WASHINGTON, Pa. -- The Washington & Jefferson College men's lacrosse team begins its 2020 campaign Saturday at Alexandre Stadium against Kenyon at 1:00 p.m.
 
2019 Season Review: 2019 marked the first season that the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) sponsored men's lacrosse as an NCAA Division III automatic-qualifying sport.
 
The Presidents narrowly missed on the PAC's four-team conference tournament last fall, finishing fifth in league play at 3-4, one game out of postseason contention. All four of W&J's conference losses in 2019 were to each of the PAC Tournament competitors (Grove City, Saint Vincent, Westminster and Chatham).
 
Despite a 1-4 start, the President rebounded with four-consecutive wins over Mount Union, Muskingum, Wilmington and Kalamazoo to secure a 5-4 out-of-conference mark.
 
In PAC play, the Red and Black started 0-3 with two narrow losses to Chatham (13-14) and Westminster (6-9). The Presidents rallied to win three out of their final four games by a combined 39 goals.
 
"Last season was a challenging year for us," said sixth-year head coach Kevin Kustron. "We fell a bit short of our expectations heading into the season, but we did learn a lot about our group. We return all but two players for the 2020 season. So being able to learn from the failures and build upon the successes with the same group of guys is huge. We faced a lot of adversity in 2019 season. I think the group will be stronger for it in 2020."
 
The Presidents had five players collect all-conference certificates, four of whom are back in the mix for 2020.
 
Then-senior Joseph Tritschler earned his fourth-straight all-conference nod with All-PAC Second Team credentials at LSM. Tritschler led the Presidents in ground balls (85) and caused turnovers (39), ranking among the PAC's top five in both categories.
 
2019 PAC Preseason Poll:

1. Grove City - 48 points (6 first-place votes)
2. Saint Vincent - 40 points (1)
3. Westminster - 38 points (1)
4. Chatham - 33 points
5. Washington & Jefferson - 26 points
6. Thiel - 19 points
7. Bethany - 12 points
8. Franciscan - 8 points

Last spring, Grove City posted an undefeated conference regular season and captured the inaugural PAC Championship Tournament title and NCAA automatic qualifying bid with a 14-3 win over Westminster.
 
PAC Players to Watch: Noah Cohen, Benjamin Ward, Pat Brunner, Alex Strain and Patrick Heidecker
 
Team Captains: Benjamin Ward, Mark Mandak, Patrick Heidecker, Noah Cohen and Shawn Wallbillich
 
Position-By-Position Breakdown:
 
On the Attack - The Red and Black welcomes back a pair of All-PAC honorees along its front line for 2020. The Presidents ranked fourth in the PAC at 11.31 goals per game last spring.
 
"I believe our attack unit has the potential to be the best unit in the conference," said Kustron. "We have senior leadership in Ward and 3 other guys ready to take another huge step forward. When you have 4 'starter quality' attackman and I believe we do. That's a good problem to have. "
 
Senior Benjamin Ward (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan) earned his third all-conference certificate in as many years as a member of the All-PAC First Team in 2019. He paced in the Presidents in goals (41) and points (57) and was fourth in the conference in points per game (3.56). Ward enters 2020 fifth in program history in career goals (115) and career points (167).
 
"Ben is a special player who should be in the POY conversation come May," said Kustron. "He can do it all. Beat you off the dodge, score from 15 yds out, or finish in tight. He often attracts the other teams best defensive player and still puts up the points he does. His work effort separates him form a lot of his peers."
 
Sophomore Alex Strain (Pittsburgh, Pa./Upper St. Clair) burst onto the scene last spring and earned All-PAC Honorable Mention status as a freshman. He posted 40 goals, 16 assists and 56 points in an impressive rookie campaign. He converted 44.4 percent of his shot attempts and finished fifth in the PAC in points per game (3.5).
 
"Alex Strain is coming off a fantastic freshman season with 40 goals," said Kustron. "He has a great stick, high IQ and his ability to find soft areas in the defense and finish plays off make him truly special."
 
Junior Pat Brunner (Ellicott City, Md./Mount Saint Joseph) joined Ward and Strain with over 50 points in the 2019 season. Brunner posted 52 points on 37 goals and 15 assists while shooting a team-best 45.1 percent.
 
"Brunner can beat you with his legs and has a great shot," said Kustron. "He has the looks of a junior who is finally putting all the pieces together as a player and can have a monster year for us."
 
Junior Brandon Tribeck (Enola, Pa./Trinity) led W&J with 25 assists and ranked second in the conference at 1.56 assists per game. He added five goals for a 30-point sophomore season.
 
"Tribeck is another guy that has proven to be an asset at this level," said Kustron. "He's coming off a nice sophomore campaign and we expect another great year out him."
 
In the Middle - Senior Mark Mandak (Enola, Pa./Trinity) led the 2019 W&J midfield in offensive production with 25 points (10 goals and 15 assists).
 
"Mark will continue to be a go-to guy for initiating the offense," said Kustron. "His speed his tough to keep up with and his ability to finish has gotten better each year"
 
Senior Patrick Heidecker (Gettysburg, Pa./Gettysburg) was an All-ORLC Honorable Mention in 2018 following a 40-point campaign. Last spring he posted 17 goals, four assists and 21 points.
 
"Pat has the ability to dominate the game from the midfield. He has a huge shot and his speed has increased heading into the 2020 season. I expect a big senior season out of him."
 
"I think our offensive mid unit can make huge strides after spending a whole season together last year," said Kustron. "We're deep, versatile and I think we plug a lot of different guys into places until we find what clicks.""
 
