Men's Lacrosse | 3/16/2018 12:33:00 PM
MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- The No. 17
Robert Morris men's lacrosse team seeks its fourth win in a row when the Pioneers of Sacred Heart University visit Saturday afternoon for the first Northeast Conference game of the season for both teams. The opening faceoff from Joe Walton Stadium is set for 1:00 p.m., admission is free and fans will have an opportunity to win a gift card to Moe's Southwest Grill at halftime.
(RV)/#17 Robert Morris vs. Sacred Heart - Mar. 17
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The Colonials (4-2, 0-0) are 20-14 all-time in conference play under head coach
Andrew McMinn, the 2017 NEC Coach of the Year. Last year's NEC regular season race came down the wire, with a second straight 4-2 finish for RMU and a three-way tie for second place.
RMU was picked to come in third in the 2018 NEC Preseason Coaches' Poll.
Meanwhile, Robert Morris is coming off a 12-2 victory over No. 19/18 Marquette at the Valley Fields in Milwaukee Mar. 10. This marked its fifth win over a ranked opponent all-time, and the second time under McMinn it has pulled that off twice in the same season, having also defeated No. 16/15 Penn State Feb. 24.
It was also the Colonials' first victory over an active member of the Big East Conference.
SCOUTING SACRED HEART
History has repeated for the Pioneers (4-3, 0-0), who, once again, come into their matchup with RMU off a home loss that saw them concede the game-winning goal in the final seconds. Hartford prevailed at the Pitt Center, 11-10, last Saturday, three days after Sacred Heart bowed at Vermont, 17-14, in further non-conference action.
SHU is one of three Northeast Conference schools to receive votes in one of the major national polls at some point this year, doing so prior to those back-to-back defeats.
Junior All-NEC midfielder Max Tuttle is, arguably, the most important player for the Colonials to try to contain, with his NCAA-best 3.71 goals-per-game clip. Tuttle paces the Pioneers with 26 goals, and he went off for five versus Hartford, adding four ground balls and two caused turnovers.
He finished with one goal and one assist as a substitute the last time he faced Robert Morris.
Sacred Heart ranks fifth nationally with 9.86 CT's per contest, and Mar. 5 NEC Defensive Player of the Week honoree Austin Pavone has caused nine as a sophomore defender, also recording nine ground balls.
AGAINST THE PIONEERS
Although the Pios hold a slight 7-6 edge in the all-time series, the Colonials have taken the last two meetings.
Carter Yepsen enjoyed a season-high in points, with four (two goals, two assists), and
Tyson Gibson set career marks in assists (three) and points (four) in a 12-9 victory Mar. 18, 2017, while
Alex Heger set a personal high in saves, with 17, also collecting four ground balls.
RMU also won the Mar. 19, 2016 contest, at Joe Walton Stadium, after dropping the prior three, thanks to a career-best in goals (four) and points (five) by
Adrian Torok-Orban. Defensively,
Zac Christianson, with four ground balls and three caused turnovers, and
Jack Toomb, also with four GB's, played integral roles in holding off the SHU attack.
MUSKET SHOTS
Poll Party
The Colonials set a program record with their No. 17 ranking in the latest Maverik Media Men's Division I Poll published by Inside Lacrosse Magazine, their highest ranking ever in a major national poll. In addition, RMU received votes in the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) Coaches' Poll for the second time in three weeks.
Double Stuff
Alex Heger helped the Colonials tie a team record for fewest single-game goals allowed to a current D-I team in last Saturday's 12-2 win (last: 10-2 at Wagner Feb. 24, 2008). His 12 saves and career single-game best .857 save percentage got him two weekly honors: his third career NEC Defensive Player of the Week Award, and a spot on the USILA's D-I Team of the Week. Heger ranks in the national top-15 in two categories: save percentage (.578; 12th, NCAA) and goals-against average (11.17; 14th, NCAA).
Having Our Ups And Downs
RMU has scored six of its eight man-up goals in its last two victories. On Mar. 3 the Colonials rung up four in a game for the first time since Feb. 21, 2015 at Detroit.
Matt Schmidt got his fourth, moving into a sixth-place tie nationally, at Marquette, and
Ryan Smith, who had a hat trick against Sacred Heart last year, got one on the Golden Eagles too. Meanwhile, the Colonials are tied for eighth in D-I with an .813 success rate in man-down situations.
First Things First
Four different Colonials scored their first goals of the season in last week's victory:
Justin Mayfield,
Austin Popovich,
Dylan Sidoriak and
Brad McCulley, whose first-quarter strike with 8:15 to play in the period, his first NCAA goal, proved to be the game-winner. Sidoriak, meanwhile, earned his first in 21 games with Robert Morris since transferring from Towson.
Get To The Point
RMU is averaging 19.33 points per game to lead the Northeast Conference. A key has been the playmaking of local product
Jimmy Perkins, who tops the NEC with 2.33 assists per game.
Give It Away, Give It Away, Give It Away Now
Robert Morris is averaging 10.00 caused turnovers per game, tied for third-most nationally.
Zachary Bryant leads the NEC with 13, and he and
Sean Doyle each had a pair at Marquette.
All Clear
RMU also ranks sixth nationally with its .918 clearing percentage. The Colonials were 23-for-26 on clear attempts the last time they met SHU. Both teams were 11-for-11 in the first half.
Hey Arnold!
Trey Arnold earned his 200th career faceoff win versus High Point Mar. 3. He went 8-for-17 (.470) from the X at Marquette, and he also won eight scrums at SHU in last year's matchup.
Take Me To Your Leader
Mayfield and
Marshall Gibson captain RMU again this year, while Doyle and
Leighton Gibson round out its 2018 leadership group. Doyle scooped a ground ball and had two CT's Mar. 10 at Marquette, and he scored one of five goals in 2017 against Sacred Heart, adding three GB's.
Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?
Besides the aforementioned Gibsons, the Yepsens (Carter and Conner) and Sturgises (Will and David) make up the RMU family who are literal family. Meanwhile, Eric Wales '16 is the older brother of
Mitchell Wales, and
Corson Kealey is the younger brother of 2014 All-NEC Rookie Team standout JonPatrik "JP" Kealey.
Carter Yepsen has scored in three straight games, while
Corson Kealey is riding a five-game goal streak. Robert Morris has had a set of brothers on its roster every year since 2010.
From Bobby Mo To Pro
Twelve Colonials have competed in the National Lacrosse League (NLL) since 2016. The elder Kealey became the latest, and also the 20th RMU player drafted into the indoor circuit since 2005, scoring his first pro goal for the New England Black Wolves Dec. 23, 2017. RMU/NLL alum
Luke Laszkiewicz rejoined the Rochester Knighthawks on their practice squad Mar. 8.
A Call To The Hall
On Feb. 2 Kiel Matisz, another of the ex-Colonials currently playing professionally, became the first RMU men's lacrosse player inducted into the Robert Morris Athletics Hall of Fame. "Moose," a former All-American and NEC Player of the Year now with the NLL champion Georgia Swarm, recorded 166 career points (94 G, 72 A), third all-time behind Laszkiewicz.
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