Ohio State Buckeyes 

Ohio State men's lacrosse faces UNC

"The scrimmage went well and we learned a lot about our team," coach Joe Breschi said. "It was nice to compete against someone else after five weeks of going against each other. We played with energy and excitement for four quarters."

The Buckeyes return 35 of 50 letter winners from last season. In a vote by the team, seniors Andrew Bender, Gary Bining, Jason Bloom, Ben Wolff, and Brian Yontz were chosen to lead the team as captains.

"I am definitely ready for the season to begin," said junior midfielder Chris Li. "We start practicing as soon as school begins, and you get the feeling that the season is never going to come, but once it's finally here, it's a huge rush and it gets the team really excited to play against other people besides ourselves."

The UNC Tar Heels are armed with All-American defenseman Stephen McElduff along with 32 returning letter winners from last season. In the past, UNC has won every game against the Buckeyes.

"We have set very high expectations, and we are ready to fulfill them, so we expect a lot from this year," said sophomore defenseman Ricky Pages. "We have prepared for North Carolina for the past two weeks, so I feel very prepared to open our season against a tough UNC team."

OSU looks ahead to one of the toughest schedules it has seen. Duke will be the biggest test this year, Pages said. though the matchup with Duke is still far away, OSU will also face Penn State and Brown along with others this season.

"I feel we are prepared for UNC, without seeing them play this season, but based on the scouting from last year," Breschi said. "This early in the season, it's about us and how we execute the game plan. The Tar Heels are very talented across the board, but so are we. We play seven games against preseason top 20 teams. Each week will be a challenge for us."
With high expectations, the Buckeyes look to surpass their 6-8 record from last year. OSU plays their first three games away from home; at UNC, followed by trips to Navy and Hobart.

"On offense, (sophomore) Kevin Buchanan, (moved from midfield last year), will develop as he becomes more comfortable at the attack position," Breschi said. "On defense, Ricky Pages has the ability to take over a game when he plays within himself. Our goal is to improve each week and prepare ourselves for the conference games beginning in mid April. If you win the conference, you get an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. I want the guys to enjoy the experience and compete like hell."

In the Inside Lacrosse/Face-Off Yearbook Preseason Coaches' Poll, Ohio State was ranked No. 21. UNC was ranked No.14. Despite these numbers, the Buckeyes move toward this weekend with confidence in their stride.

"Coach Breschi told us at the beginning of the year that it's all about us this year and Loyola was a great step for us in the right direction to have a successful season," Li said.