March 21, 2013
PHILADELPHIA - Standing at an even 4-4 at the conclusion of the non-conference portion of the regular season, the Saint Joseph's men's lacrosse team will open CAA action at #17/19 Penn State (4-3, 1-0 CAA) this Saturday afternoon. Game time is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. at the Penn State Lacrosse Field in University Park, Pa.
Live stats will be provided through GameTracker.
<="">Game Notes
Saint Joseph's will look for its first win in program history against Penn State as the Hawks stand 0-5 all-time against the Nittany Lions. On March 24 of last season, the Crimson and Gray fell to the Blue and White, 7-3, on Finnesey Field. Johnny Simanski and Kyle Williams scored one goal apiece in the Hawks' eighth game of the season.
Penn State enters Saturday's game coming off of an 11-7 victory over Binghamton on Tuesday evening. Nick Dolik scored a game-high three goals while Shane Sturgis and Tom LaCrosse netted a pair each. Danny Hanneghan went 10-21 (.476) from the faceoff and picked up a team-high five ground balls while Austin Kaut got the win in goal (59:20 minutes, 16 saves). On the season, TJ Sanders leads the Lions in scoring with 19 goals while Jack Forster has registered 17 goals and a team-high seven assists for 24 points. Kaut sports a .567 saves percentage and 8.60 goals-against average in 425+ minutes on the season. In CAA action, Penn State defeated Massachusetts, 7-5, on March 16.
"The CAA is one of the toughest leagues in the country," said Saint Joseph's head coach Taylor Wray. "Starting our league play up at Penn State, who is as good as anyone out there, is going to be a tremendous challenge for us, but it will be a great measuring stick. We feel like we're getting better, but to play against a top-ten caliber team is going to be great. We're excited for the start of league play."
Freshman Force: Making seven starts in eight games played, attack Pat Swanick has proven himself a leader on the offensive end of the field. The freshman leads all scorers with 13 goals and ranks second on the team in assists (5) to total a team-best 18 points on the season. More impressively, after 26 shots, 23 have been on goal for an .885 SOG%. The rookie standout ties for seventh in the nation in shot percentage, firing off 13 goals in 26 shots (.500), and has scored at least one goal in all but one game this season while recording five multi-goal games, two in which he registered hat-tricks. For his three-goal effort against Marquette, Swanick was named a Colonial Athletic Association Co-Rookie of the Week.
"Pat has had a tremendous year so far as a freshman," said head coach Taylor Wray. "We've thrown his feet to the fire and he has really stepped up. He manages the offense, he carries the ball behind the goal, and he's scoring for us. He's drawing slides and getting assists. He's really emerged as a leader for us, even as a freshman."
Soaring Sophomores: The sophomore trio of attacks Matthew Franchak and Matthew Sarcona and midfielder Michael Dougherty have combined for 38 percent (24-of-64) of the Hawks' goals this season. After starting just two games each in their freshman campaigns, Sarcona and Franchak have started all eight games at the attack while Dougherty has made six starts in seven games played en route to a team-high six assists.
A "Keen" Sense In Goal: Sophomore goalkeeper Dustin Keen has stepped into the position vacated by 2012 graduate Griffin Ferrigan to emerge as a force to be reckoned with on the defensive end of the field. Making all eight starts on the season, Keen ranks second in the CAA in GAA (7.73) and fourth in saves percentage (.560) while standing eighth and 18th nationally in both respective categories.
Where There's A Will, There's A Way: Junior midfielder Will Abbott and sophomore defender Will Farrell have put forth tremendous performances on the defensive end of the field in the non-conference portion of the season. Abbott boasts a .515 (67-of-130) from the faceoff and ranks second on the team with 24 ground balls. The junior bounced back from a rough outing against Mercer with a .517 (15-of-29) at Brown and a season-high .696 (16-of-23) in Saint Joseph's most recent win, a 12-7 victory over Marquette. Farrell leads the team in ground balls (26) and caused turnovers (11) while combined, he and Abbott have totaled 22% (50-of-225) of the Hawks' total amount of ground balls.
Dominating Defense: Junior John Moran, sophomore Kevin Barrow, and Farrell have teamed up with Keen to destroy offensive attacks as the Crimson and Gray rank ninth in the nation in scoring defense at just 8.25 goals allowed per game. With 57 games of experience combined between the three, the defensive trio has combined for 46 percent (24-of-52) of the team's caused turnovers.
Starting Seven: Seven Hawks have started all eight games of the season thus far. Sarcona and Franchak have been consistent at the attack while Simanski has taken control in the midfield. Moran, Barrow, and Farrell comprise the starting defensive unit while Keen has made his stake between the pipes.
Home Is Where The Heart Is: Saint Joseph's is 3-1 this year when playing on Finnesey Field compared to 0-3 when competing as the away team on the road.
Perfect 10: The Hawks are 3-0 when scoring 10 or more goals in a game this year. In those three games, SJU outscored its opponents 32-14. 10 goals seems to be the number - the squad is 1-4 when scoring nine or less goals per game.
Winning Early: The pattern seems to be, the earlier the attack, the better the result. Saint Joseph's is 3-1 when leading and 0-2 when trailing after the first period.
Welcome To Hawk Hill: On February 23, freshmen Matt Blasco, Bryan Garrahan, and Richard Gabelman each registered their first collegiate goals in SJU's season-opening home victory over VMI. The Hawks welcome 15 freshmen from six states - Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania - to the squad this season.
