BALTIMORE, Md. – Senior midfielder Kevin Crowley (New Westminster H.S./New Westminster, B.C.) of Stony Brook University was selected by the Hamilton Nationals with the first overall pick in the 2011 Major League Lacrosse Collegiate Draft held at the Power Plant on Friday evening.
Honored as the Division I Preseason Player of the Year by Lacrosse Magazine, Crowley became the first player in Stony Brook men’s lacrosse history to earn first team All-America honors after scoring 51 goals with 26 assists. The 2010 America East Conference Player of the Year, he led NCAA Division I by averaging 4.53 points per game and scored a goal in 16 of 17 games.
The recipient of the Enners Award by the USILA, Crowley enters his senior season needing just 26 points to break the Seawolves’ career scoring record. He has 101 career goals with 75 assists in three seasons.
With the second overall selection, the Rochester Rattlers selected senior defenseman Joel White (Cortland H.S./Cortland, N.Y.) from Syracuse University. White, a first team USILA All-America selection, was the recipient of the Lt. Donald C. MacLaughlin, Jr. Award as the nation’s best midfielder. He led the Orange with 78 ground balls and 31 caused turnovers. He ranked seventh in the nation in caused turnovers with a 2.07 average and ranked 15th with a 5.2 ground ball per game average.
A two-time first team All-America selection for the University of North Carolina, senior attackman Billy Bitter (Deerfield Academy/Manhasset, N.Y.) was picked by the Denver Outlaws with the third overall selection. Bitter, who scored 22 goals with 22 assists, was the first Tar Heel selected as the Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year after leading North Carolina to the NCAA Tournament quarter-finals.
University of Virginia senior midfielder Shamel Bratton (Huntington H.S./Huntington Station, N.Y.) was taken by the Long Island Lizards with the fourth overall selection in the draft. One of 13 Virginia players to earn first team All-America honors twice, Bratton played in 18 games for the Cavaliers last year and scored 24 goals with 17 assists. With 69 career goals, he ranks ninth among midfielders on Virginia’s all-time scoring list.
A first team All-America selection, University of Notre Dame senior midfielder Zach Brenneman (East Hampton H.S./East Hampton, N.Y.) was selected by the Long Island Lizards with the fifth pick in the opening round. The leading scorer for the Fighting Irish, Brenneman helped Notre Dame reach the 2010 NCAA Division I Championship Game and led the team in scoring with 29 goals and 13 assists. Brenneman will begin his senior year with 56 career goals and 22 assists.
Syracuse senior midfielder Jeremy Thompson (Lafayette H.S./Nedrow, N.Y.) was picked with the sixth overall selection by the Nationals. A second team USILA All-America selection, Thompson scored 15 goals with eight assists while starting all 15 games. He won 58.2 per cent of his face-off attempts, which led the Big East Conference, and ranked third on the team with 46 ground balls. He tallied eight multi-point games, including a career-high five points against Villanova after scoring three goals with two assists. The Orange led all schools with seven players selected while Maryland and Notre Dame each had five players drafted.
2011 Major League Lacrosse Collegiate Draft Results
January 21, 2011 | Baltimore, Md.
Round Pick # Team Player School Position
1 1 Hamilton Kevin Crowley Stony Brook Midfield
2 Rochester Joel White Syracuse Defense
3 Denver Billy Bitter North Carolina Attack
4 Boston Shamel Bratton Virginia Midfield
5 Long Island Zach Brenneman Notre Dame Midfield
6 Hamilton Jeremy Thompson Syracuse Midfield
2 7 Hamilton Ryan Flanagan North Carolina Defense
8 Rochester Jovan Miller Syracuse Midfield
9 Denver Steve Serling Hofstra Midfield
10 Boston Josh Amidon Syracuse Midfield
11 Long Island Jay Card Hofstra Attack
12 Boston Brian Farrell Maryland Defense
3 13 Hamilton David Earl Notre Dame Midfield
14 Rochester Jordan McBride Stony Brook Attack
15 Denver Brett Schmidt Maryland Defense
16 Boston John Lade Syracuse Defense
17 Long Island Rhamel Bratton Virginia Midfield
18 Hamilton Kevin Ridgway Notre Dame Defense
4 19 Hamilton Dan Burns Maryland Midfield
20 Rochester John Galloway Syracuse Goalkeeper
21 Denver Grant Catalino Maryland Attack
22 Boston Kevin Kaminski Delaware Midfield
23 Long Island Ryan Young Maryland Attack
24 Chesapeake Barney Ehrmann Georgetown Defense
5 25 Hamilton Stephen Keogh Syracuse Defense
26 Rochester Tom Montelli Duke Midfield
27 Denver Jack McBride Princeton Attack
28 Boston Tom Compitello Stony Brook Attack
29 Long Island Sam Barnes Notre Dame Defense
30 Chesapeake Steve DeNapoli Hofstra Defense
6 31 Hamilton Adam Rand Stony Brook Midfield
32 Rochester Brian Caufield Albany Attack
33 Denver Andrew Irving Notre Dame Midfield
34 Boston Pat Dowling Delaware Midfield
35 Long Island Brian Karalunas Villanova Midfield
36 Chesapeake Michael Burns North Carolina Midfield
7 37 Hamilton Bill Henderson Army Defense
38 Rochester Adam Jones Canisius Midfield
39 Denver Andrew Lay Denver Midfield
40 Boston David Hawley Brown Midfield
41 Long Island Peter Mezzanotte Towson Midfield
42 Chesapeake Dan Hostetler Georgetown Defense
8 43 Hamilton Jeremy Boltus Army Attack
44 Rochester Matt Chatterdon LeMoyne Midfield
45 Denver Adam Ghitelman Virginia Goalkeeper
46 Boston Zach Howell Duke Attack
47 Long Island Matt Stefurak Delaware Defense
48 Chesapeake John Austin Delaware Midfield
About Major League Lacrosse
Major League Lacrosse (MLL) was founded by Jake Steinfeld and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. Major League Lacrosse commenced play in June of 2001 and is comprised of six teams located in Boston, Chesapeake, Denver, Long Island, Rochester and Toronto.
Major League Lacrosse’s 2011 All Star Game will take place on July 9 at Harvard Stadium in Boston. The 2011 MLL Championship Weekend, presented by Warrior, is scheduled for August 27 & 28 at Navy-Marine Corps Stadium in Annapolis, MD.
For more information, please visit the Official League website at www.majorleaguelacrosse.com.
