PHILADELPHIA – Hawk Hill will play home to a critical Northeast Conference men's lacrosse showdown on Saturday afternoon when the Saint Joseph's men's lacrosse squad (6-3, 3-0 NEC) hosts Bryant (6-5, 4-0 NEC) on April 14. Opening face-off is set for 1:00 p.m. on Sweeney Field. After starting the season 0-3, the Hawks have bounced back with six consecutive wins while the Bulldogs are on a four-game winning streak entering Saturday's contest.

Saint Joseph's and Bryant, who received votes in both major polls this week, are tied for first in the league standings. A win on Saturday would clinch an NEC Tournament berth for the Crimson and Gray.

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 at SJUHawks.com.

The Hawks, who won NEC road games over Hobart, 6-5, and Wagner, 12-7, and took a 14-12 victory over Sacred Heart on Hawk Hill this past Sunday were predicted to finish fourth in the NEC Preseason Poll, as voted on by the league's seven head coaches. The Bulldogs, who have defeated Mount St. Mary's, 20-11, Sacred Heart, 16-7, then-No. 13 Robert Morris, 10-7, and Wagner, 8-3, received all six first-place votes for the top spot in the preseason poll. The 2018 NEC Championship is a four-team tournament that will be held on Thursday, May 3 and Saturday, May 5 at the site of the regular-season champion.

Saint Joseph's has the league leader in both goals against average (8.16) and save percentage (60.8%) in redshirt freshman goalkeeper Mike Adler, who has made double-digit saves in all eight of his appearances this spring. Backed by Adler and joined by starting defensemen Nick Buckley, Brendan McNicholas, and Tyler Makar and defensive midfielders Austin Smith, Davis Stoner, Will McNamara, and Liam Hare, SJU leads the conference and ranks fifth nationally in scoring defense at a clip of 7.78 goals allowed per game.

The Hawks will go up against a Bryant squad that leads the conference in face-off winning percentage (69.1%) and scoring offense, with 11.64 goals scored per game. Bulldog face-off specialist Kenny Massa averages 70.7% from the X entering Saturday's match-up and scoops up 12 ground balls per game to rank in the nation's top three in both categories.

ALUMNAE AND FAMILY DAY
SJU alumnae, family and friends, the Hawks will host SJU Men's Lacrosse Alumnae and Family Day on Saturday, April 14 in conjunction with the Hawks' home game vs. Bryant at 1:00 p.m. Registration can be made online by visiting alumni.sju.edu/mlax. For more information, contact Christina Henderson at 610-660-3280 or chenders@sju.edu.

HAWK LEADERS
For the season, the veteran trio of senior attackman Chris Blewitt (12g, team-high 13a), graduate student attackman Mike Rastivo (team-high 13g, 11a), and senior midfielder Kyle Cain (12g, 9a) have combined for 70 of SJU's 142 points on the year, while Northeast Conference Rookie of the Week Shane Fable made some noise with four goals and a helper in SJU's 14-12 win over Sacred Heart this past Sunday to put him fourth on the squad with 12 points (9g, 3a) through just five appearances.

Much of the Hawks success this spring can be traced back to their transition game, as senior long stick midfielder Austin Smith (4g, 4a, team-high 33 ground balls, eight caused turnovers), senior short stick defensive midfielder Davis Stoner (3g, 3a, 32 ground balls, team-high 12 caused turnovers), and graduate student midfielder Will McNamara (5g, 4a, 17gb) have been outstanding in their nine appearances. Freshman face-off specialist Billy Jardeleza (56-of-109) sits above 50 percent (51.4%) on the season while redshirt freshman goalkeeper Mike Adler (5-3, 3-0 NEC) has dominated in goal, sporting a 60.8 save percentage and 8.16 goals against average with 101 saves vs. 65 goals allowed in 477:42. 

Of note, Rastivo sits at 118 career goals, which puts the graduate student attackman just two goals shy of tying Randy McNeill 01's record for career goals, with 120. A hat trick on Saturday would give Rastivo sole possession of the record.

SCOUTING BRYANT
Bryant dropped five of its first seven games to open the season, with a season-opening win over Manhattan, 15-7, back-to-back losses to Bucknell, 14-12, and Providence, 13-8, a 15-10 win over Hartford, and a trio of losses to Boston University, 8-7, then-No. 11 Yale, 11-8, and Drexel, 12-9. The Bulldogs have since bounced back with four consecutive wins over Mount St. Mary's, 20-11, Sacred Heart, 16-7, then-No. 13 Robert Morris, 10-7, and Wagner, 8-3, all in the NEC, to move above .500 on the year.

For the season, Marc O'Rourke (team-high 23g, 12a) and Cam Ziegler (21g, team-high 14a) lead the Bulldogs in scoring with 35 points apiece, while face-off specialist Kenny Massa has gone 186-of-263 from the X for a dominant 70.7% on the season, winning 132 ground balls in the process. Goalkeeper Kevin Beimfohr (5-3, 4-0 NEC) sports a .523 save percentage and 8.82 goals against average with 78 saves vs. 71 goals allowed in 483:03 and has played all 240:00 of league action.

ALL-TIME SERIES
Saturday's game will mark the eighth all-time meeting between Saint Joseph's and Bryant, and the Bulldogs own a slight 4-3 edge in the all-time series after breaking the series tie with an 8-7 win in Smithfield, R.I. last spring. However, the Hawks have won three of the last five meetings and are 3-3 under the direction of seventh-year head coach Taylor Wray.

All-time series results are listed below:
2017 - L – 8-7 - Away
2016 - W - 10-9 (OT) - Home
2015 - L - 10-6 - Home (Northeast Conference Championship Game)
2015 - W - 8-7 - Away
2014 - W - 9-7 - Home
2012 - L - 11-7 - Away
2011 - L - 14-3 – Home

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Also be sure to check out Sideline Photos, LLC's shots from home games vs. Fairfield, St. John's, and Drexel at PhotoShelter.com.