May 12, 2003
To the outside observer the 2003 campaign may have appeared to be a rebuilding year for the Penn Lacrosse program. The Red and Blue were just one season removed from the program's first winning campaign since 1988 and expectations were high for more of the same.
However 2003 saw the Quakers slip in the win-loss column and finish 6-7 overall (2-4 Ivy League). At this point the Red and Blue's glass was looking half empty.
But when considering that Penn began the season with its third head coach in three years; and that when Brian Voelker took over the reins of the program he had to replace the team's top two-goal scorers, three of the team's top-four offensive threats, an All-American defenseman and a starting goaltender; it would be easy to see the glass was actually half full for the Red and Blue.
With two freshmen starting at attack, and a starting goaltender who had previously logged a combined five minutes of action in three seasons, the Red and Blue won four of its first six games, including a 13-8 victory over No. 18 Army and an 8-6 road-win against Harvard.
Despite a midseason misstep that included losses to No. 2 Princeton and No. 15 Cornell, Penn rebounded with wins over Lehigh and Yale in two of its final three games to end the campaign on a positive note.
More bright spots included the play of the Class of 2006, which accounted for over 20 percent of the Red and Blue offense, Will Phillips, who became the Quakers' first 20-goal scorer in two years, and Mark Gannon, who recorded 10 saves or more in a game eight times.
THE GREAT EXPERIMENT
In junior Will Phillips' two previous seasons with the Red and Blue, he never recorded more than three goals from his midfield position. With Head Coach Brian Voelker replacing three attackmen with two freshmen, Phillips immediately became the coaching staff's third option upfront.
The move paid off as Phillips became the Red and Blue's first 20-goal scorer since Scott Solow netted 22 in 2001.
The Annapolis, Md. native would finish the season leading the Quakers in scoring with career highs in goals (26) and points (38), while also becoming the only member of the team to score a point in every game.
Speaking of streaks, Phillips entered the 2003 campaign with a modest five-game points streak dating back to April 6, 2002 when he recorded two assists in a win at Dartmouth. When the dust settled on 2003, the streak was still alive and has reached 18 games.
OLD RELIABLE
Seniors Jake Martin and Alex Kopicki also provided the Red and Blue with two more offensive threats from the midfield as the duo combined for 30 goals on the season and finished second and third in team scoring, respectively.
Martin netted a career-high 14 goals while also recording career-highs in assists (9) and points (23). During the Quakers' three-game winning streak in mid-March, Martin tallied nine goals, including a four-goal effort against Army. The Baltimore, Md. native finished his Penn career with 38 goals and 18 assists for 56 points.
Martin was not the only senior who enjoyed a career season as Kopicki added a career-high 16 goals to finish second on the team. He also recorded three assists to finish with 19 points.
In addition to his scoring abilities (Kopicki recorded at least one point in nine games) the coaching staff relied heavily on himfor his leadership abilities as a co-captain with such a young team.
The Timonium, Md. native finished the season with 47 goals and 21 assists for 68 points in his Red and Blue career.
THE INTANGIBLES
Senior defensemen and co-captains Stephen Brown and Evan Weinberg were the anchors for the Penn defense in 2003, making opposing attackmen pay a fierce price in the Quakers' offensive zone.
The duo even chipped in on offense, as Brown scored his first three career goals and Weinberg added his first career tally as well.
Scoring aside, it was the pair's leadership and strong defensive play that made them so valuable to the coaching staff.
Brown earned a spot on the Ivy League's weekly Honor Roll after shutting down Yale's top scorer, Mike Scaglione, in the Quakers' season finale.
The pair finished fifth and sixth on the team in groundballs, as Brown recorded a career-high 29 while Weinberg added 27.
TRIAL BY FIRE
Not many teams get as much contributions from its rookie class as the Quakers did in 2003. Seven freshmen earned regular playing time for Penn this past season, with two - James Riordan and Luke Dixson - starting on attack.
Riordan led the Red and Blue and Ivy League with five man-up goals. The Baldwin, N.Y. native added 12 goals and 17 points in his first collegiate season. Dixson was also helping the offense, having recorded four goals and six assists before a torn ACL forced him out of the lineup for the final four contests.
Penn's B midfielders were all freshmen as D.J. Andrzejewski, Chase McGowan and Patrick Rogers combined for nine goals. Andrzejewski scored two man-up goals and finished with four, while McGowan tallied five times and added four assists.
Jeff Mills also saw a lot of playing time at midfield, appearing in 12 games and recording 13 groundballs.
SHAKING OFF THE COBWEBS
The last time Mark Gannon had played any "real" minutes in the cage was four years ago as a senior at Walt Whitman High School in Maryland. Last season, he took one for the team and played the midfield for the Red and Blue, appearing in a career-high four games.
All that changed in 2003, as Gannon became the Quakers' No. 1 netminder, posting a 9.44 goals against average, a .509 save percentage and logging over 746 minutes of action.
Along the way, the Bethesda, Md. native posted 13-save performances against No. 18 Army, No. 2 Princeton and Dartmouth.
QUICK DRAW
Junior face-off specialist Ethan Haire once again turned in a solid campaign, winning 50.0 percent of his draws and picking up a team and Ivy League leading 89 groundballs. His 6.8 groundball per game average ranked him second in the NCAA.
In addition to his face-off duties, Haire added another feature to his playing resume - starting attackman. Jumping in to the vacancy left by Luke Dixson's injury, Haire scored four goals in his three starts. He had tallied just one goal in his previous 10 games.
NO SOPHOMORE JINX HERE
Sophomores Zandy Reich and Greg Voigt were not held back by any second-year slumps in 2003. After posting solid seasons in 2002, both players recorded career highs in points as Reich tallied a career-high 12 times and added seven assists for 19 points, while Voigt scored six times and added six assists for 12 points.
A midfielder, Reich was one of nine players to start all 13 games, while Voigt saw action in all 13 games, starting twice at midfield.
Both players were hot down the stretch, as Reich fell two goals shy of the program record for goals in a game with six goals (and two assists) in a 15-11 Penn win at Lehigh on April 15. He finished the season with 10 goals in his final five games.
Voigt meanwhile scored four goals and added four assists in his final three games of the season.
JOURNEY'S END
Four more seniors joined Stephen Brown, Alex Kopicki, Evan Weinberg, Mark Gannon and Jake Martin in playing their final games for the Red and Blue in 2003.
Bobby Unterstein was Mr. Versatility in the midfield, playing either long-pole or short-stick. He appeared in all 13 games and recorded 15 groundballs.
John Walsh appeared in five games this season and made every minute count as he scored two goals, including one in the season finale against Yale at Franklin Field on April 27, and added one assist.
Jody Goehring and Jim Tyrell also closed out their Quakers' careers, as Goehring appeared in nine games and won four face-offs. Unfortunately an injury sidelined Tyrell for the entire season.
