MLAX Opens Season at St. John's
Feb 06 | Men's Lacrosse
| Rutgers at St. John's | |
| Date | Saturday, February 7, 2015 |
| Time | 1:00 p.m. ET |
| Location | Queens, N.Y. | DaSilva Memorial Field |
| Live Stats | |
| Tickets | Buy Here |
| Game Notes | Rutgers | St. John's |
| Rutgers Info | Quick Facts | Record Book | RVision Season Preview |
| Statistics (2014) | Rutgers | St. John's |
| Social Media | @RUMLAx  | Facebook/RutgersMLAX  |
PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Rutgers will open the 2015 season on Saturday afternoon, travelling to DaSilva Memorial Field in Queens, N.Y. to take on St. John's at 1 p.m. The Scarlet Knights open the 2015 campaign with two road games before the home opener on February 21.
The Scarlet Knights will look to build on a successful 2014 campaign as they enter the inaugural season of Big Ten Conference lacrosse. The Scarlet Knights need to replace their leading scorer from last season after the graduation of Scott Klimchak as the program's sixth all-time goal scorer. RU will return two key attackers from last season in Christian Trasolini (27 goals, 13 assists) and Scott Bieda (18 goals, 24 assists. Rutgers also boasts one of the top faceoff men in the nation in Joe Nardella (206-of-326, 0.632 percent), recently named a preseason All-American and a MLL Draft pick.
St. John's returns just three starters from a team that finished 7-7 last season. The Red Storm were receiving votes in the 2015 USILA Coaches poll and were predicted to place fifth in the BIG EAST Coaches Poll. St. John's top four scorers departed, including Kieran McArdle (40 goals, 40 assists), who was third in the nation in points per game last season. The top returner for the Red Storm offensively is Stefan Diachenko (16 goals, five assists), while they also return last year's starting goaltender Joseph Danaher (7-6, .507 save percentage).
Despite Rutgers entering the Big Ten, they will be renewing a BIG EAST rivalry against St. John's. The Scarlet Knights hold a 17-6 lifetime advantage over St. John's, winning the last matchup in dramatic fashion. St. John's lead 12-11 at the end of the third quarter, but Rutgers responded with a 5-1 flurry to close out a 16-13 victory. Christian Trasolini scored four goals to pace the Scarlet Knights, while Scott Bieda totaled six points (three goals, three assists).
Rutgers head coach Brian Brecht enters his fourth season at the helm, holding a 16-28 record. Brecht played collegiately at Springfield College alongside St. John's head coach Jason Miller for two seasons. Miller enters his ninth year in charge of the Red Storm, with a 45-65 mark.
Game time is 1 p.m at DaSilva Memorial Field in Queens, N.Y. Fans can follow live stats or follow @ on twitter. There will be no video or audio for the contest.
