CARLISLE, Pa. - The three-time defending Centennial Conference champion Dickinson men's lacrosse team readies for battle this weekend in the NCAA Tournament at home as they take on the University of Scranton Royals on Saturday at high noon in the second round. The other contest in Carlisle will start around 3 p.m. featuring the Panthers of Middlebury College against the SUNY Geneseo Knights.
Game Information
Opponent – University of Scranton Royals
Date - Saturday, May 11th
Time - 12:00 p.m.
Location - Carlisle, Pa. (Biddle Field)
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Tickets
Tickets will have to be purchased at the gate on the day of the game. Sales will be cash or Venmo and are $5 for adults, $3 for students and children (3 & older), and free for kids (2 & under). Dickinson College students and staff are free of charge by presenting their DICKINSON ID at the gate!
Weather Advisory!
Saturday looks to be a wet and rainy affair so be prepared with your rain gear as we want RED DEVIL NATION to be out in full support and voice as they were last weekend! Umbrellas will be permitted inside the stadium, but must not be infringing upon another spectator's view of the action.
Regular Season Meeting - #5 DEVILS 12, Royals 9
Dickinson came out of the gates incredibly strong as Matt Thurston posted a hat-trick in the first quarter, while Sam Campbell, Ethan Gess and James Isaacson each notched one as the Devils led 6-0 through 15 minutes. Scranton would outscore the Red and White 3-2 over the next period with Griffin Moore and Thurston tallying for the home side to take an 8-3 advantage at the break. Mac Childs and Sascha Gannon both scored inside the first six minutes of the third to make it 10-3, before the Royals collected three of the next four goals in the period trimming the gap to 11-6 entering the fourth. Thurston scored the lone marker of the frame for the Devils to help set the 12-9 final. Goalie Patrick Scarborough recorded 11 saves to pick up the win, while Declan Allen made 13 stops in the loss.
Inside the Devils Den (16-2, 7-1 Centennial)
Schedule Overview
Dickinson began the season "flying high" winning their first five games toppling #17 Stevens in overtime 10-9 in the opener, before besting Scranton (12-9), Roanoke (15-13), #20 Kenyon (13-8) and Stevenson (14-6). The Red and White then returned to Stevenson University for their annual visit to the Mustang Classic taking on #5 Christopher Newport falling 17-9, before bringing down #10 York College of Pennsylvania 11-8 less than 24-hours later. After their trip to the Classic, the Devils opened up conference play with a pair of wins over Muhlenberg (11-6) and Franklin & Marshall (13-6). They then secured their second overtime win of the year by knocking off St. Mary's College of Maryland 13-12, prior to picking up two more conference victories against Washington (Md.) (12-7) and McDaniel (16-5). Dickinson then ventured to then #11 (now #4) Swarthmore for a battle of the top teams in the CC. Unfortunately, the Garnet got the best of DC with a 12-11 win on that day. However, the Devils answered the bell in a big way by ending the regular season with a three-game winning streak over #19 Gettysburg (12-8), Haverford (12-11) and Ursinus (17-8). The Red and White then picked up two wins in the Centennial Conference Tournament over Muhlenberg (11-10) and Gettysburg (13-8).
Home Sweet Home
Dickinson is a perfect 8-0 at Biddle Field this season and have won their previous four home CC title game matchups with the most recent coming last season over Swarthmore. Over this outstanding three-year run the Devils hold a mark of 27-1 in Carlisle across all competitions.
All-Conference Honors
The Red and White had ten players named to the All-Centennial Conference Teams which was announced by the conference office this week. Sascha Gannon and John McKee both earned First Team honors, while the trio of Evan Karetsos, Skyler Schluter and Xander Usich were chosen to the Second Team. The group of Ethan Ackerman, Jack Deady, Owen Porter, Patrick Scarborough and Ben Tomick all received Honorable Mention.
Record Breaker
With his two assists in the conference semifinal game against Muhlenberg Schluter became the all-time career points leader at Dickinson with 229 on 87 goals and 142 assists. He surpassed the previous tally of 226 set by Brian Cannon who played between 2011-2014.
40-40 Club
The duo of Porter and Schluter have combined for an even 99 points on the campaign as both have eclipsed the 40-point plateau. Porter leads the team in goals with 36 and has chipped in 13 assists, while Schluter has 15 markers with a team-high 35 helpers.
The Rest of the Attack
Dickinson has six other players that have tallied ten or more goals on the campaign led by Thurston (33) followed by, Gannon (29), Gess (17), Schluter (15), Isaacson (13) and Campbell (12). The quartet of Cullen Mulhern, Luke Whalen, Childs and Williams have joined together to bury the rock 33 times as well.
Sharing the Rock
While Porter and Schluter have been responsible for most of the Devils assists this season combining for 48, the group of Charlie Baughan, Liam Carney, Gannon, Isaacson, Mulhern and Thurston have all handed out five or more.
