[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 9]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 11787]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




 HONORING THE NCAA NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP VICTORIES OF LE MOYNE COLLEGE 
                        AND SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JAMES T. WALSH

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 8, 2004

  Mr. WALSH. Mr. Speaker, I rise in honor of two NCAA national 
championship athletic programs from Syracuse, NY. This past weekend, 
both the Syracuse University and Lemoyne College Men's Lacrosse teams 
won NCAA titles in Baltimore, MD.
  Though Central New York is known as a breeding ground for the 
nation's finest lacrosse players, never before has Syracuse been the 
home of two reigning NCAA National Champions in the sport. I am 
extremely proud of both teams and applaud the determination and skill 
they showed throughout the 2004 season.
  Syracuse University has been a dominant force in NCAA Division I 
lacrosse for decades under the leadership of Roy Simmons, Roy Simmons, 
Jr. and current skipper John Desko. The program has built a tradition 
of excellence and produced the finest individual players in the history 
of collegiate lacrosse.
  The current team is a proud extension of the SU lacrosse legacy and 
under the leadership of Coaches John Desko, Kevin Donahue, Roy Simmons 
III and Ryan Powell; they have proven their dominance once again.
  Mike Powell, the undisputed leader of the SU Lacrosse team, along 
with his teammates carried on throughout the 2004 season in the spirit 
of the Gait Brothers, Tom Marachek, Charlie Lockwood and the other 
great teammates and talents who gave rise to the formidability of SU 
Lacrosse.
  The Orangemen came into the NCAA tournament with a number 4 seed. 
Some considered that lower ranking to be an affront to the depth and 
talent the program had demonstrated during the course of the season. It 
became obvious as the tournament progressed, however, that any 
weaknesses perceived in the 2004 team were gone.
  With Mike Powell, the leading scorer in the history of SU lacrosse on 
the crease, a strong group of senior leaders including Dan DiPietro, 
Nick Donatelli, Kevin Dougherty, Sean Lindsay, Brian Nee, Michael 
Powell, Andy Shin, Steve Vallone and Alex Zink, underclassmen John 
Bone, Andrew Boyle, Evan Brady, Danny Brennan, Steven Brooks, Brett 
Bucktooth, Crian Crockett, Chris DiMarco, Scott Ditzell, Zack Fields, 
John Gallagher, Kevin Gowin, Ryan Hogan, James Hsiao, Jon Jerome, Geoff 
Keough, Steve Lykudis, Mike MacDonald, Kieran Murphy, Brooks Neal, 
Dustin Palmer, Steven Panarelli, Jarett Park, Jay Pfeifer, Jake 
Plunkett, Timmy Raschdorf, Greg Rommel, Andrew Sullivan, Thomas 
Theodorakis, Donn Vidosh, Hank Vohrer, Scott Wallace, Zack Wallace, 
John Wright and supporting staff Troy Gerlt, Katherine Hatch, Gary 
Audet and Judy Quattrone the Orangemen beat very strong Georgetown and 
Johns Hopkins squads to advance once again to the NCAA Division I title 
game.
  With their stunning 14-13 victory over the Midshipmen of the U.S. 
Naval Academy, the Syracuse University Men's Lacrosse Team won their 
9th national championship and the third NCAA Division I title in the 5 
year tenure of Coach Desko.
  The consistency and talent of the Syracuse University Men's lacrosse 
program deserves the recognition of this House and the nation at large. 
Very rarely has collegiate sport seen such a shining legacy and I am 
extremely proud to represent Syracuse University in the House of 
Representatives.
  Chancellor Kenneth ``Buzz'' Shaw, the students, faculty, alumni and 
fans of Syracuse University deserve praise for their continued 
dedication to the Orangemen lacrosse legacy. I would like to extend my 
thanks for the great work they do and the honor and dignity they bring 
to Central New York.
  Lemoyne College, the only Jesuit institution of higher learning in 
Syracuse has emerged on the national scene in recent years as a NCAA 
Division II powerhouse. The small, yet distinguished college has 
maintained a tradition of athletic success, though since being 
chartered in 1946 had never won a national championship in any sport.
  That all changed May 30th, 2004 when the Lemoyne Dolphins defeated 
Limestone College 11-10 in double overtime, before nearly 20,000 fans 
at M&T Bank Stadium. The stunning win, led by Junior Brandon Spillett's 
amazing performance on attack, gave Lemoyne and Head Coach Dan Sheehan 
the first NCAA National Championship in the history of the school. This 
achievement has brought a great measure of pride to the friends, 
faculty and alumni of Lemoyne College, all of whom had watched the 
men's lacrosse program develop from obscurity to national prominence in 
only a few years.
  The NCAA Division II National Championship title for the Dolphins 
Men's Lacrosse team means a great deal to Central New York, home to 
most members of the Dolphin Lacrosse team, but also to the Lemoyne 
College family as well. All of the students, faculty and staff of 
Lemoyne endured a difficult year that saw the College bond together in 
support of senior midfielder Adam Carne, who nearly died last summer 
after a brutal and senseless attack by a stranger. Adam's remarkable 
recovery and presence on the sidelines during the 2004 season inspired 
the Dolphin Lacrosse team to achieve a level of success unimaginable 
just a few years ago.
  I am immensely proud of Coach Dan Sheehan, his assistants Brian 
Datellas, Kevin Michaud and Bradley Carr, as well as the members of the 
Lemoyne Dolphins Men's Lacrosse team including seniors Travis Morgia, 
Corey Sullivan, Adam Carne, Rob Trowbridge, Pat Hooks, Chris Geng, Joel 
Dorchester and Justin Wnuk; underclassmen Brannan Karg, Travis Tarr, 
Ryan Fennell, Brandon Spillett, Travis Ames, Chris Doran, Collin 
Knowles, Nate Evans, Chris Moore, Matt Juriga, Kyle Reichel, Jared 
Corcoran, Ben Lanman, Ted Rund, Ed Street, Jordan Witt, Matt Emerson, 
Eric Roberts, Ryan Lewis, Kevin Kohl, Brendan Flynn, Joe Maslak, Joe 
Weaver, Matt Holdridge, Craig Rosecrans, Jeff Norton, Russ Oechsle, 
Mike Lindstrom and support staff Mike Wilson, Rachel Russell, Carissa 
Barallaro and Shannon Holliday.
  Lacrosse is a way of life in Central New York and has been since the 
Iroquois Federation created the game centuries ago. I feel privileged 
to represent such outstanding college athletic programs in my 
Congressional District and once again express my sincere 
congratulations to the Syracuse University and Lemoyne College Men's 
Lacrosse teams for their great efforts this season and NCAA National 
Championship titles.

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