WATERVILLE, Maine --- Former Colby College All-American men's lacrosse player Craig Bunker (Topsfield, Mass.) may have the opportunity to use his face-off skills at the next level after being selected in the 14th round of the supplemental draft by the Rochester (N.Y.) Rattlers of Major League Lacrosse (MLL).
 
Bunker expects the Rattlers' training camp to start in mid-March and the opening game for Rochester is April 28. Teams in the MLL can have 40 players in camp and have to cut down to 25 players before the season opener.
 
Bunker submitted his name to be included in the supplemental draft and the three-time All-American sat back and hoped to hear his name called off.
 
"Being a little kid in the Boston area you followed the Cannons and dreamed about playing at that level," Bunker said. "From the summer tournaments I've played in Colorado, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Rhode Island I knew I had the skill to play against Division I players. It's a matter now of getting my name out there and having a chance to display my talents in front of a coach."
 
Bunker played for three coaches at Colby in his career with the Mules. He went from winning just under 50 percent of his face-offs in his first year to rank in the top five nationally over his final three years.
 
"I want to thank my teammates and coaches at Colby who have been incredible influences in my life and lacrosse career," Bunker said. "They truly are the ones who helped me get to this point."
 
Bunker was the first Colby men's lacrosse player in program history to earn three All-American honors and also is the only Mule to ever be named to the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association First Team. He also earned USILA's Division III Specialty Player of the Year honor after the 2011 season. Bunker earned second team All-American honors as a junior and was named an honorable mention All-American after his sophomore season.

Bunker, a three-time All-NESCAC selection, finished 2011 ranked fourth nationally in face-off percentage (.714, 205-for-287) and 17th in groundballs per game (7.69). Bunker finished first in the NESCAC in face-off percentage, first in groundballs (123 total), and first in groundballs per game.

While Bunker is confident in his face-off abilities, he knows the pro game will be much faster. Bunker, in college, often won a face-off and quickly scooped up the groundball.

"I think the biggest difference among the pro players is that the guys on the wings are fast and very good athletes," Bunker said. "You'll lose like a half-second that you had in college to push the ball and pick it up yourself."

Bunker, who won more than 70 percent of his face-offs over his final two years, finished his career with 412 groundballs and won nearly 66 percent of his face-offs (689-1,045). He also had seven goals and eight assists.

"I've been lucky to not only go up against some strong face-off men in the NESCAC, but also on the team at Colby," Bunker said. "We had other strong guys on face-offs and my teammates never made it easy for me in practice. That's something I always appreciated and it made me stronger on face-offs in the games."

Bunker helped the Mules earn a NESCAC playoff spot for a third straight year and go 9-7 overall in 2011. He was Colby's Co-Millett Award winner for contributing the most to Colby athletics in four years. The Mules had not gone to the NESCAC playoffs since 2002, but Bunker helped change the culture of the program both on and off the field.

Bunker is working at Brown Brothers Harriman, an investment bank and securities firm in Boston. If he makes the team, he would fly out to Rochester on Fridays for a practice and games are on Saturdays. The league is made up mostly of players who also have full-time jobs.

The MLL began play in 2001 and has eight teams, with a goal to reach 16 teams in the future. The teams currently playing are the Boston Cannons, Charlotte Hounds, Chesapeake Bayhawks, Denver Outlaws, Hamilton Nationals, Long Island Lizards, Ohio Machine, and the Rattlers.