Men's Lacrosse Readies For No. 14 Hofstra In CAA Semifinal Round

University of Massachusetts Men's Lacrosse Game Notes & Information
Game 14	CAA Semifinal Round: Massachusetts (6-7 overall) vs. No. 14 Hofstra (11-2)
Date \| Time	Thursday, May 4, 2017 \| 7:30 p.m.
Location	Johnny Unitas Stadium \| Towson, Md.
Live Statistics	Sidearm Sports
Watch	Lax Sports Network
Series History	Massachusetts leads, 22-20 Last: No. 7 Hofstra 15, Massachusetts 8; April 22, 2017 • Hempstead, N.Y.
Game Notes	Massachusetts \| Hofstra \| CAA
Team Information	Massachusetts \| Hofstra
Twitter	@UMassAthletics \| @UMassMLacrosse
Instagram	UMass Men's Lacrosse
Buy Tickets	Available through ticketmaster.com

On Top Of The Tweet Game
Instant information about the UMass men's lacrosse program, including an inside look at key points and statistics in each game as well as updates from practice and other team events can be found through the Twitter handle @UMassMLacrosse. Follow the Minutemen there and catch information about each UMass Athletic Department program through @UMassAthletics.

@UMassMLAX On The Gram
UMass men's lacrosse joined Instagram during the 2016 season. Find the Minutemen on there via the handle @UMassMLAX for inside looks at the program in addition to content found on Twitter (@UMassMLacrosse) or via the UMass Athletics Facebook page.

Minutemen Marching Into CAA Tourney
UMass men's lacrosse is the No. 3 seed in the 2017 CAA Championship. Drexel (No. 4), Hofstra (No. 2) and Towson (No. 1) round out the four-team field. The Minutemen were selected sixth in the CAA Preseason Coaches Poll and defeated the two teams who will not participate: Fairfield (second) and Delaware (fifth). They also defeated Drexel (fourth) to finish 3-2 in CAA play and suffered losses to No. 7 Hofsta (third) and No. 15 Towson (first).

The Leungs Of The Offense
Freshman reserve attackman Jesse Leung had nine goals on 14 shots during CAA play (64.3 percent), the most tallies by a Minuteman during conference play. Leung had five of those nine during the Senior Night win over Drexel when he connected on all but one of his attempts. Leung tallied all nine of his goal during the regular season in CAA play as he had two against Fairfield and one each versus Delaware and at No. 7 Hofstra.

21 With The Tally
Tyler Bogart currently ranks tied for eighth in the CAA in goals per game (1.85) with 24 over 13 games played. It is already 13 more goals than the now-sophomore scored on attack for the Minutemen in 2016.

Paparo Joins The Back Line
Sophomore Isaac Paparo moved into a starting role on close defense for the game against UMass Lowell and owns 20 caused turnovers along with 24 groundballs in his eight appearances at the spot. Paparo, who previously played long-stick midfield, leads the team in caused turnovers with a career high 27 through 13 games (2.1). He ranks second in the CAA and seventh nationally in the category through games on Sun., April 29.

Rak-ing Up The Faceoff Wins
Over the last nine games, Noah Rak is 120-for-191 on faceoffs (62.8 percent) with 58 groundballs, two goals scored and as many assists. He won at least half of his attempts against No. 15 Yale (14-23), UMass Lowell (12-21), Hartford (18-24), Brown (12-23), Delaware (15-18), No. 15 Towson (10-19), Hofstra (19-26) and Drexel (12-20). Rak scored a goal each against UMass Lowell and Hartford and dished assists versus Fairfield and Drexel. His 10 groundballs at Hartford marked a career high while he has at least six in seven of those contests.

Rak ranks first in the CAA and 11th nationally with his 60.9 win percentage (123-202). He is also second in the CAA and 19th in NCAA Division I with 5.9 groundballs per game.

Making The Fifth Year The Best One
Dan Muller, a redshirt senior midfielder, ranks tied for ninth in the CAA in assists per game (1.00) as of games on Sat., April 29. After Muller recorded six points in the opening four games, with no more than two points in any single game, he averaged 2.7 per contest over the last nine games, with less than three in only two contests. He leads the team in points (30) and assists (13) and is second in goals (17). The team is 5-2 when Muller has three or more points and 1-5 when he has two or fewer.

Getting It McDonough
Sophomore long-stick midfielder and first-year Minuteman Mike McDonough averages 2.5 groundballs per game with 30 over 12 appearances with the team. McDonough enhanced his efforts over the last seven games with 24 groundballs in that span (3.4 per game). He also has seven of his nine caused turnovers in that span. He played his freshman season at Saint Leo University, where he had 36 groundballs, nine caused turnovers and four points as a short-stick defensive midfielder. He did not travel with the team to No. 15 Towson for personal reasons.

Gruder Embraces SSDM Role
Dylan Gruder is in his first season as the primary short-stick defensive midfielder and surpassed his career best totals for a single season. Gruder owns 33 groundballs, 11 caused turnovers and three points via a goal and two assists. His previous best was 24 groundballs and seven caused turnovers in 13 appearances as a junior in 2016.

Smith With The Stop
Senior goalie D.J. Smith made 140 saves over the opening 13 games of the season, an average of 10.8 per game. His 140 saves already more than double his career total entering the season (50). Smith made at least 10 in nine games this season, including a career high 16 against Brown.

Caused Turnover & Effect
UMass leads the CAA and is tied for 15th in NCAA Division I with an average of 7.77 caused turnovers per game. Led by Isaac Paparo (27 CTs) and supported by balance across the lineup (17 Minutemen with one or more CTs), Massachusetts outpaces the next CAA team, Towson (7.25; 24th). A caused turnover has directly led to 25 UMass goals through 13 games (1.9 per game).

Sharing Is Caring
Massachusetts sports assists on 75 of the team's 117 goals (64.1 percent) through the opening 13 games, tied for the second-most per contest (5.77) with Drexel and trailing only Hofstra (86, 7.17). Dan Muller (13), Grant Consoletti (11) and Jeff Trainor (11) rank as the top distributors among Minutemen. Muller and Consoletti have already reset their previous single-season assist records.

Massachusetts posted assists on each of its nine goals against Delaware. In total, UMass has five games with assists on 75.0 percent or more of its goals in 2017. The team only has two games with assists on fewer than 50.0 percent of its goals this season.

Ben Spencer Mans-Up
Ben Spencer has seven man-up goals through the opening 12 weeks of the season, putting Spencer tied for first in the CAA for man-up goals and ranking him tied for second nationally. He scored two at No. 20 Ohio State, had another at No. 15 Yale in the 11-9 win, added his fourth vs. Brown, followed with his fifth vs. Delaware, sixth against Fairfield and seventh at No. 7 Hofstra. The 6-foot-4 shooter totaled three man-up scores as a freshman in 2016 when he collected CAA All-Rookie Team. His 10 career man-up goals ranks as the second-most among active Minutemen with Gianni Bianchin (11).

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