Men's Lacrosse | 4/9/2018 6:51:00 PM
MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- The No. 19
Robert Morris men's lacrosse team plays its second night game of the regular season when it visits the Golden Griffins of Canisius College for a non-conference tilt Tuesday that can be seen live on ESPN3. The opening faceoff from the Demske Sports Complex in Buffalo, New York is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. EDT.
#19/19 Robert Morris at Canisius - Apr. 10
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The Colonials (7-3, 3-1) are coming off a 10-9 overtime win at Hobart Saturday. It was their first over the Statesmen since the latter joined the Northeast Conference as an associate member for men's lacrosse in 2014, and it was also the 50th victory for
Andrew McMinn as head coach.
Of those 50 wins, 27 have come out of conference. Meanwhile, RMU remains just one game off the NEC lead after Saturday's triumph, solidly in contention for a third consecutive NEC Tournament berth under McMinn, which would equal a program record.
SCOUTING CANISIUS
While the Colonials are coming off a memorable overtime win, the Golden Griffins (5-5, 2-1) will try to have a short memory after seeing a 10-7 fourth-quarter lead dissolve into a 12-10 loss at home to Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) rival Detroit Mercy Saturday. And while this is the penultimate non-conference game of the regular season for Robert Morris, it will still have to defend a key player with NEC ties.
Senior attackman Connor Kearnan was named the MAAC Co-Offensive Player of the Year in 2017, two years after transferring from St. Joseph's following his rookie campaign. Kearnan leads Canisius with 34 assists, tied for the second-most in a single season in team history, and 55 points. He paced the Griffs with three goals and five points against the Titans, giving him 18 career hat tricks.
RMU kept Kearnan off the board after he netted the first goal in their last matchup, though he did chip in two assists as well. Sophomore attackman Mathieu Boissonneault, the Griffs' top goal-getter, with 24, is coming off his own two-assist effort, the first of his career.
AGAINST THE GOLDEN GRIFFINS
Even before McMinn took over as head coach, Robert Morris turned the tide in this rivalry. It has won five straight meetings from Canisius after dropping the first five 2005-09.
The Colonials beat the Griffs in the first and second night games ever played at Joe Walton Stadium in 2012 and 2017, respectively. McMinn won NEC Coach of the Year in both seasons.
Junior attackman
Jake Hayes, who went on to a professional stint with the National Lacrosse League's Calgary Roughnecks, led Robert Morris with four goals and six points in the Mar. 27, 2012 contest, a 15-11 win, adding three ground balls. Senior midfielder Mike Grosz scooped 11 GB's that night, one of the top performances of his career, and went 16-for-28 (.571) on faceoffs, also contributing an assist on offense.
RMU's last visit to the Demske Sports Complex, a 15-6 decision on Apr. 19, 2016, saw another future pro,
Luke Laszkiewicz, set the team's single-game goals record, with eight. Laszkiewicz also finished with one assist and a pair of ground balls, while
Adrian Torok-Orban buried four goals and collected five GB's, adding an assist.
When Robert Morris last defeated Canisius, 12-7 on Apr. 18, 2017,
Tyson Gibson had six points, including four helpers, in prime time, also causing a turnover, while
Matt Schmidt chipped in offensively with a hat trick.
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.
Give It Away, Give It Away, Give It Away Now
Zachary Bryant and
Zac Christianson each have surpassed 50 career caused turnovers, and Bryant ranks fifth in D-I with 2.40 caused turnovers per game. Christianson was named NEC Defensive Player of the Week after becoming just the seventh different RMU player--a group that includes Bryant--to record five CT's in a single game at Hobart.
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 Robert Morris player in history. Torok-Orban enters Tuesday with nine career points (six goals, three assists) against the Golden Griffins.
"'You Miss 100% Of The Shots You Don't Take' -Wayne Gretzky" -Michael Scott
Tuesday will be a battle of two of the most efficient offenses in the nation. Canisius ranks fifth in Division I with its .368 shot percentage, and RMU ranks seventh in D-I at a .351 clip.
An EMO Band
RMU has scored 17 goals on extra-man opportunities, including 15 over its last six games. Robert Morris ranks fourth nationally at .586 in man-ups, and
Matt Schmidt shares second place in D-I with eight EMO goals, tying the RMU single-year record set by
Jake Hayes in 2011.
Schmidt Happens
Schmidt is averaging 1.93 goals per game for his career, third-most in team history, and has a goal in nine straight, including the game-winner at Hobart with 2:53 left in overtime. RMU is averaging 11.70 goals per game, the most in the NEC.
Stop Me If You've Heard This Before:
Alex Heger helped the Colonials tie a team record for fewest goals allowed to a current D-I team at Marquette Mar. 10 (last: 10-2 at Wagner Feb. 24, 2008). His .591 save percentage, fifth-highest in the nation, makes him one of three NEC keepers ranked in the NCAA top five. He is also among the D-I top ten in GAA (8.15; 8th) and saves per game (11.70; t-9th).
Apple Fest
Jimmy Perkins is the only NEC player averaging 2.00 assists per game through Sunday, on pace for a single-year RMU record.
Tyson Gibson ranks fourth all-time at RMU with his 1.03 career average. The team averages 7.00 per game, tied with Canisius for 14th in the NCAA.
Afternoon "D"-Light
Since their win at Mount St. Mary's, the Colonials have stayed in the NCAA top ten in most major defensive categories. They rank fourth in both man-down defense (.800) and caused turnovers per game (9.90). Robert Morris is tenth in scoring defense with 8.40 goals allowed per game, which puts the 2018 squad on pace to shatter the team GAA record (10.31 in 2017).
Take Me To Your Leader
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 got an early game-tying goal versus Canisius in their last meeting en route to a career-high five.
Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?
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
Since 2016, 12 Colonials have played in the NLL, including
Luke Laszkiewicz, the star of the 2016 Canisius game. He debuted for the Rochester Knighthawks the next year, scoring his first two goals against ex-RMU teammate Kiel Matisz and the Georgia Swarm Apr. 29, 2017.
A Call To The Hall
On Feb. 2 Matisz became the first men's lacrosse player to enter the RMU Athletics Hall of Fame. "Moose" is third in school history with 166 career points, one behind Laszkiewicz.
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