Marist Men’s Lacrosse Voted Preseason Favorite; Jake Tomsik and Peyton Smith Share Preseason Player of the Year Honors
Edison, N.J. (Jan. 28, 2020) - Marist College was dubbed the 2020 MAAC Men’s Lacrosse preseason favorite and Quinnipiac University’s Jake Tomsik and Marist’s Peyton Smith were named Co-Preseason Players of the Year, as voted on by the league’s eight head coaches.
Marist (10-7, 6-1 MAAC) secured its third MAAC Championship in program history in 2019 following a 15-14 victory over second-seeded Quinnipiac University in the championship game. The Red Foxes return the 2019 MAAC Faceoff Specialist of the Year in Peyton Smith.
The University of Detroit Mercy was voted into second place (49 points), Quinnipiac in third (42) and Canisius College in fourth (41). Monmouth University (37) rounded out the top five.
Smith and Quinnipiac’s Jake Tomsik headline the preseason honors as the Co-Preseason Players of the Year. In his junior season, Smith finished with a .630 faceoff win percentage, good for 11
th in the NCAA. A 2019 All-MAAC First Team selection, Tomsik led the Bobcats in scoring with 60 points. Tomsik joins the list as one of only four players unanimously selected to the Preseason All-MAAC Team.
Detroit Mercy led the way for the Preseason All-MAAC Team with five selections. Quinnipiac, Marist, Monmouth and Canisius were each represented by two players on the list, while Siena College added on one.
Monmouth will play host to the 2020 MAAC Men’s Lacrosse Championship from April 30 to May 2 in West Long Branch, New Jersey. To stay up-to-date with MAAC Men’s Lacrosse, follow @MAACSports on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook and join the conversation using #MAACLAX.
See below for the full poll and list of preseason honors:
| Preseason Coaches’ Poll |
| Marist (7) |
63 |
| Detroit Mercy (1) |
49 |
| Quinnipiac |
42 |
| Canisius |
41 |
| Monmouth |
37 |
| Siena |
26 |
| Manhattan |
22 |
| St. Bonaventure |
8 |
| Preseason Players of the Year |
| Jake Tomsik |
Quinnipiac |
| Peyton Smith |
Marist |
| Preseason All-MAAC Team |
| Player |
Position |
Year |
Institution |
| Jake Tomsik* |
Attack |
Jr. |
Quinnipiac |
| Jake Weinman |
Attack |
R. Jr. |
Marist |
| Seth Mendell |
Attack |
Sr. |
Detroit Mercy |
| Alex Akins* |
Defense |
Sr. |
Detroit Mercy |
| Chris Hervada |
Defense |
Jr. |
Monmouth |
| Jack Drillock |
Defense |
Sr. |
Siena |
| Sam McClain |
Defense |
R. Sr. |
Detroit Mercy |
| Peyton Smith |
Faceoff Specialist |
Sr. |
Marist |
| Logan Shamblin |
Goalkeeper |
Jr. |
Detroit Mercy |
| Paul Manuszak* |
Long Stick Midfielder |
Jr. |
Detroit Mercy |
| Carter Stefaniak* |
Midfield |
Sr. |
Canisius |
| Will Abbott |
Midfield |
So. |
Quinnipiac |
| Mathieu Boissonneault |
Midfield |
Sr. |
Canisius |
| Rudy Beck |
Short Stick Midfielder |
Jr. |
Monmouth |
*Unanimous selection
About the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference:
With 11 institutions strongly bound by the sound principles of quality and integrity in academics and excellence in athletics, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) is in its 39
th year of competition during the 2019-20 academic year. Current conference members include: Canisius College, Fairfield University, Iona College, Manhattan College, Marist College, Monmouth University, Niagara University, Quinnipiac University, Rider University, Saint Peter’s University, and Siena College.