GETTYSBURG, Pa. – A primarily young Gettysburg College men's lacrosse team will take the field in 2012 with the goal of improving says head coach Hank Janczyk, who enters his 25th year at the helm of the Bullets.

“The key for us is to continue to improve throughout the year,” said Janczyk, who with an overall career record of 357-108 ranks second in NCAA history in men's lacrosse coaching victories (all divisions). “We know we're young, and we know we've got a lot to learn. We've just got to keep getting better and better, and by the middle of the season we want to hit our stride so we can really finish strong.

“That's the goal for this team – to continue to come together and learn lacrosse so we can become a formidable team.”

The Bullets finished 12-7 overall and 6-2 in the Centennial Conference last season to tie for second in the league standings. Gettysburg, ranked No. 12 in the final United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) Division III poll, also advanced to the conference championship game and received an at-large bid in the NCAA Division III tournament before reaching the second round.

This year, Gettysburg has gained significant recognition in the preseason, earning national rankings by three different publications or organizations. Gettysburg was ranked No. 12 in Division III by Lacrosse Magazine and USILA as well as No. 16 by Inside Lacrosse's “Face-off Yearbook.” In addition, Gettysburg was predicted to finish second in the Centennial Conference (CC) in the CC preseason coaches poll.

The strength of the team this season could be its defense, which led the Centennial Conference and finished 17th in Division III in goals-against average (6.97) last year. Gettysburg, which held its first eight opponents to a single-digit goal total and allowed only three opponents to register 10 or more tallies a year ago, returns a significant portion of its defense, starting between the pipes.

Junior #J.T. McCook# is back as the team's starting goalkeeper after finishing as the goalie of record in every game. He was second in the conference in goals-against average (7.04) and played well in the postseason. In the Centennial Conference tournament and the team's NCAA first-round game, he limited his opponents to 5.3 goals per game while making 14.3 saves per contest, including a career-high 16 stops in the team's Centennial Conference semifinal win over Haverford.

McCook will be pushed hard from a pair of capable stoppers in sophomores Jon Maddalone and Mike Smith.

In front of McCook, the Bullets lone returning starter is senior Billy Grayson, a Face-off Yearbook preseason All-Centennial Conference selection who finished with 42 ground balls and 30 caused turnovers last season. He will be joined by junior Matt Canter, who is moving from long-stick middie to defense this year after collecting 32 ground balls and 11 caused turnovers in 2011. Rounding out the back row will likely be either junior Phil Thompson or freshman Alex Lanza.

The defensive midfield returns junior Ian Casella and sophomore Alec Mitchell at long pole while senior captain Matt McMurray and sophomore Mike Carey are projected to start at short defense. In addition, junior face-off specialist Nick Avedisian, as well as freshman Andrew Toner could also see playing time as short-stick d-middies.

Offensively, Gettysburg returns its entire starting attack unit from the end of last season in senior Pat Sartory and sophomores Henry Tesar and Martin Manilla, who helped the Bullets finish third in the Centennial Conference in scoring (9.32 goals per game) a year ago.

Sartory scored a team-leading 30 goals last season and earned a spot on the All-Centennial Conference Second Team. He leads all current Bullets with 61 career tallies. Tesar, who scored in eight of his last nine games, finished with 15 goals and 11 assists while Manilla tossed in 19 goals – including four at Roanoke in the second round of the NCAA tournament. Junior Evan Thomas, who scored five goals last season, sophomore Bobby Distler, and freshman Robby Maddux could also push for playing time up front.

The team's biggest question mark lies in the midfield, where it lost all three starters last season, including a pair of 100-point scorers. But Gettysburg received a pleasant surprise this year when Caldwell Rohrbach transferred from St. Lawrence University for his senior year. A three-time All-Liberty League selection, Rohrbach racked up 92 points on 58 goals and 24 assists over the last three seasons. He led the Saints in both goals and points in each of the past two years, including 22 goals and nine assists in 2011.

A number of additional Bullets could also push for a starting role in the middle, including senior Dylan Schmitz, sophomore Bobby DeWees, junior Ryan Fumai, sophomore Derek Ruebling, freshman Bijan Firouzan, and freshman Adam Narwicz.

At face-off, Gettysburg is in good hands with Avedisian, who won nearly 60 percent of his trips to the X last season. He will be spelled by sophomore Wes Lincoln, who received significant face-off experience a year ago, as well as freshmen Jack Harvazinski and Toner.

The Bullets open the season with three straight home games, and a date with defending national champion Salisbury University on March 3 kicks off a brutal four-game stretch against four preseason nationally-ranked teams. After trekking to Long Island for its fourth annual “North vs. South” clash with SUNY Cortland, Gettysburg will visit Cabrini College in a non-league showdown. The Bullets then open their Centennial Conference slate on the road at Haverford.

Capping Gettysburg's eight-game CC schedule is a rematch of the conference championship game at Dickinson College in the team's regular season finale. In non-league action, the Bullets will take on a pair of new opponents in Widener University, who Gettysburg will visit for its lone night game of the season, and Eastern University, who the Orange & Blue will play for the first time.

The Bullets host Messiah College in their season opener on Saturday at 1 p.m. in a non-conference affair.