PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers men's lacrosse is back in action this Saturday at SHI Stadium. The Scarlet Knights welcome in St. Joe's for a 1 pm contest. There will be a live stream on B1G+ with Dom Savino and Alex Schoen on the call.
The game will be the Youth Lacrosse Kickoff. All kids 14 and under will get free admission by wearing their youth jersey. There will also be the opportunity for the first 50 kids to take postgame shots on the field.
The Scarlet Knights stand at 3-2 on the season, with wins over Lehigh, LIU and Loyola. RU got back on track last weekend, following up losses to Stony Brook (9-8) and No. 12 Army (9-3) with a victory over Loyola (10-5).
JJ Aiello was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week after posting a game-high five points on three goals and two assists against the Greyhounds. Aiello has compiled six goals and five assists for 11 points through five games this season. The freshman is the team's current leader in goals, assists and points.
Matthew Paolatto was named to the USILA Team of the Week following his standout performance against the Greyhounds. Paolatto won 16-of-19 faceoffs, including 16 straight faceoffs to close out the game. He the best faceoff winning percentage in a game (84.2%) for RU since the 2019 season opener, an 83-game span, and marked back-to-back weeks at 80% or better, winning 12-of-15 the previous week facing No. 12 Army and returning First Team All-American Will Coletti. He has won 28 of his last 34 faceoffs across the past two games and is sixth nationally at 65% on the season.
Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper and Tewaaraaton Award Watch List selection
Cardin Stoller has compiled double-digit saves in every game, including an average of 13.6 saves in his past three games. Stoller is sixth in the country with a 6.54 goals-against-average and seventh nationally in save percentage (65.6%). He has two games this season saving 72% or better.
Behind Stoller's efforts, and the play of the defense, RU held Loyola to not just five goals, but only three even-strength goals last week. On close defense,
Tommy Mendyke leads RU this season with nine caused turnovers, while
Ryan Splaine has eight. The duo is each in the top-five in the conference.
Rutgers has held each of its opponents under 10 goals this season. The Scarlet Knights allowed 9 in each of the losses, and in victories held foes to outputs of 6, 5 and 3. That marked the first time that RU has held an opponent to single-digits in five straight games since the first five games of the 2010 season. If RU holds the Hawks under 10 goals, it will be the first time that the Scarlet Knights have held their opponents to nine goals or fewer in six straight games since 2006.
St. Joe's enters the game at 2-2 overall, following up losses to Sacred Heart (12-11) and at No. 7/8 Duke (11-9) with wins over Monmouth (12-3) and at Towson (11-6). The Hawks are following up a 12-4 season in 2024 where they were a perfect 5-0 in conference, won the Atlantic 10 Championship and qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the second time in three seasons (also winning the NEC in 2022 before moving into the Atlantic 10).
The Hawks are led by Levi Verch, the reigning A-10 Defensive Player of the Year and Honorable Mention All-American, who was named to the Tewaaraton Award Watch List. He was joined on the preseason all-conference team by Jesse Jason (the reigning A-10 Rookie of the Year) and Richie LaCalandra (two-time NEC Offensive Player of the Year at LIU). LaCalandra previously faced RU while with LIU in 2022, and RU held the starting attackman without a point and forced him into three turnovers.
Mark Watters and Ben Dutton share the team lead with 10 goals, while Jesse Jason has added six goals and a team-high four assists. Verch leads the team with nine caused turnovers and 25 ground balls.
Goalkeeper Tommy Gross earned A-10 weekly honors after 17 saves against Towson. He has a 50.0% save percentage on the year with a 9.67 goals-against-average. At the faceoff 'X', Conor Trant is exactly 50% (37-of-74).
The two teams have not met under current Rutgers' head coach
Brian Brecht. The last meeting came in 2011. Rutgers is 7-1 lifetime against the Hawks. Rutgers won five straight games from 1998 to 2004, then after the lone loss in 2009, earned wins in 2010 and 2011. All seven of RU's victories in the series came by at least seven goals, and RU won four times by 10+ goals.
Rutgers vs. St. Joe's (7-1)
4/6/98 H W 19-7
4/6/99 A W 16-8
3/20/02 A W 14-3
3/5/03 H W 15-4
3/10/04 A W 10-3
2/28/09 A L 7-10
3/6/10 H W 15-6
3/5/11 A W 11-1
"The defense is the elder statesmen this year with more experience at that end.
Cardin Stoller has been our leader and the level of play he competes at gives us a chance in any matchup. We're young offensively, but we'll keep growing up week by week."
Rutgers remains in New Jersey for its final three non-conference games. Next Saturday is the 102
nd all-time matchup against Princeton. The battle for the Tots Meistrell Cup comes on the road this year (March 8, 7 pm). Then, RU returns home for a two-game week, hosting St. John's (Tuesday, 3 pm) and UMass (Saturday, 12 pm).
