By
on May 29, 2014 7:08 p.m.
The Western Mass. Coaches Association selected five All-American players from the region, including Westfield junior goalie Jake Cupak and Mount Greylock junior midfielder Michael McCormack, according to Bruce Lerch from BostonLax.net.
The other three selections are Longmeadow senior Reid Leveillee, a repeat choice, his teammate, senior midfielder Drew Kelleher and South Hadley senior midfielder T.J. Fitzell.
Leveillee, a two-time All-American, is one of the senior leaders of a Longmeadow defensive unit that rarely allow attackmen much room to find shooting space on keeper Matt Draymore's net. Longmeadow has allowed fewer than four goals per game this year while they put together a 20-1 record. Leveillee plans to play lacrosse next year at Connecticut College.
LINK TO FULL STORY:
http://highschoolsports.masslive.com/news/article/4013084700291188233/two-juniors-two-longmadow-teammtes-highlight-class-of-five-western-mass-all-american-selections/
Monday, June 2, 2014
Friday, May 30, 2014
REID LEVEILLEE, ALL AMERICAN SELECTION 2014
Western Mass. All-Americans Announced
05/29/2014, 1:45pm EDT
By Bruce Lerch
BostonLax.NetThe Western Massachusetts Lacrosse Coaches have announced their All-American selections for the 2014 season. Special thanks to Minnechaug coach Russ Mooney for providing the list. Each player selected as an All-American from the ISL and MIAA East, Central and West regions will receive an automatic invitation to the Second Annual BostonLax All-American Game, to be held on June 16th at Boston University's Nickerson Field at 7 p.m. Western Mass. All-Americans Drew Kelleher, Longmeadow, Midfield/Attack, Sr. Reid Leveillee, Longmeadow, Defense/LSM, Sr. T.J. Fitzell, South Hadley, Midfield, Sr. Jake Cupak, Westfield, Goalie, Jr. Michael McCormack, Mt. Greylock, Attack, Jr.
Wednesday, May 28, 2014
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Defense, Consistency Keys for No. 2 'Meadow Lax - Scott Barboza, ESPNBoston.Com
LONGMEADOW, Mass. -- It didn’t take long for first-year Longmeadow boys’ lacrosse head coach Ryan Liebel to figure out the kind of talent he had for the 2013 season.
“When I was at tryouts, I just said to myself, ‘This is awesome.’”
For the then-25-year-old coach, an alumnus, himself, of Longmeadow and a standout at UMass-Amherst, his return home was truly an ideal situation. After a season as the head of Belchertown lacrosse, Liebel returned to his roots, taking over the Lancers program last season.
The bar was set extraordinarily high for both coach and team in that first season, as the Lancers capped an undefeated season as Division 2 state champions. With that, Liebel was named Coach of the Year by ESPN Boston.
That doesn’t mean there isn’t room for improvement, however.
With little surprise, the No. 2-ranked Lancers (?) have started the season unbeaten yet again, improving to 4-0 with a 9-5 win over No. 8 BC High. Yet, after the Saturday matinee at home, Liebel was still ruminating over the things that aren’t quite right with the Lancers early on.
“We had some very big role players from last year who’ve graduated,” Liebel said, “so we’re still kind of finding out where everybody fits the best.”
Namely, the Lancers lost an All-American level midfielder in Keegan Dudeck, who scored more than a few timely, important goals in their state championship run last year.
But, for the most part, Longmeadow’s core returns in tact this season, starting at the faceoff “X” with one of the state’s best draw men in Drew Kelleher.
“The faceoff and transition game is absolutely huge in terms of setting the tone for the game,” Liebel said. “So when you have the chance to have a faceoff guy like Drew Kelleher, it’s absolutely unreal to have, especially at a time like now, when our offense is struggling with things like time of possession.”
Watching Longmeadow any time during the last season-plus, it becomes immediately evident that the Lancers thrive on defense and the transition game. Hardly a motion is wasted, moving the ball from the defensive half of the field and through the midfield. It’s what Liebel has prided the program on, and it comes with the continual repetitive motion of practice drills.
“It really comes down to working hard in practice – lots of long practices,” senior goaltender Matt Draymore said. “Then, when we come to the games, we just have to play all four quarters.”
Adding on how the Lancers have taken on the visage of their head coach, Draymore said, “I think we all have really good relationships with him, but he’s really hard on us. He really pushes us to get better. It’s a really good combination.”
