Banno, Beitel Earn Collegiate Lacrosse Honors

Former Newtown Youth Lacrosse teammates Joe Banno and Christian Beitel are collegiate standouts and rivals at different schools in the Centennial Conference. But they have joined the same “team” of sorts, once again.

Banno and Beitel have been named to the All-Centennial Conference First Team and the Division III players were also named All-Americans.

 Banno, a goaltender (who graduated from Notre Dame-Fairfield in 2008) has been named to the All-America Third Team by the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association, becoming the 12th men’s Lacrosse player in the history of Haverford College to earn this national honor, and the junior is the second Black Squirrel to earn Third Team honors (the program’s highest recognition).

Beitel, a sophomore midfielder for Dickinson College, who starred at Newtown High, has received All-America Honorable Mention honors. He had a breakout season, leading the Devils in scoring with 40 goals and 13 assists. Beitel also led the team with four game-winning goals, and was tops in the Centennial Conference in goals and points scored.

Banno’s .650 save percentage — with a schedule ranked 15th strongest in the 179-team division —represents the highest save percentage among goalies on Top-20-ranked teams and third best in the division. His 13.47 saves per game is also No. 1 among ranked-teams’ goalies. Against seven nationally-ranked opponents, including national quarterfinalists Stevenson and Dickinson, Banno registered a .638 save percentage and 8.36 goals against average. He also earned First Team All-Centennial Conference honors, with a 7.24 goals against average and 11-4 record.

And of 30 shots on goal faced while man-down (or double- or triple-man-down) this year, Banno stopped 70 percent. Haverford’s defense, D-III’s best at man-down play, either prevented or blocked all other shots on goal, resulting in a penalty kill rate of 89.3 percent.

Banno has started all 50 games since arriving at Haverford three years ago, playing almost all of the team’s 3,000 minutes. His career record is 36-14 (at 72 percent, the highest win percent in school history). He also became Haverford’s winningest goalie with the first win this season at Main Line rival Cabrini College on February 26, where he stopped 19 of 24 shots on goal, including 10 saves in a wild first period and six in the final 15 minutes.

Now a two-time All-Centennial Conference pick after earning Second Team honors in 2010, Banno also holds Haverford’s best all-time career goals against average (7.75) and his career save percentage stands at .603.  He has faced 965 career shots on goal, made 582 saves, and grabbed 105 ground balls.

He also was named Centennial Conference Defensive Player of the Week for the second and third times this season; the latest award came after he stopped another 19 shots including eight in a first-quarter barrage, lifting the Black Squirrels past conference rival Muhlenberg, 6-5.