University of Massachusets Athletics
Men's Lacrosse To Face No. 3 Loyola On Saturday
April 11, 2000 | Men's Lacrosse
April 11, 2000
GAME DAY QUICK FACTS
The Teams: UMass (4-4, 1-3 ECAC) vs. No. 3 Loyola (7-1)
Date: April 15, 2000
Time: 1:00 p.m.
Place: John M. Curley, Jr. Field, Baltimore, Md.
Radio: WMUA 91.1 FM, Amherst
UMASS-LOYOLA SERIES: This will be the eighth all-time meeting between the Minutemen and the Greyhounds, with Loyola leading the series 7-0. In the last meeting, the Greyhounds posted a 9-5 victory at Richard F. Garber Field on Apr. 17, 1999. For games played in Baltimore, Loyola holds a 5-0 advantage, including a 10-8 win during the IKON Classic on Apr. 11, 1998. The teams first met on Mar. 29, 1963, with Loyola posting a 9-7 win at home.
KUNKEL STAYS HOT: Junior attackman Rich Kunkel (Centereach, N.Y.) has turned in some outstanding offensive performances for the Minutemen over the last three games. Against Boston College, Kunkel scored six goals, with four of them coming during a 7-0 UMass run in the first 7:11 of the game. His six goals against the Eagles tied the career-high he set against Fairfield last year, and are the most by a Minuteman in a single game this season. Kunkel came back to record two goals and two assists against Penn State on Apr. 1, and then totaled three goals and an assist against UMBC last Saturday. He also had big games against Vermont (three goals and one assist), Hofstra (two goals and one assist) and Stony Brook (two goals and one assist). Kunkel currently leads the team in scoring with 24 points on 18 goals and six assists.
SEALS DOMINANT ON FACEOFFS: Junior midfielder Jeff Seals (Long Valley, N.J.), who has taken the majority of the faceoffs for the Minutemen, is off to an outstanding start through the first eight games of the season. Seals has won 98 of the 152 faceoffs he has taken on the year, good for a percentage of 64.5. He was particularly dominant during the late part of March, winning 16 of 22 faceoffs against Vermont, 17 of 24 against Butler and 14 of 19 at Boston College. Seals, who missed the 1999 season as a medical redshirt, has now won 153 of 251 faceoffs (61.0) during his UMass career.
MADIGAN AMONG TOP SCORERS: Junior attackman John Madigan (Latham, N.Y.) has turned in some outstanding performances in UMass' last four contests. Against UMBC last Saturday, Madigan netted two goals in addition to dishing out one assist. The previous week he scored a pair of goals at Penn State, while recording a career-best six points on three goals and three assists at Boston College. Madigan began his current hot streak against Butler, scoring three goals in the 12-9 win. Entering the Loyola game, Madigan has now scored three goals in a game six times during his UMass career. He also ranks second on the team lead in both goals scored (14) and points (19). A year ago, Madigan led UMass in scoring with 31 points, while ranking second in goals with 20. He now has 45 goals and 18 assists for 63 points during his UMass career, and is the top active career scorer on the team.
CAMPY STRONG IN THE CAGE: Junior goaltender Chris Campolettano (Massapequa, N.Y.) is having another impressive season in his second year as the starter. Campolettano has played all but 28 minutes in goal this year, making 89 saves while allowing only 57 goals. His top games so far this season have come against Butler and Navy, with a season-high 15 saves in each contest. Campolettano also had 14 saves against Penn State, while making 13 stops against UMBC. He currently owns a goals against average of 7.52 on the season, with a save percentage of 61.0. Last season, Campolettano finished the year with the sixth best goals against average in the country (8.04), while ranking 12th in save percentage (61.2).
MCFARLAND HAVING SOLID SEASON: Sophomore defender Matt McFarland (Garden City, N.Y.) is making himself known as one of the top defensive players in the nation. McFarland often checks the opposing team's top offensive threat, and is a big reason why UMass has a team goals against average of 7.50 on the year. He also ranks second on the team lead in ground balls, with 43 through the first eight games of the season. Last summer, McFarland played on the United States Under-19 lacrosse team, which won the 1999 world championship in Australia. He is the first Minuteman ever play on the national under-19 team.
GABRIELLI IMPRESSIVE ON OFFENSE: Junior midfielder Keith Gabrielli (Farmingdale, N.Y.) had one of the finest offensive games of his career against UMBC last week. Gabrielli totaled two goals and an assist against the Retrievers, marking the third time in his career he has scored two goals in a game. The three points against UMBC also tie Gabrielli's career high, which he matched twice earlier this season. Gabrielli previously recorded a goal and two assists against both Hofstra and Vermont. On the season, Gabrielli is now tied for fifth on the team in scoring with 11 points on five goals and six assists.
GOOD START FOR GUSKI: Junior midfielder Jeremy Guski (Mahopac, N.Y.) opened the season with a solid game against Hofstra and followed it up with another impressive outing versus Stony Brook. The midfielder scored a goal and an assist versus Hofstra, and then Guski recorded a pair of goals and a pair of assists in the 17-4 win over Stony Brook. He also netted a goal and an assist in the win over Vermont, then tallied a goal and an assist against Butler. Guski currently ranks fourth on the team in scoring with 12 points on five goals and seven assists.
