Johnson in the midfield. Johnson finished last season with 19g-10a and worked hard as the face-off man for the Braves. Johnson was 21/26 at the face-off in the Section Five Championship game. Joining Johnson in midfield will be LaCrosse (18g-10a) and Gannon Osborn (9g-8a). In the attack, the Braves will look to Brian Scheetz who was third in points last season (40g-28a). Scheetz will be joined by Tanner Scharr (22g-14a) and Will Johnson (13g-4a). The Braves have the depth in both the midfield and attack and will be a threat from both behind and in front of the cage.

Defensively, the Braves have key players returning with Sean Regan (1st), Evan Burley (2nd) and Matt Smith (2nd). Smith had a key role last season at both LSM and close defense. Regan will look to return late in the season as we recovers from off season shoulder surgery. Five juniors are in a close battle for the remaining positions including returning Tim Walker and new players Matt George, Adam Fingar, Jake Smith and Kyle Stanney.

Coach Mulheron notes "In the goal we have a two horse race with senior Anthony DeLeo and junior Nick King. Both have played well thus far in practice. We will continue to evaluate them through our scrimmages." DeLeo comes into this season with significant time last season; 289 minutes at 64%.

Overall with their move to Class B, Canandaigua will be a heavy favorite for the championship. Coach Mulheron has scheduled a number of high quality out of league games to accompany Penn Yan and Geneva: Fairport, Orchard Park, Corning East, Hamburg and McQuaid Jesuit. Additionally, the Braves will be attending the Daniel Hand Jamboree where they will face Garden City, Mountain Lakes and Ridgewood. Coach Mulheron, "We are hoping these scrimmages and games will have us tournament tested for a run at the Section Five Class B Championship!"

Top Returning Players:

Marshall Johnson - Mid - 12 - FL 1st, All tournament MVP
Tanner Schaar - Att - 12 - FL HM
Brian Scheetz - Att - 12 - FL 1st, All tournament
Evan Burley - Def - 12 - FL 2nd
John Klein - Mid - 12 -FL HM
Matt Smith - Def - 12 - FL 2nd
Sean Regan - Def - 12 - FL 1st
Tom LaCrosse - Mid - 11 -FL 2nd
Gannon Osborn - Mid - 11 - FL HM