Seven From Men's Lacrosse Team Earn NEILA All-New England Honors
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Contact: Seth Cole - Phone: 802.654.2537
COLCHESTER, Vt. - Seven members of the Saint Michael's College men's lacrosse team received recognition on the 2011 New England Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (NEILA) Division II All-New England Team, it was announced on Wednesday.
Three Purple Knights garnered First Team honors, three more landed on the Second Team, and head coach Paul Schimoler was named the NEILA Division II Coach of the Year.
Those that received First Team accolades include: sophomore attacker Peter Donnally (Madison, N.J./Morristown-Beard); junior midfielder Paul Tortora, Jr. (Fairfield, Conn./Fairfield Prep); and junior defender Evan White (Sudbury, Mass./Lincoln-Sudbury Regional).
Second Team honors went to: senior defender Ryan Clunan (Woodstock, Vt./Woodstock Union); junior midfielder Kevin Hunt (Johnstown, N.Y./Johnstown); and freshman Chris Demairo (Bethpage, N.Y./Bethpage).
Donnally is tied for third in the Northeast-10 Conference with 35 goals, and fourth with 2.19 goals per game and two game-winning goals. He led the team in goals and points (41) in 2011, and added 26 ground balls and nine caused turnovers.
Tortora placed third on the team with 13 assists, and fourth with 17 goals and 30 points while playing in all 16 games off the bench. Tortora earned NE-10 All-Championship Team honors on Monday, and ended the season on a five-game scoring streak.
White, an NE-10 All-Conference Second Team honoree, started all 16 games for Saint Michael's in 2011, and led the squad with 56 ground balls and 15 caused turnovers. He added one goal and one assist, and was among the top-three on the team in minutes played.
Clunan, an NEILA Division II All-Preseason Team pick before the season began, placed second on the team with 13 caused turnovers, and third with 43 ground balls, despite missing two games due to injury. He was one of just two seniors on a young Purple Knights' squad.
Hunt finished second for Saint Michael's with 14 assists, and fifth with 15 goals and 29 points. One of four captains on the squad, Hunt tied for the team lead (and was fourth in the NE-10) with two game-winning goals, and scored at least one point in all but two games in 2011.
Demairo played in all 16 games in net for the Purple Knights, and compiled a 7-2 record while finishing among the NE-10 leaders with a 6.60 goals against average. He also earned NE-10 All-Conference Second Team honors, and NE-10 All-Rookie Team recognition.
Schimoler, in his eighth season at the helm of the Saint Michael's men's lacrosse program, guided the team to a program record-tying 10 wins in 2011, including a program-best eight conference victories. Saint Michael's earned a top-10 national ranking during the season (currently 12th), and finished a perfect 8-0 against New England foes this spring.
For the complete 2011 NEILA Division II All-New England Team, click here.
-PURPLEKNIGHTS-
