1982 Hobart Lacrosse Schedule | Season Statistics

On Saturday, April 28, the Statesmen Athletic Association will honor the 1982 Hobart lacrosse team by naming it a Team of Distinction. Members of the team will be recognized at halftime of the Hobart-Air Force lacrosse game at 7 p.m. on Boswell Field at the Caird Center for Sports and Recreation.

The 1982 Hobart lacrosse team posted an 11-3 record on its way to capturing the program's third consecutive NCAA Division III National Championship. Anchored by the exceptional goaltending of future Hobart Hall of Famer Guy Van Arsdale '83, the 1982 Hobart defense set season records for highest save percentage (.651, a mark that still stands) and lowest goals against average (7.84, not surpassed until 1990).

The 1982 team opened the season in impressive fashion, defeating Brown 19-8 and Washington (Md.) 12-6, before falling to UMass 12-9. Hobart posted lopsided victories over Ithaca 24-7, Geneseo 14-4, Syracuse 11-6 and St. Lawrence 17-4. The Statesmen suffered back-to-back losses at Cornell and at Adelphi. The team bounced back to win its final two games of the regular season at Union and Cortland by a combined score of 35-10.
 
The Statesmen muscled their way back to the NCAA title game by doubling up Hampden Sydney 22-11 in the quarterfinals and blowing the doors off of Salisbury State 22-4 in the semifinals to set up a rematch with the Shoremen in the title game.

The championship game was a thriller from the opening whistle. Washington jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first quarter and led 4-3 at the half. The Shoremen used early second half momentum to build a 7-5 advantage in the third quarter before seniors Bob Boyle '82 and Larry Grimaldi '82 evened the score and Marty Wood '84 gave the Statesmen their first lead of the day 8-7. The Shoremen tied the game at eight late in the fourth quarter sending the game into overtime.

With 2:27 gone in the extra period, Grimaldi unleashed a low, hard shot through traffic that lifted Hobart to a 9-8 victory and earned him the NCAA tournament's Most Outstanding Player Award.

Hobart took home its fair share of postseason awards. The Statesmen boasted the Outstanding Midfielder of the Year (Mark Darcangelo '82), USILA Division III Player of the Year and Outstanding Defenseman of the Year (Kevin Martin '82), and the Goalie of the Year (Van Arsdale). Five players earned All-American honors: Darcangelo, Grimaldi, Martin, and Van Arsdale garnered first team recognition while Boyle earned a spot on the third team.
 
The 1982 lacrosse team has five representatives in the Hobart Athletics Hall of Fame, Darcangelo (Class of 2003), Scott Geise '83 (2002), Guy Van Arsdale (2001), Marc Van Arsdale (2001) and Head Coach Dave Urick (1990).

The Team of Distinction award was created in 2006 by the SAA Board of Directors to honor selected teams for their outstanding athletic achievements and for their contributions to the tradition of Hobart Athletics. The first Statesmen teams to receive this honor were the undefeated lacrosse teams of 1938 and 1940, and the undefeated football teams of 1953 and 1957.
 
Team are eligible for the Team of Distinction award 10 years after the completion of their season. Recognized teams usually have won a conference, regional, or nation championship, have recorded an undefeated season, have overcome exceptional challenges during their season or were considered to be one of the “very best Hobart teams ever” in their respective sport.