Feb. 19, 2005

Baltimore, Md. - The Loyola men's lacrosse team will begin the 2005 season ranked No. 17 in the Face-Off/Inside Lacrosse coaches' poll. The Greyhounds, with 418 poll points, are one of five ECAC schools ranked in the Top-25.

Johns Hopkins holds the No. 1spot with 35 first-place votes while defending national champion Syracuse is ranked No. 2 while Princeton, Navy and Maryland round out the Top 5.

Loyola returns eight starters and 28 lettermen from last year's team that finished with a disappointing 4-8 overall record. Playing mostly underclassmen in 2004, the Greyhounds will still be young in 2005, but much more experienced. The schedule won't be easy, with games versus No. 1 Johns Hopkins and No. 2 Syracuse, along with a very tough ECAC slate.

The season begins Saturday, February 26 against No. 11 Towson. Other Top-25 opponents include No. 6 Georgetown, No. 12 Rutgers, No. 13 Duke, No. 15 Massachusetts, No. 18 Pennsylvania and No. 21 Penn State.

Inside Lacrosse Preseason Coaches Poll
1 Johns Hopkins (35) 1370
2 Syracuse (19) 1309
3 Princeton 1207
4 Navy (2) 1195
5 Maryland 1177
6 Georgetown 1066
7 North Carolina 1011
8 Virginia 1007
9 Cornell 818
10 Notre Dame 746
11 Towson 714
12 Rutgers 634
13 Duke 622
14 Ohio State 604
15 Massachusetts 530
16 Army 425
17 Loyola 418
18 Pennsylvania 387
19 Brown 348
20 Hobart 267
21 Penn State- 238
22 Villanova- 229
23 Dartmouth- 216
24 Denver- 209
25 Hofstra-173