In front of Draymore, the Lancers return a deep core of veteran defensemen. Senior captain Reid Leveillee returns as a preseason All-State selection, while junior Daniel Cotnoir and senior long-stick midfielder Jack Ryan provide additional proven experience on the starting defense.
“They’re just absolutely the best role models you could hope for,” Liebel said. “Three of our five captains are defensive players and they’re what’s keeping us together right now. If it wasn’t for them, I don’t think we’d be where we are right now.”
The Lancers’ attack is still rounding into shape in the early going, with returning senior attack Zach Lukas sidelined due to injury. In his absence, that’s given a few of Longmeadow’s younger options a chance to work their way into the rotation, including the younger siblings of a few of the Lancers’ aforementioned tone-setters. Sophomore Will Lukas and freshman Cam Kelleher has seen significant playing time alongside returners, such as senior midfielder Max Chipouras.
While the offense tries to find its foothold, the Lancers will rely on what has their winning streak at 29 games and counting – a commitment to defense, having surrendered less than three goals a game on average.
That, and a commitment to never becoming complacent.
“Right now, we’re just fighting to make the playoffs with everybody else,” Drew Kelleher said. “Coach pushes us really hard, he really knows how to get the best out of us. He leads a high-intensity practice every day and we know that makes us better.”
“When I was at tryouts, I just said to myself, ‘This is awesome.’”
For the then-25-year-old coach, an alumnus, himself, of Longmeadow and a standout at UMass-Amherst, his return home was truly an ideal situation. After a season as the head of Belchertown lacrosse, Liebel returned to his roots, taking over the Lancers program last season.
That doesn’t mean there isn’t room for improvement, however.
With little surprise, the No. 2-ranked Lancers (?) have started the season unbeaten yet again, improving to 4-0 with a 9-5 win over No. 8 BC High. Yet, after the Saturday matinee at home, Liebel was still ruminating over the things that aren’t quite right with the Lancers early on.
“We had some very big role players from last year who’ve graduated,” Liebel said, “so we’re still kind of finding out where everybody fits the best.”
Namely, the Lancers lost an All-American level midfielder in Keegan Dudeck, who scored more than a few timely, important goals in their state championship run last year.
But, for the most part, Longmeadow’s core returns in tact this season, starting at the faceoff “X” with one of the state’s best draw men in Drew Kelleher.
“The faceoff and transition game is absolutely huge in terms of setting the tone for the game,” Liebel said. “So when you have the chance to have a faceoff guy like Drew Kelleher, it’s absolutely unreal to have, especially at a time like now, when our offense is struggling with things like time of possession.”
Watching Longmeadow any time during the last season-plus, it becomes immediately evident that the Lancers thrive on defense and the transition game. Hardly a motion is wasted, moving the ball from the defensive half of the field and through the midfield. It’s what Liebel has prided the program on, and it comes with the continual repetitive motion of practice drills.
“It really comes down to working hard in practice – lots of long practices,” senior goaltender Matt Draymore said. “Then, when we come to the games, we just have to play all four quarters.”
Adding on how the Lancers have taken on the visage of their head coach, Draymore said, “I think we all have really good relationships with him, but he’s really hard on us. He really pushes us to get better. It’s a really good combination.”
In front of Draymore, the Lancers return a deep core of veteran defensemen. Senior captain Reid Leveillee returns as a preseason All-State selection, while junior Daniel Cotnoir and senior long-stick midfielder Jack Ryan provide additional proven experience on the starting defense.
“They’re just absolutely the best role models you could hope for,” Liebel said. “Three of our five captains are defensive players and they’re what’s keeping us together right now. If it wasn’t for them, I don’t think we’d be where we are right now.”
The Lancers’ attack is still rounding into shape in the early going, with returning senior attack Zach Lukas sidelined due to injury. In his absence, that’s given a few of Longmeadow’s younger options a chance to work their way into the rotation, including the younger siblings of a few of the Lancers’ aforementioned tone-setters. Sophomore Will Lukas and freshman Cam Kelleher has seen significant playing time alongside returners, such as senior midfielder Max Chipouras.
While the offense tries to find its foothold, the Lancers will rely on what has their winning streak at 29 games and counting – a commitment to defense, having surrendered less than three goals a game on average.
That, and a commitment to never becoming complacent.
“Right now, we’re just fighting to make the playoffs with everybody else,” Drew Kelleher said. “Coach pushes us really hard, he really knows how to get the best out of us. He leads a high-intensity practice every day and we know that makes us better.”
