Bethany Lacrosse picked Seventh in PAC Pre-Season Poll

Greenville, Pa - The Bethany College men's lacrosse team was picked to finish seventh in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) Men's Lacrosse Preseason Coaches' Poll, which was released Friday along with the league's Players to Watch list.

Grove City was picked to finish first in the PAC, followed by St. Vincent and Chatham.

Washington & Jefferson College was picked fourth and was followed by Thiel College in fifth, Westminster College in sixth. Franciscan University, accepted by the PAC as an affiliate member in both men's and women's lacrosse in December 2017, was picked eighth.

The Bison and fourth-year Head Coach Ryan Hilyer return a trio of team leaders from last season. Senior Will Gatling led the Bison offense with 25 goals and 33 points. The green and white also return a pair of sophomores Nick Melita and Tristan Shaffer. Shaffer finished third on the team scoring 18 goals and second team in points with 28, while Melita scored 17 goals and picked up 22 points last season.

Bethany will open the 2019 campaign on Sunday, Feb. 24 when the Bison take on Wilmington (OH) at Bison Stadium. Face-off is set for 3:00 pm.