Rutgers Scarlet Knights men's lacrosse

Rutgers Scarlet Knights men's lacrosse
Founded	1887
University	Rutgers University
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Location	New Brunswick, New Jersey
Coach	Brian Brecht (since 2012)
Stadium	High Point Solutions Stadium (capacity: 52,454)
Colors	Scarlet
NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals
1986, 1990
NCAA Tournament Appearances
(9) 1972, 1974, 1975, 1984, 1986, 1990, 1991, 2003, 2004

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights men's lacrosse team represents Rutgers University main campus in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college lacrosse. The program first started at the varsity level in 1887. The coach is currently Brian Brecht, who is in his second year at that position and who joined Rutgers after previously coaching at Siena College. The team plays its home games at High Point Solutions Stadium. On July 1, 2014, Rutgers joined the Big Ten Conference in all sports.

History

File:Army-Rutgers lacrosse 2010 1.jpg

Rutgers plays Army in 2010

Rutgers began playing lacrosse in 1887. The team lasted 3 years, folding in 1889 after it 2-1 season. The program was re-instated in 1920 due in part to the efforts of Harland W. “Tots” Meistrell. In 1926 Fred Fitch took over the program and began a period of national prominence. The team joined the USILA and in 1928 was awarded one of the association's gold medals as an outstanding team, along with three other teams that also shared the championship (Johns Hopkins, Maryland, and Navy). In 1932 the Rutgers team, led by “the best attack pair in the country” George Latimer and Frenchy Julien participated in the U.S. Olympic team tryouts. During Fitch's 22 seasons the team posted a record of 106-71-8. Al Twitchell took over the reins in 1950 with the retirement of Fitch. In 1955 he guided the team to a co-national championship of the USILA's Laurie Cox (Class B) Division.

Rutgers appeared in its first NCAA tournament in 1972. In the 1986 tournament, Rutgers defeated C.W. Post, 13–8, in the first round, before falling 5–17 to Syracuse in the quarterfinals. The Scarlet Knights most recent NCAA tournament victory came in 1990, as they defeated Virginia by a score of 7–6, before losing 10–19 in the quarterfinals to Loyola.

Since its inception in 1887, the Scarlet Knights have won 560 games and one national Class B championship, as well as producing 197 All-Americans and 10 lacrosse hall of famers.