Lehigh University Men's Lacrosse

Cassese enters his ninth season as Lehighs head mens lacrosse coach in 2016. Casseses impact has been immediate, leading the Mountain Hawks to back-to-back Patriot League Championships in 2012 and 2013 followed by a third straight appearance in the league title game in 2014. Lehigh has advanced to five straight Patriot League Tournaments.   The programs turning point came in 2012 when Lehigh finished 14-2 and won its first-ever Patriot League Tournament championship to advance to the programs first NCAA Tournament. The Mountain Hawks followed that with a 12-5 campaign in 2013, winning both the Regular Season and Tournament Championships. Despite losing a large and talented senior class, Lehigh still went 13-5 in 2014 and advanced to the Patriot League Championship Game once again.   In 2012, Cassese led the Mountain Hawks to a school-record 14 wins, a program record nine-game winning streak and their highest-ever national ranking; Lehigh came in at No. 4 nationally in the final Coaches Poll following the regular season. The excitement around the program has never been higher as Lehigh finished 10th in the final Coaches Poll of 2013, and among the top 20 practically every week since the early stages of 2012. Following a home opening loss to Villanova in 2012, Lehigh promptly won nine straight games and 13-of-14 to advance to the NCAA Tournament as the No. 7 overall seed. The Mountain Hawks hosted eventual National Finalist Maryland and gave the Terps their toughest fight on their road to the title game. Despite falling down 6-1 in the first half, Lehigh responded with seven straight goals in front of a standing room only crowd of 2,278 at the Ulrich Sports Complex (and in front of a national audience on ESPNU). Lehigh posted an impressive 8-3 record against nationally-ranked foes. That included a big 9-8 win at No. 4 North Carolina in March, propelling the Mountain Hawks into the national polls for the first time since 2000. Lehigh ended a number of long droughts, defeating UNC for the first time since 1951, Yale for the first time since 1918 and Penn State for the first time since 1971. Lehigh owned the nations No. 2 scoring defense (only behind Notre Dame), holding opponents to only 6.81 goals per game. The Mountain Hawks picked up their first shutout in 40 years with a 13-0 triumph over Manhattan, allowed only two goals to VMI and five or fewer to Penn State, Navy, Holy Cross, Penn and Saint Josephs. Cassese was named Patriot League Coach of the Year while freshman Matt Poillon became Lehighs first-ever Goalkeeper of the Year. Eight cracked the All-Patriot League Team, tied for most in school history and the most in Coach Casseses tenure.   After six games in 2013, the Mountain Hawks stood at 3-3 and was just 5-4 after nine. The team responded in a big way, winning seven straight games to finish undefeated in Patriot League play and earn the right to host the league tournament. Lehigh went on to dominate Bucknell on its home turf (11-5) for its second straight championship.   The awards continued to roll in for the Mountain Hawks as Poillon was named Patriot League Goalie of the Year for a second straight season and a school-record four players were named USILA All-Americans, breaking the record of three set a season prior. In addition, the Mountain Hawks placed a league best three players on the Academic All-Patriot League Team.   Lehigh saw three of its players drafted by Major League Lacrosse teams in 2013: Dante Fantoni (Denver), Noah Molnar (Rochester) and David DiMaria (Boston). In addition, Mike Noone (Ohio) and Ryan Snyder (Denver) signed contracts following the season. They joined Cameron and Roman Lao-Gosney (Hamilton) in the professional ranks.   The success continued into 2014 as the Mountain Hawks won 13 games, just one shy of tying the school record set just two years prior. Lehigh earned a thrilling 7-6 triple overtime victory over No. 20 Villanova in February and earned convincing league wins over Bucknell (9-3), Navy (13-2), Holy Cross (20-4) and Lafayette (17-6). The Mountain Hawks defeated Navy in the Patriot League Quarterfinals at home before earning a 12-11 semifinal victory over Army behind a Reid Weber goal with just three seconds remaining.   