The Hope College men's lacrosse team will rely on 13 returning letterwinners as it looks to challenge for a Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association title this spring.
Michael Schanhals, pictured, is entering his third season as varsity head coach since 2005.
The Flying Dutchmen open the 2015 season on Saturday, February 28, with a nonleague match at Kenyon (Ohio).
Hope plays its home opener on Thursday, March 12 against Bethany (West Virginia).
The Flying Dutchmen are coming off a 6-7 campaign during the 2014 season in which they tied for third with two other MIAA teams but lost the tiebreaker for the berth in the MIAA Tournament.
Hope has a 2015 roster of 28 players that includes five seniors, four juniors, nine sophomores and 10 freshmen. The Flying Dutchmen were picked third in the MIAA preseason coaches poll.
Co-captains this season are senior defender Matt Hemenway of Ionia, Michigan (Ionia HS), senior midfielder Nicklas Raycraft of Brighton, Michigan (Detroit Catholic Central HS), junior defender Taylor Dever of North Barrington, Illinois (Lake Zurich HS), and sophomore attacker Gunnar Elder of East Grand Rapids, Michigan (East Grand Rapids HS).
Elder is a returning All-MIAA Second Team player. He finished second on the Flying Dutchmen as a freshman with 36 goals and 50 points. He was third in the MIAA in goals scored per game.
Hope must replace the production lost by the graduation of the MIAA's leading goalscorer in Caleb Digison (3.73 per game average) and top two assist producers in Jacob Kamstra (2.38) and Niko Pagkanlungan (1.75).
The Flying Dutchmen will play nine of their 17 matches at home this season at Van Andel Stadium.
MIAA play begins for Hope on Saturday, April 4 at Trine.
