PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers men's lacrosse is back in the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season, as the Scarlet Knights will host a NCAA Tournament game for the first time since 2003. Rutgers is the No. 6 seed, the highest seed in program history, and will welcome Harvard on Sunday at 5 p.m.

The game will be televised on ESPNU, with Anish Shroff and Quint Kessenich on the call. Rutgers WRSU Student Radio (88.7 FM) will have the radio call with Chris Tsakonas and Eddie Kalegi on the broadcast.  

ABOUT RUTGERS

The Scarlet Knights excelled in the 2022 campaign, setting a program record for wins. Rutgers compiled a 13-3 record, setting a new program record for wins. RU compiled a 4-1 in conference play during the regular season and earned a No. 2 seed in the Big Ten Tournament. Rutgers' defeated Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals to make the program's second ever appearance in the Big Ten Tournament championship game.

Rutgers earned four ranked wins during the season: No. 8/9 Ohio State, No. 10/12 Army, No. 12 Ohio State and No. 19/20 Loyola. Rutgers' three loses all came against teams that entered the final week of the regular season ranked No. 1 (Maryland) or No. 2 (Princeton) in the NCAA's RPI. The Scarlet Knights had two wins over NCAA Tournament teams, downing Ohio State twice.

Rutgers had seven players named All-Americans by USA Lacrosse Magazine this week, highlighted by First Team selection Ethan Rall. He was joined by Ross Scott, Shane Knobloch, Jaryd Jean-Felix, Brennan Kamish, Colin Kirst and Ronan Jacoby. Rall, Knobloch and Kirst were First Team All-Big Ten, while Jean-Felix, Jacoby and Scott were named Second Team All-Big Ten.

Scott leads the RU offense with 40 goals and 22 assists for 62 points. He is followed by Mitch Bartolo (38 goals, 51 points) and Ronan Jacoby (34 goals, 44 points). RU's top five producers all (Scott, Bartolo, Jacoby, Knobloch, Brian Cameron) all have at least 27 goals and 39 points.

On the defensive end, Rall leads RU with a program record 26 caused turnovers. The team's backline of Jean-Felix, Bobby Russo and Bryant Boswell has excelled to help RU.

As a team, Rutgers leads the nation in turnovers (13.12 per game) and clearing percentage (91.2%). The team is also ninth in the nation in scoring offense (14.69).

WITH A VICTORY
A victory for the Scarlet Knights would represent:

• NCAA Tournament victories in back-to-back seasons for the first time in program history.  
• The first home win in an NCAA Tournament game since 1986.
• The Scarlet Knights' fourth all-time NCAA Tournament victory.
• The team's fifth win this season over a nationally ranked foe.
• The second straight season with five ranked wins after previously not having five ranked wins in a season since 2003.
• The first win at Yurcak Field since 2013.
• Rutgers would have 32 ranked wins since 2003and be 10-6 against ranked foes in the past two years.
• A victory would be the 23^rd ranked win of head coach Brian Brecht's tenure.
• Brian Brecht's 14^th win of the season would mark a new personal high. He has twice reached 13 wins in a season, this year and in 2011 with Sienna.

RUTGERS NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY


Rutgers will make its 11^th appearance all-time in the NCAA Tournament and do so for the second straight season. The Scarlet Knights previously reached the NCAA Tournament in 1972, 1974, 1975, 1984, 1986, 1990, 1991, 2003, 2004 and 2021. The NCAA playoff system for men's lacrosse was implemented in 1971. Last season, Rutgers earned a 12-5 first round victory over Lehigh for the program's first NCAA Tournament win since 1990. The team advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals, where they pushed No. 1 UNC to overtime.

