Rick Gilbert '74, a four-time All-American, the most prolific attackman in the storied history of Hobart lacrosse and a NCAA record holder, has died. He was 72 years old.
 
Gilbert arrived at HWS in the fall of 1970 as a recent graduate of West Genesee High School. The Camillus, New York, native scored three times and added an assist in his collegiate debut, a 15-3 rout of Ohio Wesleyan. It was one of the rare times that Gilbert, who was best known for his precise passing, scored more goals than he assisted on.
 
By the time he graduated four years later, Gilbert owned the Hobart records for goals, assists and points in a career, assists and points in a season and assists in a game. His career totals are nearly beyond belief. In 68 career games, Gilbert produced 444 points on 157 goals and 287 assists.
 
Gilbert was the first player in NCAA lacrosse to reach the 400-point plateau and still holds the NCAA Division II points and assists records. He is the only Statesman with more than 400 career points and enjoys a cushion of 126 points over the No. 2 man on that list. Similarly, Gilbert is the only Hobart player with more than 200 career assists, 142 more than the runner-up.
 
Gilbert recorded at least one point in every game he played for Hobart. There have been 20 10-point games by a Statesman and Gilbert is responsible for 12 of them, including a career-high 16 points (5 gls, 11 assts) against Geneseo in 1973. A Hobart player has recorded seven or more assists in a game 17 times with Gilbert accounting for 11 of those performances. He is the only Statesman to have a double digit assist game, a feat he accomplished three times.
 
Gilbert was inducted into the Hobart Hall of Fame in 1989 and the Greater Baltimore Lacrosse Foundation Hall of Fame in 1999.
 
"My style and ability of having a very quick first and second step allowed me to have the time to find my teammates," Gilbert told the NCAA's Champion magazine in a 2013 profile. "We used a very aggressive offense that was based on picking away from the ball and drawing a man to feed to. That was the real fun of the game, since my teammates worked so hard to get open."
 
As a first-year, Gilbert became the first Statesman to breach the 90-point barrier, notching a season-record 91 points on 38 goals and 53 assists, while helping Hobart to a 12-6 season. He was named All-American honorable mention.
 
Then came the magical 1972 season. Gilbert led the nation with an eye-popping 122 points, scoring 47 times (tied for the team lead) and doling out a Hobart record 75 assists. He earned the first of his three straight first team All-American honors, while the Statesmen won a record 17 games that season. Hobart ended the year on an eight-game winning streak that culminated in a 15-12 triumph over Washington (Md.) in the USILA College Division National Championship game for the program's first national championship. With Gilbert and his teammates lighting up the scoreboard and a stingy defense thwarting the opposition, Hobart outscored its foes by an incredible average of 9.89 goals per game.
 
As a junior, Gilbert notched 10 or more points five times, including a three-game span in which he produced 37 points. He began the run with his 16-point effort against the Blue Knights followed by a 10-assist game against Clarkson. Gilbert capped the streak with four goals and seven assists in a win over Syracuse. He finished the season with 114 points on 26 goals and, for the third straight season, a record-breaking assist total (88). In the USILA semifinal loss to Cortland, Gilbert had a hat trick and four assists.
 
In 1974, Gilbert and the Statesmen went 14-2, suffering their only regular season loss to Cornell. Hobart returned to the national championship game, this time for the NCAA Division II title. Gilbert produced 20 points in the NCAA tournament, including 11 in the quarterfinal win over Roanoke. He added five points in the championship game against Towson, but the Tigers eked out an 18-17 win in overtime. Gilbert's final season saw him reach the 100-point mark for the third straight time, finishing with 117 points on 46 goals and 71 assists. In addition to his fourth All-America award, Gilbert was also selected to play in the 1974 North-South All-Star game.
 
Gilbert earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Hobart in 1974.