Strong Defensive Backbone
The Red Devils defense has been "red hot" as five players have forced double-digit turnovers, including a trio with 20 or more. Xander Usich ranks tops on the team with 34, while Evan Karetsos and Ethan Ackerman have 26 and 22 respectively. Deady has added 18, followed by Capp Reynolds who has forced 17.
Strong at the Dot
McKee continues to be the top man at the X for the Red and White going 233-of-373 for a .625 win percentage. Ben Trucksess has been a nice change of pace posting a mark of 37-of-70 (52.9%), while Andrew Atkins is 3-of-7.
The Keepers of the Cage
Senior Patrick Scarborough has been outstanding in his first full season as the Devils starting keeper. On the year, he holds a 15-2 record with a .537 save percentage and a 9.43 goals-against average which ranks him second in the conference. Rocco Bognet has also chipped in nearly 65 minutes between the pipes posting a 1-0 mark winning his first collegiate start against McDaniel with seven saves.
Inside the Kennel (14-7, 8-1 Landmark Conference)
Scranton appears in Carlisle for the second time this season flying high having won seven straight games collecting the Landmark title 17-6 over Elizabethtown College and picking up their first NCAA Tournament win in program history on Wednesday afternoon holding off John Carroll University 10-9 in overtime at home. They currently ranked inside the Top-10 nationally in total groundballs (3rd – 819) and turnovers per game (5th – 14.76). The Royals bring a strong offensive attack into the game with three 40-plus goal scorers and five other double-digit scorers. Kyle Holmes paces the group with 52 goals, followed by Matthew McAree (46), Myles McCutcheon (45), Alex Eglitis (27), Pat McCormack (21), Joe Boyle (18), Seamus O'Callaghan (14) and Quinn Carson (13). John O'Connor is their best faceoff man going 205-403 for a .509 win percentage, in addition to being the top groundball man at 101. 13 players have racked up 20 or more loose balls, with Colin Pierce (88), Andrew Lord (61) and Zacharia Palinkas and McAree (44) leading that group. Defensively, Palinkas heads the unit forcing a team-high 34 turnovers, while Pierce and Lord have added 25 and 21 respectively. Declan Allen has gone a solid 14-7 between the pipes for the Royals with a .530 save percentage allowing 9.53 goals per game. Scranton is coached by Michael Hofmeister in his sixth season.
The Panthers Cage (10-8, 6-4 New England Small College Athletic Conference)
Middlebury comes into the second round of the tournament after earning an at-large bid out of the very strong NESCAC. The Panthers fell just short of capturing the conference title by falling 9-7 to tenth-ranked Wesleyan University in the conference final last Sunday. Middlebury will rely mainly on their defense to get the job done as they allow just over ten goals per game, but does have a solid offense as well with three 20-plus goal scorers and six others with double-digits. Russell Thorndike is the top goal-getter with 43, followed by Billy Curtis and William Ryan (26), Tom Conley (16), Patrick Jamin and Logan White (15), Cooper DeMallie (14), Will Zink (13) and Will Ford (11). Teams this weekend will have to contend primarily with William Munroe at the faceoff "X" as he is 197-414 on the season for a .476 win percentage. Not surprisingly Munroe leads the Panthers in grounballs with 103, while his next closest chasers are Hayden Kern (56), J.D. Farkas (46), and Curtis (36). Defensively, Teddy Curran leads the team in caused turnovers with 27, followed by Henry Tarr (21), Drew Dummer (15) and Nate Ruoss and Kern (14). Kern has started all 18 games in the crease for Middlebury finishing with a 10-8 record on an 9.95 goals-against average to go along with a .542 save percentage. The Panthers are led by Dave Campbell in his 17th season.
The Knightly Report (13-6, 6-1 State University of New York Athletic Conference)
SUNY Geneseo enters the tournament winners of five straight after toppling SUNY Oswego in the SUNYAC Semifinal by a score of 17-3 and SUNY Potsdam (20-10) in the title game. Geneseo has a solid offensive trio that will need to be contained for two days as Jimmy Atkinson has 50 goals on the season, while William McCumiskey and Brady Sullivan have notched 34 and 32 respectively. Five other Knights have double-digit goals: Riley Henselder (29), Robert Boneillo (25), Cole Bollin (23), Ronnie Trebing (16) and Kevin Mouton (11). The Knights have relied on a tandem at the "X" with BB Syron going 224-375 (.597), while Jake Starkey has posted a .649 percentage thanks to winning 61 of 94 draws taken. Syron leads the team in groundballs with 92 which heads a group of seven players with 30 or more: Ethan Cone (52), Trevor Bollinger (50), Michael Corwin (42), Jack Helrigel (40), Atkinson (35) and Starkey (33). The duo of Bollinger and Cone will attempt to cause havoc for opponents this weekend as the pair have combined to force 54 turnovers. Andrew Tittmann has started in 15 of 17 games he has played in going 11-4 with a .560 save percentage and allowing 9.07 goals per game. The Knights are led by Drew Bezek in his second season.
Rest of the Weekend
The winners of the two games will square off back at Biddle Field on Sunday afternoon at 3pm with a spot in the quarterfinals on the line.