1972: No. 8 Rutgers lost at No. 1 Maryland in the Quarterfinals, 9-3 (8-Team Field)
1974: No. 8 Rutgers lost at No. 1 Maryland in the Quarterfinals, 12-6 (8-Team Field)
1975: No. 8 Rutgers lost at No. 1 Cornell in the Quarterfinals, 18-5 (8-Team Field)
1984: No. 7 Rutgers lost at No. 2 Syracuse in the Quarterfinals, 8-7 (OT) (8-Team Field)
1986: No. 7 Rutgers WINS, hosting C.W. Post in the First Round, 13-8 (10-Team Field)
No. 7 Rutgers lost at No. 2 Syracuse in the Quarterfinals, 17-5
1990: unseeded Rutgers WINS at No. 6 Virginia, 7-6 in the First Round (12-Team Field)
Rutgers lost at No. 3 Loyola, 19-10 in the Quarterfinals
1991: unseeded Rutgers lost at No. 7 Maryland, 13-7 in the First Round (12-Team Field)
2003: No. 7 Rutgers lost, hosting Georgetown, 9-6 in the First Round (16-Team Field)
2004: unseeded Rutgers lost at No. 6 Princeton, 12-4 in the First Round (16-Team Field)
2021: unseeded Rutgers WINS vs. No. 8 Lehigh, 12-5 in the First Round (18-Team Field)
Rutgers lost vs. No. 1 UNC in the Quarterfinals, 12-11 in the Quarterfinals (OT)

YURCAK FIELD

With Rutgers hosting graduation the same day inside SHI Stadium, the game will be contested on the grass field surface at Yurcak Field. The NCAA Tournament game will be the first game for the Rutgers men's lacrosse program held at Yurcak Field since the 2013 season. The Scarlet Knights last hosted an NCAA Tournament game in men's lacrosse in 2003, when they faced Georgetown at Yurcak Field. Tickets are available to purchase here.

Yurcak Field is named in honor of Ronald N. Yurcak, a 1965 All-American Rutgers lacrosse player who made a generous donation to the university. The facility, primarily used currently by Rutgers' men's and women's soccer programs, features a 120' x 75'' playing surface with Kentucky Bluegrass, and has capacity for 5,000 fans.

ABOUT THE OPPONENT

Harvard finished the season 8-4 and 3-3 in the Ivy League. The Crimson boast wins over No. 5 seed Princeton and No. 8 seed Brown, along with Patriot League Boston University.  The team seeks its first NCAA Tourney win since 1996 while making their first Tournament appearance since 2014 (seventh appearance all-time).

Five of the team's top eight scorers are freshmen. Freshmen have scored 91 goals this season for the Crimson, second most in the nation. First year Sam King leads the team with 43 points and 19 assists (scoring 24 goals), while senior Austin Madronic leads Harvard with 28 goals.

ABOUT THE SERIES

Rutgers is 14-4 in the all-time series against the Crimson. The teams have not met since 1983, and Harvard has not beaten RU since 1971. RU has claimed wins in the last four matchups. It is the first meeting between the two schools in the NCAA Tournament.

RECORD CHASING

Ross Scott (40 Goals, 62 Points)

• Needs 2 goals to tie for 10^th, 3 goals to tie for 7^th, 4 goals to tie for 4^th on Rutgers' single-season list.
• Needs 3 points to tie for 9^th, 4 points to tie for 8^th on Rutgers' single-season list

Colin Kirst (186 Saves): Tied for 10^th on RU's single season saves list

• Needs 2 saves to tie for 9^th, 5 saves to tie for 7^th, 10 saves to tie for 6^th, 13 saves to tie for 5^th, 16 saves to tie for 4^th on RU's single-season list

 
QUOTABLE

"We've always talked about raising the bar for this program. Being a tournament regular was a level we wanted to set for future generations. I think the world of my classmates and our coaching staff that we've been able to make that happen."

• Captain Ryan Gallagher

"It's been an awesome season. This team plays hard and plays for each other. Every rep matters, every practice matters, every game matters. With that mentality, we've been able to have some amazing success and I've been grateful to be a part of that."

• Senior Mitch Bartolo

"Last year, the NCAA Tournament was a great experience for our team. We know that we're on a big stage that we dream about being on, but at the end of the day our team knows that we have to treat it just like any other game. Being able to host a NCAA game at Rutgers is special and we're excited for that opportunity on Sunday."

• Captain Colin Kirst