Junior Reilly Oliverio (Carlisle, Pa./Trinity) scored eight goals and dished eight assists. Pat Moeller (Pittsburgh, Pa./Mount Lebanon) recorded five goals and four assists. Sam Lex tallied five goals and an assist last season. Nicholas Carr (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan) posted four goals and three assists in 2019.
 
Senior Dylan Shepherd (Eagle, Idaho/Eagle) and juniors Nicholas Grosch (Sarasota, Fla./Butler) and Grant Allison (Venetia, Pa./Carson Long Military Institute) return as short-stick defensive midfielders.
 
"Our SSDM unit has maybe made the biggest strides since last season out of everyone," said Kustron. "They've all been with program for two-plus seasons and we're seeing them be much more comfortable out on the field. Dylan has the ability to be a threat and push in transition, Grosch has improved immensely at the face-off X, ad Grant can run with anybody with his speed." 
 
Grosch owned the lion's share of faceoff opportunities in 2019. He won 141-of-341 faceoffs and finished third in the roster with 49 ground balls. The Presidents were unbeaten (6-0) in games in which Grosch won more than 50 percent of his faceoffs.
 
Allison appeared in all 16 games last spring as a SSDM and Shepherd made 13 appearances, grabbing 19 ground balls and causing five turnovers.
 
Luke Geister (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley) and Troy Palmer (Charleston, W.Va./Capital) are set to man the long-stick midfield spots for the Presidents following the graduation of Tritschler. Geister tracked 24 ground balls and 10 caused turnovers in his rookie season for the Presidents while Palmer had 15 ground balls and nine caused turnovers in 2018.
 
"We look forward to the challenge of replacing a guy like Joey," said Kustron. "He had a heck of a career here. But every door that closes opens one for someone else. I believe we have a couple guys that are more than ready to step up to the challenge. And I know they've been chomping at the bit to get a shot to prove themselves."
 
On the Defense - W&J boasts an experienced backline of starting defenders for 2020. The Presidents bring back all three starting close defenders from last spring. W&J ranked second in caused turnovers (11.0) and fifth in goals against average (10.98) in 2019.
 
"Our defensive unit is packing a ton of experience," said Kustron. "We return virtually the same group. I think we will see a nice jump in consistency having all played together for multiple seasons."
 
Senior Shawn Wallbillich (Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth) headlines the returning defensemen. Wallbillich was awarded All-PAC Second Team honors after scooping 15 ground balls and causing 15 turnover last spring.
 
"Shawn has the ability to be the anchor on our defense," said Kustron. "He has started since freshman year for us. He's had a ton of experience and I know he's up for the challenge. He's motivated to have a great Senior season."
 
Junior Jake Duda (Venetia, Pa./Peters Township) started 32 of 33 games as an underclassman. Last year he collected 20 ground balls and ranked second on the roster with 18 caused turnovers last season.
 
Senior Mark Bowers (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan) started all 16 games in 2019 and logged 16 GB and 12 CT.
 
Kyle Teeter (Lockport, N.Y./Lockport) recorded eight ground balls and 10 caused turnovers in a dozen games off the bench.
 
In Goal - Senior goalkeeper Noah Cohen (Hewlett, N.Y./George W. Hewlett) has made a home between the pipes for W&J for each of the last three seasons. He's started every game over the last three years and earned an all-conference nod in each. Last spring Cohen earned All-PAC Second Team laurels after finishing with an 11.41 goals against average and a 57.9 percent save percentage.
 
"What can I say about Noah at this point?" said Kustron. "He's been the backbone of our defense for the last 3 seasons. On many a game day he's been the reason we're still in the hunt. He is a great ball stopper, obviously, but his communication and ability to lead the d unit is a vital part of our success. I fully expect him to go out with a monster year. He has POY potential come May."
 
Newcomers: The Presidents add four newcomers for the 2020 season. Sophomore Sam Snider (Morgantown, W.Va./University) and freshmen Carter Watts (Gilbertsville, Pa./Boyertown), Henry Beardwood (Wilmington, Del./Salesianum School) and James Deiuliis (Pittsburgh, Pa./Upper Saint Clair) join the Red and Black for their debut seasons.
 
Looking At the Schedule: The Presidents' 2020 schedule features nine non-conference games and seven PAC tilts.
 
The Presidents see four common out-of-conference opponents that the Red and Black saw last season (Kenyon, Hood, Mount Union and La Roche).
 
The Presidents add Moravian, Lycoming, Marietta, Lebanon Valley and Marymount (Va.) to the schedule in 2020.
 
PAC play begins with the Presidents visiting Chatham on March 29. W&J hosts four-straight home games following the PAC opener (Saint Vincent, Westminster, Franciscan and Bethany) before finishing up the season on the road at Grove City and Thiel.
 
"One of the goals since I've been here is to play the toughest schedule that we can find," said Kustron. "We embrace the challenge that some of these out of conference teams represent. And we try to take something away from each game we play. In conference, the quality of play has come a long way during my six seasons here. There's a lot more parity than there was four to five years ago. We expect another battle this season come PAC play."

Last Word: "At the end of the day, our goal is nothing short of a conference championship," said Kustron. "We believe we have a group capable of accomplishing that. And not only capable but motivated after a few underwhelming seasons. We have a ton of senior leadership and that experience should pay off for us. We're being looked past as a threat in the conference and to me, that's just fine. As I've told the group, there's nothing sweeter than being underestimated and sticking it to some teams up on their high horse. We've got a lot of humbling to do in the conference, and we'll see them all on the field come gameday."