Duke Debuts at No. 8 in Preseason Poll

Recapping the 2016 Men's Lacrosse Season

Duke Debuts at No. 8 in Preseason Poll

12/21/2016 11:23:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse

Faceoff Yearbook Top 20 2017 Schedule

By: Duke Sports Information

DURHAM, N.C.—Duke men's lacrosse debuts at the No. 8 spot in the 2017 Inside Lacrosse Faceoff Yearbook preseason top 20 poll. The Blue Devils come in just behind ACC foe Syracuse and is one of four ACC squads ranked in the top 10.

Denver, Duke's opponent Feb. 18 tops the list, while North Carolina, Maryland, Notre Dame and Loyola round out the top five. Duke will face four of those five at some point in 2017. Overall, the Blue Devils are slated to face off against nine of the top 20 teams, including five of the top seven.

The Blue Devils, finishing last season ranked 12th after losing at Loyola in the NCAA first round, return to the top 10 with a lot of firepower on attack and a veteran defensive group. Head coach John Danowski welcomes back six starters and 31 returning players from the 2016 squad. Duke will be bolstered by the nation's top recruiting class according to Inside Lacrosse. A talented group of 10 rookies will don the Duke jersey in 2017 and many have potential to play major roles.

Justin Guterding, Duke's top scorer in 2016 with 71 points, and Jack Bruckner, second in goals, headline the offense. The biggest holes to fill for the Blue Devils will be on the first midfield line with the departure of Myles Jones, Deemer Class and Chad Cohan. Arguably the best duo in Duke midfield history, Jones and Class accounted for 33 percent of Duke's scoring a year ago.

However, David Gill and Jake Seau are back as juniors, while Brad Smith had a great summer experience with Team USA to soften the blow of the duo's departure. Matthew Giampetroni and Tripp Transou also gained valuable experience last season and will be key players for the Blue Devils in the midfield. Add a solid corps of underclassmen and Duke's offense has the makings to be just as dangerous.

Defensively, Duke has a veteran laden group with poles Brian Dunne, Greg Pelton, Ethan Powley, Peter Welch and Cade Van Raaphorst leading the charge. Thomas Zenker returns as the most experienced short-stick defensive midfielder, while Garrett Van de Ven and John Prendergast also are back after helping anchor the defensive midfield group last year.

Duke does not lack for talent in goal as two-year starter Danny Fowler returns. Sophomore Turner Uppgren will vie for the starting role as well after redshirting his rookie season, while David McCann also provides a solid backup option.

The Blue Devils also welcome back faceoff specialist Kyle Rowe. The senior won 64 percent of his draws last season and is widely considered to be one of the premier faceoff men in Division I. He ranks second among active players in faceoffs won with 605 and is tops in ground balls at 376.

The 2017 campaign kicks off Feb. 5 against No. 18 Air Force at 3:30 p.m., in Koskinen Stadium.

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