Saturday, March 15
Piscataway, N.J.
12:00 PM
Rutgers University
vs
UMass
Photo by: Dakota Moyer
Men’s Lacrosse Nonconference Finale Versus No. 19 UMass Saturday
Mar 12 | Men's Lacrosse
RU Hosts Youth Lacrosse Day for Noon Game
PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers men's lacrosse welcomes No. 19 UMass to SHI Stadium on Saturday. The non-conference finale will have the first face off at Noon. There will also be a live stream on B1G+, with Dom Savino and Alex Schoen on the call.
It will be Youth Lacrosse Day. There will be block-R shirts for kids, as well as postgame autographs and a St. Patrick's Day button giveaway.
Additionally, the team has partnered with the Pediatric Cancer Research Foundation to make this a "LaCROSSe Out Cancer game", aiming to raise money in support of children fighting cancer. Rutgers' fans are encouraged to support the cause and help raise critically needed funding for pediatric cancer research by visiting the organizational webpage here.
The game features two of the top scoring defenses in the country. UMass enters the game with the eighth ranked scoring defense in the nation, allowing just 8 goals per game. Rutgers is just behind them at 8.13 goals per game, 11th in the nation.
After allowing 16 goals in the season opener against Army, the Gorillas have allowed just 32 goals over the past six games (5.33 goals per game in that time, including more than seven goals just once). RU has allowed single-digit goals five times and no more than 11 goals in any game this year.
Rutgers is 4-4 on the season after a dominant 21-11 win over St. John's on Tuesday. The Scarlet Knights' offense broke out, after scoring 20 combined goals in the previous three games, they put up 21 goals versus the Red Storm, the most for the program since 2022.
Colin Kelly and Colin Kurdyla each led the offense with four goals. Shane Murphy had three goals and three assists. Kelly and Kurdyla now share the team lead with 10 goals on the season, while Murphy and two-time Big Ten Freshman of the Week JJ Aiello have eight.
RU's two specialists have excelled for the Scarlet Knights. Matthew Paolatto is fourth in the nation, winning 65.9 percent of faceoffs. Over the past five games, he is 65-of-90 (72.2%).
Goalkeeper Cardin Stoller is in the top-10 nationally in both save percentage (61.3%) and goals-against-average (8.05). Stoller has made double-digit saves in every game this season.
UMass enters the week ranked No. 19 in both the Coaches and the Media polls this week. RU is looking to earn its second ranked victory of the season after a victory over No. 20 Lehigh in the season opener.
The Gorillas are 5-1 on the season. After an opening week loss to an Army team that is now ranked No. 3 in the country, UMass is on a five-game winning streak over Quinnipiac, Dartmouth, NJIT, Albany and Vermont, outscoring foes 63-32 in that five-game span.
Trace Hogan leads the team with 13 goals and eight assists. Robbie Granara has added 11 goals and five assists.
Owen Salanger has a 7.35 goals-against-average and 64.1% save percentage. TJ Casey is 42-of-73 (57.5%) on faceoffs while Brendan Coyle is 21-of-46 (45.6%).
This will be the 31st meeting between the former ECAC rivals and the third consecutive year matching up. UMass leads the all-time series, 18-12. The teams played 28 times between 2009, culminating in a meeting in the 2009 ECAC Championship game, then not for 14 seasons.
RU has won the last two meetings since the resumption of the series. The 2023 matchup saw RU take the win over UMass, with seven different Scarlet Knights getting on the board for an 11-5 win. Dante Kulas led the attack with two goals and two assists. Last season, the two squads traveled to a neutral site for a meeting on Long Island. Rutgers earned a thrilling 10-9 win in front of over 1,500 fans at Weldon E. Howitt Middle School in Farmingdale. Cardin Stoller made 19 saves in that game, including a stop on the final possession to seal the victory, and was named the National Player of the Week (USA Lacrosse Magazine) and winner of two Big Ten weekly awards following the performance.
