Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 11/3/17
From Press Release
Lehigh head men’s lacrosse coach Kevin Cassese announced on Thursday that senior Ian Strain (Episcopal Academy) will serve as the Mountain Hawks’ 2018 captain while junior Craig Chick and seniors John Mehok (Bishop Shanahan) and Nolan Apers were named assistant captains. Strain has plenty of experience in a leadership role after serving as co-captain with Cody Triolo and Donny Stires last season.
“I am excited about the four young men who were selected to serve as captains for the 2018 season,” said Lehigh head coach Kevin Cassese. “I am also excited about the leadership structure we are implementing for this year. I believe it will serve this team well.”
Strain returns for a fifth season in the Brown and White after missing his freshman season due to injury. A strong leader on and off the field, Strain enjoyed a breakout season in 2017, posting career highs in goals (15), assists (7) and points (22) while starting all 14 games in the midfield. He recorded four multi-goal games on the season, highlighted by his first-career hat trick on Senior Day vs. Bucknell.
Chick has emerged in a leadership role after a record-breaking first two years. Chick was named an Inside Lacrosse honorable mention All-American following last season, which saw him post 58 groundballs and a school-record 40 caused turnovers. Through two years, Chick has 77 caused turnovers, which is already second in school history. A 2017 first team All-Patriot League honoree, Chick was third in the nation in caused turnovers per game (2.86), one year after leading the nation with 37 caused turnovers as a freshman.
Mehok has been a strong contributor to the program, both on and off the field. On the field, he owns 12 career points in 17 games, posting five goals and an assist as a sophomore then two goals and four assists as a junior. As a sophomore, Mehok scored a career-high two goals in a season-opening victory vs. NJIT. Mehok has missed time due to injury, but has continued to be a positive influence and leader within the team.
Apers has been a steady figure since joining the Mountain Hawks in 2014-15. As a freshman, he posted three goals and two assists while playing in all 16 games (with five starts). Included was a career-high two-goal performance against Bucknell. Apers has continued to contribute over the last two seasons, scoring a goal each year while serving as a key veteran presence amongst his teammates.
The Mountain Hawks recently wrapped up their fall season as they prepare for the 2018 campaign. Lehigh is set to return four of its top five point-getters along with six of the top seven finishers in groundballs. In addition, all three All-Patriot League honorees return in Chick, Eddie Bouhall and Andrew Pettit, as does Tristan Rai and his 87 career points through two seasons and Conor Gaffney, who finished eighth nationally in faceoff percentage as a freshman (61.0 percent).