Review & preview: Loyola

A look at the 2012 season for the Greyhounds and a glimpse into 2013

PREVIEW

Personnel changes: The largest void to fill emerged with the graduation of attackman Eric Lusby, who led the team in goals (54) and points (71) and set a new NCAA tournament record for goals (17). Lusby’s left-handed shot balanced the offense with junior Mike Sawyer’s right-handed tendencies, and Toomey said a candidate from a group that includes sophomore Brian Schultz, redshirt freshman Jeff Chase and incoming freshman Zachary Herreweyers could emerge. “So we’ve got some lefty guys that are certainly going to have that opportunity to compete for it,” Toomey said. “They each bring something different to the table. Probably Jeff Schultz would be the guy who can sling it from the outside, but you have to change a little bit how you play offense because with his hands free, Eric was pretty dangerous, and we kind of got used to playing that way at the end of the year, which was a lot of fun.” … The defense boasts a shutdown defender in sophomore Joe Fletcher and another imposing starter in junior Reid Acton, but the unit will miss Dylan Grimm, who graduated. And Alex Yackery, the fourth defenseman, has also graduated. Sophomore Derek Zook and freshman Alex Klincewicz and junior long-stick midfielder T.J. Harris will vie to start, but they have large shoes to fill. “We need a glue guy,” Toomey said. “We need a guy that’s going to be consistent, and he’s going to be a tough one to replace. … But our guys will compete and the guy that works the hardest this summer is going to get those reps early in the fall.” … Dalton’s departure means the team must find a new faceoff specialist. Sophomore Brendan Donovan, freshman Devon Lepsch and incoming freshman Kyle Gangemi have the background and experience to step into that role, but Toomey would prefer that a starter is not asked to shoulder another responsibility. “We definitely feel that it’s important that it’s not [junior midfielder] Davis Butts and it’s not [junior long-stick midfielder] Scott Ratliff,” Toomey said. “We want to give him a faceoff guy that [Vaikness] can work with on a daily basis – similar to what J.P. did.”

Forecast for 2011: Sunny. Loyola, perhaps the most balanced team in the nation, may retain that reputation against next spring. Finding a successor to Lusby looms as the most significant challenge with regards to personnel, and it will be incumbent on the next starter to perform well and keep the pressure off of Sawyer on the other side of the box. The holes created by Grimm and Yackery will also be a priority, and the squad needs a capable faceoff specialist to keep feeding the offense. But the Greyhounds return a plethora of talent throughout the roster and will be bolstered by their impending identity as the reigning national champions. It’s not a stretch to speculate that Loyola could be the first repeat NCAA titlist since Syracuse won in 2008 and 2009.