PHILADELPHIA – The Hawks will take their six-game winning streak into the weekend as the Saint Joseph's men's lacrosse team (9-2, 4-0 NEC) heads to Robert Morris (5-7, 2-2 NEC) for Northeast Conference action this Saturday, April 23. Opening face-off is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. at Joe Walton Stadium in Moon Township, Pa. A victory will clinch SJU's right to host the 2016 NEC Championships, to be held May 5 and 7, on Sweeney Field for the third consecutive year and will clinch at least a share of the NEC regular-season title.
Live streaming of Saturday's game will be available free of charge through NEC Front Row. For system requirements and best streaming practices, please visit: NEC Front Row. Live stats will also be provided via RMUColonials.com.
On a national scale, Saint Joseph's ranks in the top ten of 10 team categories, including shot percentage (2nd, 37.8%), scoring margin (2nd, 5.91), scoring offense (5th, 13.36), points per game (7th, 21.00), clearing percentage (7th, 90.1%), winning percentage (8th, 81.8%), assists per game (8th, 7.64), scoring defense (9th, 7.45), face-off winning percentage (10th, 60.2%), and man-down defense (10th, 73.8%). The Hawks also sit 16th in fewest turnovers per game (12.45) and 18th in ground balls per game (30.45). SJU leads the NEC in shot percentage, scoring margin, scoring offense, points per game, clearing percentage, winning percentage, assists per game, scoring defense, and face-off winning percentage.
Nationally, junior goalkeeper T.J. Jones ranks second in save percentage (60.8%) and fourth in goals against average (6.86) while junior face-off specialist Mike Lanham ranks 11th in winning percentage from the X (62.4%). The duo leads the NEC in those respective categories. Junior attackman Mike Rastivo ranks second in the NEC in both points per game (4.09) and goals per game (2.73) and third in assists per game (1.36).
Robert Morris' Luke Laszkiewicz leads the NEC in scoring with 4.42 points per game and 3.42 goals per game heading into Saturday.
HIGH-FLYING HAWKS
Through 11 games, Tewarraton Award Watch List selection Mike Rastivo (30g, 15a) sophomore attackman Chris Blewitt (19g, 14a), and senior midfielder Kevin Forster (17g, 13a) lead SJU with 30+ points while seven total Hawks have scored 10+ goals for the Crimson and Gray. Junior face-off specialist Mike Lanham has gone 62.4% (113-of-181) from the X to go with a team-best 50 ground balls. Senior John Winchell (team-best 12ct, 0.0 penalty minutes) and juniors Charles Giunta and Shane Taggert have anchored SJU's defensive unit. Junior goalkeeper T.J. Jones (9-2, 4-0 NEC) sports a 6.86 goals against average and .608 save percentage in 620:44.
SERIES HISTORY
Saturday's game will mark the fourth all-time meeting between the Hawks and the Colonials; Saint Joseph's owns the series, 3-0. SJU is 2-0 under the direction of head coach Taylor Wray, having defeated RMU 18-11 last season and 11-8 in 2014. The Hawks also defeated the Colonials, 18-3, in 2005. All-time, Saint Joseph's has outscored Robert Morris by a margin of 47-22, an average of 8.3 goals per game.
SCOUTING ROBERT MORRIS
After starting the season 2-5 with losses to Penn State (20-7), Bellarmine (11-10), High Point (15-10), Air Force Academy (11-10), and Marquette (13-5) and wins over Manhattan (19-6) and Mercer (11-10 OT), the Colonials have won three of their last five with NEC wins over Sacred Heart (12-7) and Mount St. Mary's (11-9), losses to Bryant (13-12) and Hobart (16-10), and, most recently, a 15-6 win over Canisius on Tuesday. Luke Laszkiewicz (41g, 13a) leads the Northeast Conference in scoring with 4.42 points per game and 3.42 goals per game while Alex Heger (3-3, 2-2 NEC), who sports an 8.87 goals against average and .579 save percentage in 412:38 to go with three starts in 11 appearances, and Matt Bukovac (2-4, 0-0 NEC), who owns a 15.28 goals against average and .426 save percentage in 290:35 to go with eight starts in nine appearances, split time between the pipes. Robert Morris went 3-11 overall and 2-4 in league play last season.
LAST TIME OUT
Sophomore attackman Chris Blewitt scored the game-winning goal with 1:46 left in overtime to send SJU to a 10-9 win over Bryant to move into sole possession of first place in the NEC last Saturday. NEC Player of the Week Mike Rastivo netted his sixth goal of the game – and 100th of his career – as the equalizer with 10 seconds to play. Sophomore attackman Kyle Cain assisted on both goals. Junior face-off specialist Danny Manning went 7-of-13 from the X and junior midfielder Anthony Joaquim caused a key turnover late in regulation to help lead the Hawks to overtime, while NEC Defensive Player of the Week T.J. Jones made 14 saves in the victory.
