ITHACA, N.Y. – Cornell men's lacrosse assistant coach Connor Buczek '15 and alumnus Rob Pannell '13 have each earned a spot on U.S. Lacrosse's men's team roster for the 2020 Spring Premiere, U.S. head coach John Danowski and US Lacrosse announced Wednesday.

Danowski will welcome 37 of the nation's top lacrosse players to San Antonio, Texas, for the 2020 Spring Premiere. The U.S. senior team will play two games as part of the Spring Premiere at the University of the Incarnate Word on the weekend of Jan. 4-5, 2020, to open the new year. The U.S. men's U19 team will also participate.

On Saturday Jan. 4, the U.S. senior team will face off against the Japanese national team at 3:30 p.m. A Blue-White intra-squad exhibition will follow for the team on Sunday, Jan. 5 at 11 a.m. Tickets are just $10 daily and $15 for the entire weekend. All games will be played at the 6,000-seat Gayle and Tom Benson Stadium on UIW's campus.

Pannell is no stranger when it comes to playing for Danowski, as Pannell played a vital role on Danowski's team that won gold at the 2018 Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) World Championship. That season, Pannell repeated as a member of the all-world team and tallied the assist on USA's game-winning goal in the title game, helping the U.S. defeat Canada, 9-8, to win the FIL Championship.

Pannell has enjoyed a successful professional playing career, being named an MLL All-Star in each of his seven years with the New York Lizards and earning the titles of MLL Most Valuable Player and MLL Offensive Player of the Year in 2018. During his time at Cornell, he was the Big Red's first ever ESPY Award Nominee (Best Collegiate Athlete) in 2011, in addition to being a two-time Lt. Raymond J. Enners Award winner (2011, 2013) as the USILA Outstanding Player of the Year and a two-time Jack Turnbull Award winner (2010, 2011) as the USILA Attackman of the Year. He capped off an outstanding collegiate career as the 2013 Tewaaraton Trophy winner.

In the league's inaugural season, Buczek made an immediate impact for the Premier Lacrosse League's (PLL) Atlas Lacrosse Club, being named a PLL All-Star in 2019. Most recently, he made the PLL's Players Top-50 list, coming in at #17 in a poll that was voted on by the players themselves.

In addition to an impressive PLL campaign, Buczek was a member of the U.S. Men's Lacrosse Indoor National Team that won bronze at the 2019 World Indoor Lacrosse Championship. Buczek tallied four goals and three assists in six appearances over the course of the tournament, helping the team secure its fifth-consecutive World Indoor Lacrosse bronze medal. Buczek came up especially big in the team's quarterfinal matchup against the Czech Republic, notching two goals and an assist in the U.S.'s 17-3 victory.

Buczek also spent four years in the MLL as a member of the Florida Launch, making three-consecutive MLL All-Star Game appearances from 2016-18. While at Cornell, Buczek was a three-time All-American selection, including consecutive first-team honors over his final two seasons. He graduated as the top scoring midfielder in Big Red history with 155 points and was the 2015 Senior CLASS Award Winner, as well as a two-time Tewaaraton Trophy nominee.