Several Mountain Hawks enjoyed breakout seasons, led by attackman Dan Taylor who recorded 45 points over his last seven games to finish with 76 points, which far and away led the Patriot League and was most among Canadian players in all of Division I Lacrosse. Taylor was named a first team All-Patriot League honoree, as was defenseman Tripp Telesco who finished with 44 groundballs and 36 caused turnovers. He enjoyed a career game with seven groundballs and seven caused turnovers in that February victory over the Wildcats. Also earning All-League recognition were Kurtis Kaunas, Ty Souders and Poillon. Poillon, Taylor and Telesco were named honorable mention All-Americans as well while Souders was named to the Academic All-Patriot League Team for a third straight season.   Lehighs defense continued to impress, allowing just 7.22 goals per game (second nationally and just .01 behind first) as the defense allowed six goals or fewer on 10 occasions including just two goals against Navy and three versus Bucknell and Georgetown.   After struggling to begin 2015, the Mountain Hawks ended the season on a high note, winning five of their last six regular season games, defeating a pair of nationally-ranked opponents in a five-day span (No. 14 Princeton and No. 18 Stony Brook) and advancing to their fifth straight Patriot League Tournament. Taylor enjoyed another sensational season, posting 77 points to earn Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year honors and honorable mention All-America recognition. Taylor, Poillon and Lukas Mikelinich were all selected in the Major League Lacrosse Collegiate Draft while Taylor was the first selection of defending National Lacrosse League Champion Saskatchewan Rush in the NLLs Collegiate Draft. He was picked 12th overall. On a personal level, Cassese continues to make his mark on the U.S. Lacrosse scene, serving as an assistant coach under Team USA head coach Richie Meades staff for the 2014 World Lacrosse Championships in Denver, joining a staff of Dave Pietramala (Johns Hopkins) and Jeff Tambroni (Penn State). Casseses responsibilities included faceoff coordinator and goalie coordinator while handling rides, clears and the sub game. Team USAs two faceoff men combined to win over 80 percent of their faceoffs in the tournament.   Cassese teamed with Tambroni to coach the Red, White and Blue in the Seatown Classic against Notre Dame last October while Cassese has also coached the United States in Stars & Stripes Weekend and Champion Challenge. The 2011 season saw Cassese lead the Mountain Hawks to their first Patriot League Tournament appearance since 2006. Lehigh got off to a quick 3-1 start, which included a 14-10 triumph over Navy, the programs first victory over the Midshipmen in nearly 100 years. The Mountain Hawks jumped squarely into the national lacrosse picture in 2011 by not only qualifying for the Patriot League postseason, but also proving they could compete with anyone in the country. Lehigh played an increasingly tough schedule in 11 and wouldnt back away from the challenge. All nine of the teams losses came against ranked opponents, with seven coming by a combined 17 goals. The Mountain Hawks nearly topped a pair of NCAA Tournament qualifiers (Villanova and Bucknell), falling by a single goal each time. They also took a ranked Penn State squad to overtime, just one week after the Nittany Lions dominated eventual CAA Champion Delaware. The up-and-coming Mountain Hawks posted the nations eighth biggest improvement in 2011, according to LaxPower.coms computer rankings, which takes into account many of the factors used by the NCAA Tournament selection committee. Other highlights included defeating MAAC Finalist Detroit Mercy on the road while winning three-of-four in one stretch in late March. In that stretch was a convincing 13-7 win over America East Tournament qualifier Binghamton. Cassese has mentored an impressive array of offensive talent, led by one of college lacrosses most prolific scoring duos of DiMaria and Fantoni, who combined for 99 points in 2011 and 90 in 2012. Theyre a big reason why Lehighs attack unit was ranked 10th by in the 2013 Face-Off Yearbook. In his first four years at Lehigh, Cassese mentored a total of nine All-Patriot League honorees, including four in 2011. Faceoff specialist Ryan Snyder cracked the first team after winning 61.6 percent of his draws and scooping a Patriot League record 118 groundballs. Jonathan Stumpf was not only named to the second team, but also earned endless other academic and athletic honors. He became Lehighs first-ever CoSIDA Academic All-American while being named a Lowes Senior first team All-American, USILA Scholar All-American and Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Stumpf (along with teammate Will Scudder) also played in the USILA North-South All-Star Game where he netted the eventual game-winning goal for the South. During the fall of 2009, Cassese was named to the 2010 United States Mens National Lacrosse Team, traveling to Manchester, England in July. That marked the third time Cassese earned a spot on the National Team. Just months later, he worked with the U.S. National Team as the squads head coach. In October, he led Team USA to a win over Harvard. Then in January, 2011, Cassese coached the United States to a 12-7 win over No. 7 Notre Dame in the Champion Challenge at the ESPN Wide World of Sports. Casseses players have been involved in US Lacrosse as well as defenseman Ty Souders tried out for the U.S. Under-19 Team as part of a three-day training camp at UMBC. Recent graduates Cameron and Roman Lao-Gosney have also participated in numerous scrimmages for Team USA, beginning with the Capital Lacrosse Classic on Oct. 7, 2012. In his first season as the Mountain Hawks leader in 2008, Cassese led a young Lehigh squad to more home wins and more overall victories than the season prior. The Brown and White also ranked in the top 10 nationally in man-down defense and in the top 25 in scoring defense. Success continued into 2009 campaign, highlighted by back-to-back wins over ranked foes; the Mountain Hawks defeated No. 16 Army and No. 20 St. Johns in succession. In 2010, the Mountain Hawks posted their first winning overall record since 2006 by going 8-7. A resilient group, Lehigh went a perfect 3-0 in overtime games, including wins over No. 9 Villanova and No. 19 Lafayette in consecutive weeks to close out the season. Villanova marked the Mountain Hawks first top-10 win since downing No. 7 Georgetown in 1997. Fantoni scored both overtime game-winners to set the tone for what has been an impressive career to date. One of the most decorated student-athletes in Duke history, Cassese served as an assistant coach at his alma mater from 2005-07, helping lead the Blue Devils to the 2007 National Championship Game. He also served as Dukes interim head coach for part of the summer of 2006. Prior to Duke, Cassese spent one season at Stony Brook as an assistant where he directed the nations top extra man offense and helped the Seawolves to a 10-6 record in 2004.   A two-time captain and three-time All-ACC selection while at Duke, Cassese helped lead the Blue Devils to three NCAA Tournament appearances and a pair of ACC Championships during his collegiate career. Cassese earned All-America honors on three separate occasions, including First Team accolades in 2002 and 2003. Cassese, who scored 80 goals and handed out 38 assists in his career, was a two-time Tewaaraton Trophy finalist and garnered ACC Player of the Year honors in 2001. In 2002, Cassese was the recipient of the Lt. Donald MacLaughlin, Jr. Award as the nations top midfielder. An accomplished player on the international level as well, Cassese helped the United States to the gold medal at the 2002 International Lacrosse Federation World Championships. He was also a member of the United States team that placed second at the 2006 ILF World Championships in London, Ontario. Cassese was the second overall selection in the 2003 Major League Lacrosse Draft by the Rochester Rattlers. Among his professional accomplishments are a pair of MLL Rookie of the Week honors and a spot on the 2005 All-Star Team. Cassese, who was traded to the Philadelphia Barrage during the summer of 2007, helped lead his new team to the 2007 Major League Lacrosse Championship, as well as a spot in Championship Weekend in 2008. Cassese was signed by the Boston Cannons prior to the 2009 MLL season and appeared in 12 games during the regular season while helping lead them into the postseason. A native of Port Jefferson Station, New York and graduate of Comsewogue High School, Cassese earned his Bachelors Degree in Sociology from Duke in 2003. He garnered USILA Scholar All-America and ACC Academic Honor Roll honors as well as the ACCs Weaver-James-Corrigan Honorary Award for outstanding athletic and academic achievement. Cassese and his wife, Katie Granson Cassese who attended nearby Freedom High School, were married in Bethlehem in December of 2006. Katie is currently a Realtor for RE/MAX Central in the Lehigh Valley. They had their first child, Drew Cassese, in July of 2011, and their second child, Anna, in August of 2013.  