Starting with Saturday's contest against No. 19 UMass, every opponent left on RU's regular season schedule is ranked this week in one of the three major polls. Next week, Big Ten play begins. The Scarlet Knights will match up against No. 11 Johns Hopkins, No. 9 Ohio State, No. 1 Maryland, No. 20 Michigan and No. 5 Penn State in league play.
It will be Youth Lacrosse Day. There will be block-R shirts for kids, as well as postgame autographs and a St. Patrick's Day button giveaway.
Additionally, the team has partnered with the Pediatric Cancer Research Foundation to make this a "LaCROSSe Out Cancer game", aiming to raise money in support of children fighting cancer. Rutgers' fans are encouraged to support the cause and help raise critically needed funding for pediatric cancer research by visiting the organizational webpage here.
| What to Watch For |
The game features two of the top scoring defenses in the country. UMass enters the game with the eighth ranked scoring defense in the nation, allowing just 8 goals per game. Rutgers is just behind them at 8.13 goals per game, 11th in the nation.
After allowing 16 goals in the season opener against Army, the Gorillas have allowed just 32 goals over the past six games (5.33 goals per game in that time, including more than seven goals just once). RU has allowed single-digit goals five times and no more than 11 goals in any game this year.
| About Rutgers |
Rutgers is 4-4 on the season after a dominant 21-11 win over St. John's on Tuesday. The Scarlet Knights' offense broke out, after scoring 20 combined goals in the previous three games, they put up 21 goals versus the Red Storm, the most for the program since 2022.
Colin Kelly and Colin Kurdyla each led the offense with four goals. Shane Murphy had three goals and three assists. Kelly and Kurdyla now share the team lead with 10 goals on the season, while Murphy and two-time Big Ten Freshman of the Week JJ Aiello have eight.
RU's two specialists have excelled for the Scarlet Knights. Matthew Paolatto is fourth in the nation, winning 65.9 percent of faceoffs. Over the past five games, he is 65-of-90 (72.2%).
Goalkeeper Cardin Stoller is in the top-10 nationally in both save percentage (61.3%) and goals-against-average (8.05). Stoller has made double-digit saves in every game this season.
| About UMass |
UMass enters the week ranked No. 19 in both the Coaches and the Media polls this week. RU is looking to earn its second ranked victory of the season after a victory over No. 20 Lehigh in the season opener.
The Gorillas are 5-1 on the season. After an opening week loss to an Army team that is now ranked No. 3 in the country, UMass is on a five-game winning streak over Quinnipiac, Dartmouth, NJIT, Albany and Vermont, outscoring foes 63-32 in that five-game span.
Trace Hogan leads the team with 13 goals and eight assists. Robbie Granara has added 11 goals and five assists.
Owen Salanger has a 7.35 goals-against-average and 64.1% save percentage. TJ Casey is 42-of-73 (57.5%) on faceoffs while Brendan Coyle is 21-of-46 (45.6%).
| About the Series |
This will be the 31st meeting between the former ECAC rivals and the third consecutive year matching up. UMass leads the all-time series, 18-12. The teams played 28 times between 2009, culminating in a meeting in the 2009 ECAC Championship game, then not for 14 seasons.
RU has won the last two meetings since the resumption of the series. The 2023 matchup saw RU take the win over UMass, with seven different Scarlet Knights getting on the board for an 11-5 win. Dante Kulas led the attack with two goals and two assists. Last season, the two squads traveled to a neutral site for a meeting on Long Island. Rutgers earned a thrilling 10-9 win in front of over 1,500 fans at Weldon E. Howitt Middle School in Farmingdale. Cardin Stoller made 19 saves in that game, including a stop on the final possession to seal the victory, and was named the National Player of the Week (USA Lacrosse Magazine) and winner of two Big Ten weekly awards following the performance.
| Up Next |
Starting with Saturday's contest against No. 19 UMass, every opponent left on RU's regular season schedule is ranked this week in one of the three major polls. Next week, Big Ten play begins. The Scarlet Knights will match up against No. 11 Johns Hopkins, No. 9 Ohio State, No. 1 Maryland, No. 20 Michigan and No. 5 Penn State in league play.
Players Mentioned
Attack
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Attack
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Midfield
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Attack
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Faceoff
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Goalkeeper
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