PHILADELPHIA – Winners of seven straight, the Saint Joseph's men's lacrosse squad (7-3, 4-0 Northeast Conference) travels to #20 Penn (6-6, 2-3 Ivy League) for a local, non-conference match-up on Tuesday, April 17. Opening face-off at Franklin Field in Philadelphia is set for 7:00 p.m.

The Hawks, who received votes in this week's Inside Lacrosse/Maverik Lacrosse Division I Media Poll, enter Tuesday's game ranked fourth nationally in scoring defense, holding opponents to 7.70 goals per contest, and third nationally in man-down defense with an EMO shutdown rate of 80.0 percent; senior defensemen Brendan McNicholas and Nick Buckley and sophomore defenseman Tyler Makar anchor the Hawks' back line. Leading the way in the back is redshirt freshman goalkeeper Mike Adler, who ranks second nationally in save percentage (.609) and seventh nationally in goals against average (8.05) and hasn't lost a game between the pipes since March 6.

The Quakers, ranked 20th in the nation in both the USILA Division I Coaches Poll and Inside Lacrosse/Maverik Lacrosse Division I Media Poll, sit 11th in the nation in man-up offense, led by Adam Goldner's four EMO scores through 12 games.

KING OF THE HILL
Graduate student attackman Mike Rastivo scored four goals against Bryant, the third of which broke the all-time, goal-scoring record on Hawk Hill, previously held by Randy McNeill '01 (120). Rastivo now owns 122 career goals with three regular-season games plus a minimum of one postseason game remaining in his collegiate career.

HAWK LEADERS
For the season, the veteran trio of senior attackman Chris Blewitt (15g, team-high 16a), the Northeast Conference Player of the Week and a USILA Team of the Week pick, graduate student attackman Mike Rastivo (team-high 17g, 11a), and senior midfielder Kyle Cain (13g, 12a) have combined for 87 of SJU's 165 points on the year. Senior long stick midfielder Austin Smith (4g, 4a, team-high 33 ground balls, eight caused turnovers), senior short stick defensive midfielder Davis Stoner (5g, 3a, team-high 33 ground balls, team-high 12 caused turnovers), and graduate student midfielder Will McNamara (5g, 5a, 21gb) have been outstanding in their 10 appearances. Freshman face-off specialist Billy Jardeleza (56-of-110) sits above 50 percent (50.9%) on the season while redshirt freshman goalkeeper and NEC Rookie of the Week Mike Adler (6-3, 4-0 NEC) has dominated in goal, sporting a 60.9 save percentage and 8.05 goals against average with 112 saves vs. 72 goals allowed in 536:45.

SCOUTING PENN
Penn went 3-3 to open the season with a trio of alternating wins/losses, beginning with a 12-9 home win over Michigan, a 13-6 loss at then-#3 Maryland, a 10-9 home win over then-#1 Duke, a 10-7 home loss to Penn State, an 11-3 road win over Navy, and an 8-6 home loss to then-#4 Villanova. The Quakers then won back-to-back games over Princeton, 14-7, and Bucknell, 9-8, before dropping three in a row to Cornell, 20-13, then-#4 Yale, 12-6, and Brown, 10-9. Penn bounced back with an 11-7 win over Harvard on Saturday, where Adam Goldner led the way with a hat trick and a helper off the bench and Reed Junkin made 13 saves in the full 60:00.

For the season, Simon Mathias (23g, 17a) and Kevin McGeary (22g, 8a) lead the Quakers in scoring while Connor Keating, younger brother of Hawks' associate head coach Dan Keating, owns a team-high 46 ground balls. Chris Santangelo (57-of-135) averages 42.2% from the X, but Richie Lenskold took a majority of the face-offs last time out at Harvard, going 12-of-16 following a 2-of-5 showing from Santangelo. Reed Junkin (6-6, 2-3 Ivy) sports a .507 save percentage and 9.45 goals against average in 705:00. 

ALL-TIME SERIES
Tuesday's game will mark the 15th all-time meeting between Saint Joseph's and Penn. The Quakers own a 13-1 all-time series advantage, which included a 10-5 win on Sweeney Field last spring. The Hawks came away with a 9-8 overtime road victory on April 26 of 2016 for the program's first-ever win over its city rival.

Series results under the direction of seventh-year head coach Taylor Wray:
2017 - L - 10-5 - Home
2016 - W - 9-8 (OT) - Away
2015 - L - 11-10 (OT) - Home
2014 - L - 14-4 - Away
2013 - L - 6-5 - Away
2012 - L - 9-5 - Home

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