Former Mountain Hawks standout Casey Eidenshink begins his second season at Lehigh as assistant coach in 2019. A close defenseman and long-stick midfielder as a player, the 2016 graduate was an All-Patriot League and Academic All-League honoree at Lehigh, finishing his collegiate career with a GPA over 3.3.   In his first year at Lehigh, Eidenshink helped Lehigh jump back into the national spotlight. The Mountain Hawks, were ranked as high as 12th nationally in 2018 and defeated three nationally-ranked teams beginning with road wins at No. 12 Army West Point and No. 18/19 Hofstra in the span of 10 days. The Mountain Hawks went on to finish the season 10-7, including 5-3 in Patriot League play. Earning the No. 4 seed in the league tournament, Lehigh dominated Colgate at home (11-6) then picked up a 10-9 overtime win against No. 11/13 Navy, just days after the Midshipmen won at Syracuse.   Eidenshink helped coach a defensive unit which entered April eighth nationally in allowing just 8.30 goals per game. The Mountain Hawks went on to allow just six goals in the quarterfinals to Colgate and nine in the semifinals vs. Navy. Lehighs defense was led by Craig Chick, who continued to re-write the record books, breaking his previous school record for caused turnovers with 41. He ended the year with 118 in his career, which is already a school and Patriot League record, and top 10 in NCAA history (with Chicks senior year left to play). After the season, Chick was named a second team Inside Lacrosse All-American while garnering honorable mention All-America from the USILA.   Attackman Andrew Pettit, Chick and faceoff specialist Conor Gaffney were named first team All-Patriot League while attackman Lucas Spence, defenseman Eddie Bouhall and long-stick midfielder Teddy Leggett earned second-team laurels. Leggett ended the year with 61 groundballs, becoming just the third non-faceoff specialist to reach 50 GBs in Kevin Casseses 11-year tenure as Lehigh head coach, the others being Eidenshink and Chick. Leggett also won the Lehigh Athletics J. Daniel Nolan Award presented to the departments top first-year male student-athlete.   Also in 2018, Gaffney was named the Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year while being named a third team Academic All-American by CoSIDA. Gaffney led the Patriot League in faceoff percentage (59.4), while shattering the school record for faceoff wins (212) which is also good for second in league history.   The excitement within the program is carrying forward as heading into 2019, the Mountain Hawks have been ranked in every way-early rankings, coming in as high as No. 8 by the Baltimore Sun. The Mountain Hawks are the only team in the league who has advanced to the last eight Patriot League Tournaments.   Eidenshink played in 55 games over his career, with 30 starts, tallying 115 groundballs and 49 caused turnovers (tied for eighth in school history). He played in seven games during Lehighs 2013 Patriot League Championship campaign. Eidenshink then played in all 18 games as a sophomore, recording 29 groundballs and 16 caused turnovers to help the Mountain Hawks back to the league title game. He had a career-high 50 groundballs and 23 caused turnovers as a junior, along with 32 groundballs and nine caused turnovers as a senior.   As a senior, Eidenshink was named a candidate for the prestigious Senior CLASS Award, played in the USILA North-South All-Star Game and was a USILA Scholar-All-American. He was selected by the Charlotte Hounds in the 2016 Major League Lacrosse Supplemental Draft.   Following his playing days, Eidenshink has worked for Lincoln Investment Planning as a Junior Research Analyst. He worked under two Portfolio/Wealth Managers, assisting with Mutual Fund and ETF research for their portfolios, which are globally diversified and set up to help clients save and prepare for their retirements.   Eidenshink has taught the game of lacrosse as part of the HeadStrong Lacrosse Club. He graduated Lehigh in May of 2016 with a Bachelor of Science in finance.