HAWKS PICKED SECOND IN NEC PRESEASON POLL
The Saint Joseph's men's lacrosse team was picked to finish second in the Northeast Conference this season, according to the conference's preseason poll. The Hawks return back-to-back NEC Coach of the Year Taylor Wray, 2015 NEC Offensive Player of the Year and All-NEC First Team selection Mike Rastivo, 2015 NEC Rookie of the Year and All-NEC Rookie Team pick Chris Blewitt, back-to-back All-NEC First Team defenseman John Winchell, and 2015 All-NEC Second Team picks Pat Swanick (A), Kevin Forster (M), and Mike Lanham (FOS). Saint Joseph's returned 31 letterwinners and added 14 newcomers to the field for the 2016 season.
VOTES, VOTES, VOTES!
For the second straight week, the Hawks received votes in both the USILA/Nike Coaches Poll and Cascade/Maverik Media Poll, it was announced on Monday afternoon. The Hawks have now earned USILA/Nike Coaches Poll votes twice on the season and Cascade/Maverik Media Poll votes four times in the last five weeks. Coming off of a 10-9 overtime victory over Bryant on Saturday afternoon, the Hawks have won six straight, outscoring their opponents 84-41 during that span.
RECORD WATCH
Entering the weekend, Saint Joseph's junior attackman Mike Rastivo ranks eighth in career goals (100) and points (141), ranks ninth in shots (252), and ties for 10th in assists (41) at SJU. Junior goalkeeper T.J. Jones ranks seventh all-time in career saves (293). Senior defenseman John Winchell is just one game away from breaking into SJU's all-time top ten for career games played while junior face-off specialist Mike Lanham is six ground balls away from breaking into SJU's all-time top ten for career ground balls.
NORTHEAST CONFERENCE STANDINGS
1. Saint Joseph's (4-0) – Up next: at Robert Morris (4/23)
2. Bryant (3-1) – Up next: vs. Hobart (4/23)
Hobart (3-1) – Up next: at Bryant (4/23)
4. Robert Morris (2-2) – Up next: vs. Saint Joseph's (4/23)
6. Wagner (1-3) – Up next: at Mount St. Mary's (4/23)
Mount St. Mary's (1-3) – Up next: vs. Wagner (4/23)
7. Sacred Heart (0-4) – Up next: vs. Bryant (4/26)
PERFECT IN THE NEC REGULAR SEASON
Since joining the Northeast Conference for the Spring 2014 season, the Hawks are 16-0 in regular-season league games. SJU went 6-0 in its first two seasons and currently sits 4-0 this year with wins over Hobart, Wagner, Sacred Heart, and Bryant.
RASTIVO NAMED TO TEWAARATON AWARD WATCH LIST
Saint Joseph's junior attackman Mike Rastivo was selected to the 2016 Tewaaraton Award watch list, the Tewaaraton Foundation announced on February 23. The list includes the top men's lacrosse players across all three divisions of NCAA lacrosse and highlights the early contenders for the 2016 Tewaaraton Award, presented by Under Armour. The Tewaaraton Award annually honors the top male and female college lacrosse player in the United States. The selection committees are made up of premier collegiate coaches and are appointed annually by The Tewaaraton Foundation. Five men's and five women's finalists will be announced on May 12 and invited to the ceremony. The 16th annual Tewaaraton Award Ceremony will be held in Washington, D.C., on June 2.
On SJU's all-time career lists, Rastivo ranks eighth in goals (100) and assists (141), ninth in shots (252), and ties for 10th in assists (41). The junior also owns a point scoring streak of 33 games, which ranks ninth among active Division I players.
SWANICK NAMED SENIOR CLASS AWARD FINALIST, WINCHELL CANDIDATE
Ten NCAA® men's lacrosse student-athletes who excel both on and off the field were selected as finalists for the 2015-16 Senior CLASS Award® for collegiate lacrosse, and Saint Joseph's senior attackman Pat Swanick was tabbed a finalist for the prestigious award. All of Swanick's achievements in the areas of community, classroom, character, and competition can be found in his Senior CLASS Award biography. Fan balloting counts for 1/3 of the total with the remaining 2/3 determined by NCAA Division I coaches and national media members, and fans can vote for Pat now through May 9!
Senior defenseman John Winchell was also honored by the Senior Class Award, having been selected one of 20 original candidates back on February 16.
