Men's Lacrosse | 4/13/2018 6:49:00 PM
MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- The No. 19
Robert Morris men's lacrosse team hosts the 71st and newest member of NCAA Division I men's lacrosse, the Vikings of Cleveland State University, Saturday in its last regularly-scheduled night game of the 2018 regular season. The opening faceoff from Joe Walton Stadium is set for 7:00 p.m. EDT, and admission is free.
#19/19 Robert Morris vs. Cleveland State - Apr. 14
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The Colonials (8-3, 3-1) come home looking for their second consecutive nighttime victory and third win overall in a one-week span. Three days after defeating Northeast Conference rival Hobart in overtime, 10-9, at Boswell Field, RMU rallied past longtime non-conference rival Canisius, 11-9, at the Demske Sports Complex on Tuesday.
That sudden-death decision marked the 50th win as head coach for
Andrew McMinn, and Tuesday marked his 100th career game at the helm for Robert Morris. Tuesday's game was also, officially, the 200th in program history.
RMU is concurrently looking for its third nighttime win at home all-time, with the first two having come, under McMinn, against Canisius in 2012 and 2017.
SCOUTING CLEVELAND STATE
The Vikings (3-8), in the truest sense of the term, are a team in its infancy. This year marks only their second of existence as an independent member of Division I men's lacrosse, and aside from OSU, they are the only other D-I men's program based in the Buckeye State. Furthermore, upon their 2017 inception, 35 of the 37 (94.6%) players on their inaugural roster were freshmen, the highest percentage of any D-I lacrosse startup within the past decade.
Still, their commitment to quickly becoming competitive in the top flight is evidenced by the daunting 2018 schedule assembled by second-year head coach Dylan Sheridan. This year, CSU put five of last year's NCAA Tournament participants on its regular-season slate, including three quarterfinalists from 2017 and two of the past four national champions.
The Vikings are coming off a decisive win over visiting Hampton, 19-6, last Saturday, led by five goals and seven points from rookie attackman Michael Wilson. Wilson, who tops CSU with 18 goals and 28 points, became the first player in the program's brief history to record that many points in a single game against a D-I opponent.
AGAINST THE VIKINGS
This will be the first meeting ever between these teams, though they have shared some common opponents this season.
Cleveland State bowed at Bellarmine, 13-9, Feb. 17, which Robert Morris defeated in Louisville Feb. 9, by a 15-7 final, for its first win of the season. In addition, CSU was nipped by Canisius, RMU's most recent victim, in a 12-11 finish on Mar. 4 in Buffalo. The Vikings ended the month with a 16-5 loss at Penn State Mar. 24, where the Colonials upset the then-No. 16/15 Nittany Lions, 12-9, one month earlier to enter the national rankings for the first time in 2018.
Next Saturday, Cleveland State hosts Sacred Heart, which RMU defeated 12-8 in its NEC opener at Joe Walton Stadium Mar. 17.
MUSKET SHOTS
Poll City
The Colonials are No. 19 in the USILA Coaches' Poll and the Maverik Media Poll published by Inside Lacrosse Magazine. This is the seventh week in a row Robert Morris has, minimally, received votes in at least one of those two polls, the longest such streak in program history.
Alexander The Great
Alex Heger was in the second round of additions to the 2018 Tewaaraton Award Watch List this week. A two-time NEC Defensive Player of the Week, he is the third NEC player to make the list for the preeminent award in men's lacrosse. Ranking fifth in the NCAA with his .587 save percentage, he is also one of three keepers in the conference among the national top-5.
Give It Away, Give It Away, Give It Away Now
Zachary Bryant,
Zac Christianson and
Jack Toomb have combined for 57 caused turnovers, making them the third-highest ranking trio in CT's in D-I. Christianson, the NEC Defensive Player of the Week, became just the eighth different RMU player--a group including Bryant and Toomb--to record five CT's in a single game with his career-high five at Hobart Apr. 7.
This Is Your Captain Speaking
Justin Mayfield and
Marshall Gibson captain RMU for a second time this year, and
Leighton Gibson and defensive midfielder
Sean Doyle round out its 2018 leadership group. Doyle earned his first-ever game-winning assist on the winning goal by
James Scane at Canisius with 2:10 left in regulation, Scane's first game-winner as a collegian.
"'You Miss 100% Of The Shots You Don't Take' -Wayne Gretzky" -Michael Scott
Saturday presents a battle of two of the nation's most efficient scorers.
Matt Schmidt has a .439 shot percentage that is second in the NEC and 30th in the NCAA, while CSU's Michael Wilson is 17th nationally at .486. RMU, as a team, leads the NEC at a .344 clip, tenth in D-I.
An EMO Band
RMU has scored 17 goals on extra-man opportunities, including 15 over its last seven games. The Colonials are sixth nationally at .544 in man-ups, and Schmidt shares second place in D-I with eight EMO goals, tying the RMU single-year record established by
Jake Hayes in 2011.
Schmidt Show
Schmidt is averaging 1.93 goals per game for his career, third-most in team history, and has a goal in ten straight, including the game-winner at Hobart with 2:53 left in overtime. Robert Morris, behind its leading goal-getter, is averaging 11.64 per game, tying it for the NEC lead.
Do You Smell What The Rok Is Cooking?
Adrian Torok-Orban got his 12th career hat trick at Hobart and was named a Week 9 NEC Prime Performer for recording his third in a row in conference play. He leads active Colonials with 83 career goals, ranking ninth in Robert Morris history. Torok-Orban enters Saturday with 55 career points (41 goals, 14 assists) against non-conference opponents.
Apple Fest
Jimmy Perkins leads the Northeast Conference with 1.91 assists per game, on target for a single-year RMU record.
Tyson Gibson, with a pair of helpers Tuesday, moved up to ninth on the RMU career chart, with 41, and his 1.05 per-game clip is fourth-best in program history.
Afternoon "D"-Light
The Colonials are in the NCAA top ten in most major defensive categories: fourth in man-down defense (.806) and caused turnovers per game (9.55), and tenth in scoring defense (8.45 team GAA), which is on pace to shatter the RMU single-season record (10.31 in 2017).
Happy National Siblings Day!
Robert Morris has had a set of brothers on its roster every year since 2010. Aside from the Gibsons, the Yepsens (Carter and Conner) and Sturgises (Will and David) all comprise the Colonials family who are also literal family.
Carter Yepsen had the winning goal in an upset of then-No. 16/15 Penn State Feb. 24 and the winning assist in overtime at Hobart.
From Bobby Mo To Pro
Speaking of siblings, JonPatrik "JP" Kealey, brother of
Corson Kealey, is one of 12 Colonials to play in the NLL since 2016. He scored his first goal for the New England Black Wolves Dec. 23, 2017.
A Call To The Hall
On Feb. 2 Kiel Matisz became the first lacrosse player to enter the RMU Athletics Hall of Fame. "Moose," now with the NLL's Georgia Swarm, is third in school history with 166 points.
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