Wednesday, April 23, 2014
Friday, April 18, 2014
Longmeadow boys lacrosse ranked No. 1 in Massachusetts in LaxPower.com rankings
The Longmeadow boys lacrosse team is off to a 6-0 start and has an early-season marquee win on its resume after a 9-5 victory over Boston College High School last weekend.
The defending state champions are ranked No. 1 in Massachusetts in the latest edition of LaxPower’s state rankings, tied with undefeated Needham.
The site’s computer ratings are based on won-loss record and margin of victory with a 10-goal limit. Bonus points are awarded for league, division and state championships. For the full rankings, as well as an explanation of the power ratings system, visit LaxPower.com. Check out the Western Mass. top 10 rankings here.
LaxPower.com Top 20 Rankings
The defending state champions are ranked No. 1 in Massachusetts in the latest edition of LaxPower’s state rankings, tied with undefeated Needham.
The site’s computer ratings are based on won-loss record and margin of victory with a 10-goal limit. Bonus points are awarded for league, division and state championships. For the full rankings, as well as an explanation of the power ratings system, visit LaxPower.com. Check out the Western Mass. top 10 rankings here.
LaxPower.com Top 20 Rankings
- Longmeadow (6-0)
- Needham (6-0)
- Lincoln-Sudbury (6-1)
- Duxbury (5-1)
Thursday, April 17, 2014
From MASSLIVE.COM on April 16, 2014
Boys lacrosse top 10 rankings: Riding a 30-game win streak, Longmeadow earns No. 1 ranking.
1. Longmeadow (5-0): No surprise at the top. The defending state champions have run their winning streak to 30 games, rolling through their Western Mass. opponents and picking up a big win over Boston College High.
LINK TO FULL STORY: http://highschoolsports.masslive.com/news/article/-6662693254959345016/boys-lacrosse-top-10-rankings-riding-a-30-game-win-streak-longmeadow-earns-no-1-ranking/
1. Longmeadow (5-0): No surprise at the top. The defending state champions have run their winning streak to 30 games, rolling through their Western Mass. opponents and picking up a big win over Boston College High.
LINK TO FULL STORY: http://highschoolsports.masslive.com/news/article/-6662693254959345016/boys-lacrosse-top-10-rankings-riding-a-30-game-win-streak-longmeadow-earns-no-1-ranking/
Tuesday, April 8, 2014
LANCER LAX '14 Tops S. Hadley H.S. 16-1 in Home Opener.
FROM MASSLIVE.COM
...Meanwhile, the Longmeadow defense led by senior Reid Leveillee, junior Nick Crews and junior Dan Cotnoir swallowed up the Tigers attack, killing three man-up opportunities and creating turnovers to move the ball to the Lancers’ midfielders and attacking players.
Leveillee, an All-American selection last year who has committed to Connecticut College, leads a defensive unit that returns every starter from last year’s group. Crews and Cotnoir, are also bound for Division I collegiate programs, after committing to Providence College and Bryant University.
Collectively, the size, experience and strength of the Lancer defense made opportunities hard to come by for South Hadley Monday.
“We only let up one shot on goal first half, I consider that pretty good, but there are always little things we can work on like talking to each other, making sure the middies know what’s going on at all times – and getting our goalie involved, telling him where guys are going,” Leveillee said.
LINK TO FULL STORY: http://highschoolsports.masslive.com/news/article/7649724780027320815/longmeadow-boys-lacrosse-impresses-in-16-1-victory-over-south-hadley-despite-injury-to-zach-lukas/
...Meanwhile, the Longmeadow defense led by senior Reid Leveillee, junior Nick Crews and junior Dan Cotnoir swallowed up the Tigers attack, killing three man-up opportunities and creating turnovers to move the ball to the Lancers’ midfielders and attacking players.
Leveillee, an All-American selection last year who has committed to Connecticut College, leads a defensive unit that returns every starter from last year’s group. Crews and Cotnoir, are also bound for Division I collegiate programs, after committing to Providence College and Bryant University.
Collectively, the size, experience and strength of the Lancer defense made opportunities hard to come by for South Hadley Monday.
“We only let up one shot on goal first half, I consider that pretty good, but there are always little things we can work on like talking to each other, making sure the middies know what’s going on at all times – and getting our goalie involved, telling him where guys are going,” Leveillee said.
LINK TO FULL STORY: http://highschoolsports.masslive.com/news/article/7649724780027320815/longmeadow-boys-lacrosse-impresses-in-16-1-victory-over-south-hadley-despite-injury-to-zach-lukas/
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