Coker Tabbed Seventh in Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll, Irizarry and Venazio Named Preseason All-Conference

ROCK HILL, S.C. - The Coker University men’s lacrosse team was picked seventh in the South Atlantic Conference Preseason Coaches’ Poll, while junior midfielder Ethan Irizarry and sophomore attack Joe Venazio were named Preseason All-Conference, announced by the league today (Tuesday, Jan. 21).

January 21, 2020

ROCK HILL, S.C. - The Coker University men's lacrosse team was picked seventh in the South Atlantic Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll, while junior midfielder Ethan Irizarry and sophomore attack Joe Venazio were named Preseason All-Conference, announced by the league today (Tuesday, Jan. 21).

Defending league champion Wingate topped the poll with 70 points and six first-place votes, while conference runner-up Queens (N.C.) took second with 64 points and two first-place votes. Lenoir-Rhyne was tabbed third with 60 points and the remaining first-place vote, while Catawba was slated fourth with 49 points. Lincoln Memorial was picked fifth with 38 points, while Tusculum was slated sixth with 36 points. Coker (32), Newberry (28) and Mars Hill (19) rounded out the poll.

Coker won five games a season ago, with two wins in South Atlantic Conference play. Including Irizarry and Venazio, the Cobras return 19 men from last year's squad and also welcome 12 freshmen to the mix.

Irizarry earned a spot on the All-Conference second team a season ago. He played in all 14 games making 13 starts as a sophomore. He also finished third on the team in goals (28), fifth on the team in assists (nine) and third in points (37). Through just two seasons he already sits in the seventh in career points with 72, sixth in goals with 55, and 11th in assists with 17.

The New York, N.Y. native is the son of Eddie Irizzary and Sandy and Joe Eyde, and is a criminology major.

Venazio played in all 14 games making 13 starts as a freshman. He finished the season as the team leader in goals (37), assists (19) and points (57). Venazio scored at least once in every game he played this season, and also set new single-game records for goals (eight) and points (11) in a game at Chowan (Feb. 6). He was also named to the SAC Commissioner's honor roll last season for his work in the classroom.

The Myrtle Beach, S.C. native is the son of Joe and Tanya Venazio, and is an exercise science major.

Coker opens the season on Feb. 2 when they host Lees-McRae College at the Coker Athletic Field. Opening faceoff is set for 4:00 p.m., with video and live stats available at www.cokercobras.com.