St. John's University Athletics
Lacrosse Announces Class of 2008
6/15/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse
June 15, 2004
Queens, N.Y.- St. John's Head lacrosse Coach Rick Sowell announced the program's 2004-05 recruiting class today. The prospective student-athletes will begin play in the spring of 2005.
"I am very excited to announce our initial recruiting class," said Sowell. "These young men have embraced the opportunity to grow with this program and I look forward to overseeing their development over the next four years. Not only are they a talented group, but all possess great character and a strong work ethic. I feel this group will do a great job of representing St. John's desire to excel both on the playing field and in the classroom."
Sowell's success as an assistant at Georgetown University and as head coach at Dartmouth College has been keyed by his ability to recruit multi-sport athletes and fine-tune them into top Division I lacrosse players.
"This class is full of athletes - guys who played two and three sports in high school. Given the chance to concentrate just on lacrosse, I think they will flourish."
The class has a strong Long Island flavor, but is diverse in its geographic make-up. "Being a strong presence on Long Island is very important for the program. At the same time, St. John's great reputation has allowed me to bring in recruits from around the country as well. The ability to be able to get great players from different areas is important to the program's success as lacrosse continues to grow at the high school level."
Men's lacrosse returns to St. John's after it was discontinued in 1994. St. John's renewed the lacrosse program to its intercollegiate lineup in December 2002 as part of the schools reformulation. The Red Storm will begin play in the 2004-05 academic year.
2004-05 Lacrosse Roster
Kyle Brant, Attack/Midfield (Silver Spring, Md./St. John's College HS)
Three-year letterwinner and captain, Brant set the record at St. John's College HS for most goals in a game (7).
Patrick Dempsey, Attack/Midfield (Broomall, Pa./Marple Newton HS)
A three-year letterwinner at Maple Newton, Dempsey captained his team in 2004. Recorded 28 goals and 15 assists his senior year.
Christopher DeMarco, Defense (Bay Shore, N.Y./Bay Shore HS)
A four-year starter at Bay Shore, DeMarco captained his team in 2004. Also earned letters in Basketball and Football.
Matthew Duca, Goalie (West Islip, N.Y/St. Anthony's HS)
Named All-Conference in 2004 and led his team to a 16-5 record and a New York State Catholic League Championship.
Felix Forbes, Midfield (Corning, N.Y./Corning East HS)
A Three-year letterwinner in lacrosse at Corning East, Forbes led his lacrosse team to the State Championship while earning a national ranking of #23. Named team Top Offensive Player and All-League in 2004. Also a stellar football player, he was named All-State and earned All-Twin Tiers Player of the Year honors twice.
Klaus Gaba, Defense (Norfolk, Va./Norfolk Academy)
A three-year letterwinner and senior captain at Norfolk Academy, Gaba was named second team All-State in 2004.
Robert Gannon, Attack (Port Washington, N.Y./Schreiber HS)
A three-year letterwinner, Gannon was named Nassau All-County Honorable Mention in 2004. The senior team captain notched 21 goals, 4 assists and had 84 ground balls in his senior campaign.
Graeme Gillespie, Midfield (Ithaca, N.Y./Ithaca HS)
Received the Best Offensive Award in 2004, in addition to being named to the Section IV All-Tournament team and First Team All-Star. While leading his team to a Section IV Class "A" Championship, Gillespie was selected to play in the National North/South game.
Tim LaMare, Defense (Philadelphia, Pa./Lawrence Academy)
A three-year letterwinner and captain in lacrosse, football and hockey, LaMare was named All-League twice in lacrosse and three times in football.
Chris Lipski, Defense (Copiague, N.Y./Copiague HS)
A three-year starter and team captain in 2004, Lipski was named Most Athletic, All-County Academic and All-Conference in Lacrosse, Basketball and Soccer.
Michael Luyster, Defense (Hicksville, N.Y./Hicksville HS)
A three-year letterwinner and team captain, Luyster was named All-County Honorable Mention as a junior. Also letter in football and was named All-County and team M.V.P.
Devin Madden, Midfield (Georgetown Prep HS)
Madden, a three-year letterwinner, has a 76 face-off percentage and averages 10 ground balls and four assists per game. Also led his football team to a number one ranking in the D.C. and Maryland area in 2002-03.
Tom Michaelsen, Attack (Bethpage, N.Y./Bethpage HS)
Team captain in lacrosse, wrestling and soccer at Bethpage, Michaelsen was named All-County in each sport. In his senior campaign, he placed second in the Nassau County Wrestling Tournament and led his soccer team in goals and points.
Ryan Milford, Defense (Farmingdale, N.Y./Farmingdale HS)
A four-year letterwinner and senior captain, Milford was named All-County Honorable Mention and led his team to a Nassau County Championship in 2004. Also a two-year letterwinner in football.
Randy Mills, IV, Attack/Midfield (Freeport, N.Y./Freeport HS)
A four-year letterwinner/starter and team captain in 2004, Mills is a three time All-County selection in Nassau County. Recorded 30 goals, 28 assists for a total of 58 points his senior year and 170 points for his career. Also a stellar football player, Mills was named All-County, All-Long Island and All-State in 2003 and led his team to a Long Island Championship and a #2 N.Y. Metro Area ranking.
Justin O'Donnell, Midfield (Levittown, N.Y./Island Trees, HS)
Named All-County in 2004 and was a 2003 All-Conference pick. O'Donnell was also team M.V.P and captain in both lacrosse and football.
Ryan Parker, Defense (Elliott City, Md./Mount Saint Joseph HS)
Parker is a two-year letterwinner and 2004 captain of his lacrosse team.
Tyler Peworchik, Midfield (Horseheads, N.Y./Notre Dame HS)
Peworchik is a four-year letter winner and two-year captain in lacrosse at Notre Dame. Notched 30 goals and 20 assists his senior year in the regular season. Also lettered in football and basketball.
Justin Scheinholtz, Goalie (Newark, Del./St. Mark's HS)
A four-year letterwinner/starter and three-year captain, Scheinholtz was named Most Outstanding Lacrosse Player in 2004.
Alex Smith, Attack (West Islip, N.Y./West Islip HS)
A four-year letterwinner and 2004 captain, Smith was an All-County attackman and led his team to a 22-1 record, and was a New York State Class "A" finalist in 2004. Set the school record for goals in a season with 60 (2004).
John "Jack" Rosson, Midfield (Severna Park, Md./Severn School)
A three-year letterwinner at the Severn School, Rosson was named second team All-County and received the Coaches Award in 2004; Also an All-County football player.
Matt Wells, Attack (Riverhead, N.Y./Riverhead HS)
A two-time letterwinner in lacrosse; also lettered three times in Golf.
Patrick Zeis, Attack (St. Louis, Mo./Christian Brothers College HS)
A four-year letterwinner in lacrosse, Zeis was named All-American and All-State in both his junior and senior campaigns. He totaled 61 goals and 57 assists in his senior year. Zeis was also selected to the National North/South game.