September 29, 2009
Mack wins prestigious Garber Award
by PR Wire Report/
AMHERST, Mass. – The UMass men's lacrosse team held its annual year-end banquet Sept. 26 at the Campus Center. Senior defenseman Brennan Mack was honored with the prestigious Goose Garber Award while senior midfielder Joe Reale and senior goalie Doc Schneider shared the Eric Sopracasa "Heart & Soul" Award.
The emotional event saw the team hand out its annual team awards as well as national honors for the 2009 ECAC Champions.
The Most Valuable Offensive Player Award went to Tim Balise, who scored 31 goals and added five assists. He scored the overtime goal at Rutgers that gave UMass the ECAC title and a berth to the NCAA Tournament.
Schneider was honored as the Most Valuable Defensive Player. Schneider was outstanding all season, posting a dazzling 7.43 GAA and a .653 save percentage. He stood out against Rutgers (19 saves), Syracuse (17), Georgetown (18), and (17). He also made a career-high 21 stops in an overtime win at Hobart.
The Most Improved Player of the Year went to sophomore defenseman Travis Tripucka, who emerged as a starter on close defense. He played in all 15 games (starting five times), recording 15 groundballs and five caused turnovers. He started the last four games of the regular season. Tripucka scooped three groundballs and caused two turnovers in holding Princeton's Chris McBride pointless in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
The Rookie of the Year went to freshman Art Kell, who started all 15 games on attack. He led all rookie scorers with 14 points and topped all freshmen with 11 goals. He also had three assists. Kell had goals in 10 of the last 12 regular-season games and in eight games in a row from Feb. 28-April 11.
The Hammer Award went to All-American Diogo Godoi for the second year in a row. He started all 15 games while recording 28 groundballs and 21 caused turnovers, tied for the most on team. Godoi headed up a defense that was ranked 11th in scoring defense and sixth in man-down defense. Against Princeton, Godoi blanked the Tigers' leading scorer Jack McBride, holding him pointless for the first time all season.
The Robin Food Award, presented by Dr. Curt Connor from the Chemical/Engineering Department, went to junior Bobby Hayes. He had 26 points (12 goals and 14 assists) through 15 games. He led the team in assists. Hayes tallied points in the first eight games and had nine multi-point games. He was seventh in the ECAC in assists per game (0.9).
The Eric Sopracasa "Heart & Soul" Award named in honor of the late Minuteman defenseman was shared by Reale and Schneider. Reale was UMass' top face-off man and also played defensive midfield. After being held without a goal in his first three collegiate seasons, Reale scored three in first two games of senior year. He won 109 of 252 face-offs (43.3 percent) and tied for second on the team with 43 groundballs.
The final award of the event, the prestigious Goose Garber Award, named in honor of legendary and Hall of Fame Coach Dick Garber, was presented to Brennan Mack. In honor of legendary coach Dick Garber, the Goose Garber goes to the unsung hero. The Award signifies the most unselfish player, the ultimate teammate, and the leading contributor to UMass lacrosse. The senior defenseman started all 15 games. He was third on team with 20 caused turnovers and also had 43 groundballs, tied for second on team. He helped lead a defense that ranked 11th in scoring defense (7.93) and sixth in man-down defense.
