2024 DIV II NCAA MEN'S LACROSSE CHAMPIONSHIP

May 26, 2024

Greg Paradine

Evan Voss

Joey Masson

Lincoln Financial Field

Lenoir-Rhyne Bears

Media Conference

Adelphi 12, Lenoir-Rhyne 10

MODERATOR: All right, we're joined now by Greg Paradine and Evan Voss and Joey Masson. We will open it up to questions for the student-athletes and then we will dismiss the student-athletes and open it up to questions for the coach. Coach?

GREG PARADINE: Yeah, I just wanted to congratulate Adelphi. Great game. Knew it was going to be a great one. You know, I think their goalie didn't play against us in the first game. Those two guys were really the difference, but tremendous season for Lenoir-Rhyne this year and we'll be back.

MODERATOR: Questions?

Q. Evan, for you guys offensively in the last 20 minutes or so, fair number of turnovers in there. What do you think kind of caused you guys to unravel a little bit?

EVAN VOSS: Their zone defense was all preparing for that zone, and we just made a few too many mistakes that caused us to not be able to put the ball in the back of the net, so I think that was the main reason.

Q. Evan, again, for you guys on offense, Adelphi's goalie had a spectacular day and he's been one of the best goalies in the country. Preparing for a goalie like that, do you do anything different? Do you change the way you're thinking about shots or the way you're taking shots?

EVAN VOSS: I would like to say no, but the answer definitely is yes. Dylan, the goalie, had a tremendous season. I think he was the player of the year for Division II. That helped us prepare all week and it's only so much you can do until you get to the game.

Q. For Joey, when you look at what they were able to do in the midfield there when they came back, were they doing anything differently, basically, or was that just them making plays against you guys?

JOEY MASSON: I think coach already touched on it. We didn't see 26 the first time we played them and I think him being there made a big difference. I think they were just making plays and sometimes good offense beats good defense and I think that happened a couple of times, so.

MODERATOR: Any other questions for the student-athletes? All right, gentlemen, thank you. Questions for coach?

Q. I'll kind of go to a similar spot for you, Greg, just with offensively it just seemed like the fourth quarter you guys just couldn't solve anything there. Was that basically the view from your end?

GREG PARADINE: Yeah, I just felt like we just got out of rhythm a little bit in the fourth quarter, you know, and credit to their kid. I think he had eight saves in the first quarter. We knew he has that ability to do that, to kind of shut the door. Again, could have been a little bit more -- we could have stretched it out a little bit but he made some critical saves probably early to keep him in and their kid, 26, was just unbelievable today. He had four goals and we got caught on a couple of match-ups, he had a couple of short sticks and he made us pay.

Q. Coach, obviously here last year. To get back this year after you lost a fair amount of really high level players from last year's class, kind of have a new group, new guys in leadership roles, thinking about the journey this team made just to get back here, what kind of stands out about this group to you?

GREG PARADINE: Yeah, it was such a different group than last year. We lost so much offensive firepower from last year's team and bringing in a lot of now guys who it took a little bit for them to jell, but they did and to be the last two teams playing, it's nothing to hang your head about and I told the guys that. None of those guys should walk off with their heads down. They should walk off proud for the season they had and our senior class, the most decorated senior class in our program's history, three out of the last four championship games, a lot of people don't do that, a credit to those kids.

MODERATOR: Anything for for coach? Okay. Thanks, coach.