DOUBLE DIGIT MAGIC: The double-digit mark has been a key one for the Minutemen on both offense and defense since the beginning of the 1990 season. UMass has a 67-13 (.838) record in games when it holds the opponent under 10 goals since 1990. The Minutemen also have a 68-15 record (.819) in games where they score 10 or more goals.
THREE'S COMPANY: During the victory over Butler, both John Madigan and sophomore midfielder Marc Morley (Canton, N.Y.) scored three goals for the Minutemen. That marked the first time since last year's season opening win over Holy Cross that more than one UMass player has scored three goals in a single game. In that 19-4 victory over Holy Cross last season, Jeremy Guski, Rich Kunkel and Madigan found the net three times each.
NO LONGER IN A LEAGUE OF IT'S OWN: After 46 years playing as an Independent, the Minutemen have joined the newly-formed ECAC Lacrosse League. Other founding members of the seven-team league are Georgetown, Navy, the University of Maryland-Baltimore County (UMBC), Penn State, Rutgers and Stony Brook. The league champion will receive an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
UMBC RECAP: Charlie Gibson scored the game-winning goal for UMBC with 1:33 remaining in the first overtime to lift the 16th-ranked Retrievers to the 9-8 win over No. 20 UMass at Garber Field on Apr. 8. The Minutemen jumped out to a 3-0 lead early in the first quarter, before UMBC came back in the second period to make the score 5-5 at the break. The Minutemen would regain the lead at 8-7 heading into the final quarter, but UMass would be unable to find the net the rest of the afternoon. UMBC would score the lone goal of the fourth quarter midway through the period, before winning the game on Gibson's goal in overtime. Rich Kunkel led the Minutemen with three goals and an assist on the afternoon, while John Madigan and Keith Gabrielli both totaled two goals and an assist. Goaltender Chris Campolettano made 15 saves in the cage for UMass. Steve Cusa made 11 saves for UMBC, while Josh Hahn and Gibson each scored three goals.
TOUGH AGAIN: For the second straight season, Face-Off College Lacrosse Yearbook has ranked the UMass schedule as one of the toughest in the nation. The Minutemen face two 1999 final four squads (Syracuse, Georgetown) and six NCAA tournament participants this spring.
RACKING UP THE HONORS: Three UMass players were named preseason honorable mention All-Americans by Face-Off Lacrosse Yearbook. Junior goaltender Chris Campolettano, junior midfielder Jeremy Guski and sophomore defender Matt McFarland.
HAT TRICK: Sophomore attackman Dan Paccione (Amityville, N.Y.) netted four goals in UMass' ECAC Lacrosse League opener versus Stony Brook. Paccione helped the Minutemen to a 17-4 win over the Seawolves. All four of his goals came in the second half.
MINUTEMEN AMONG NCAA STAT LEADERS: Two UMass players are currently ranked among the best in the nation in individual statistical categories, through games of April 9. Junior Jeff Seals stands third in face-off winning percentage (64.5), while junior Chris Campolettano ranks sixth in the nation in goals against average (7.52) and 14th in save percentage (61.0). As a team, UMass stands fourth nationally in face-off winning percentage (61.8), sixth in scoring defense (7.50 goals allowed per game), 14th in scoring margin (+3.25) and 20th in scoring offense (10.75 goals per game).
SCOUTING LOYOLA: The Greyhounds enter the game ranked third in the country, with an overall record of 7-1. Loyola won its first seven games of the season, before suffering a 16-9 loss at Syracuse last Friday night. The Greyhounds have defeated a number of ranked teams this season, including Brown, Notre Dame and Hofstra. Loyola will be playing only its third home game of the season, having defeated Duke (11-10) and Fairfield (19-9) in its first two. Senior attackman Tim Goettelmann leads the team in scoring with 34 points on 21 goals and 13 assists, while junior midfielder Gavin Prout has totaled 32 points on a team-high 24 goals and eight assists. Junior Jason Born has started all eight games in goal for the Greyhounds, posting an 8.25 goals against average with a 57.6 save percentage.
MULTIPLE SCORERS: Six UMass players scored two or more goals in the 17-4 win over Stony Brook. Sophomore Don Little (Clifton Park, N.Y.) was the first to do it, followed by Rich Kunkel, Dan Paccione, Jeremy Guski, John Madigan and junior Kevin Dell (Huntington Station, N.Y.). Paccione led the way with four goals, the other five Minutemen all scored two goals a piece.
SIBLING RIVALRIES: The Minutemen have three pairs of brothers on the 2000 squad. Identical twin juniors Keith and Chris Gabrielli (Farmingdale, N.Y.) return for their third season, senior John Hutchen (Lake Forest, Ill.) is joined by his sophomore brother Paul, while freshman Derek Kunkel (Centereach, N.Y.) is the younger brother of junior leading scorer Rich.
BALANCED SCORING: Eleven different Minutemen combined to score 14 goals against Vermont. The only UMass player to net more than one goal in the contest was Rich Kunkel, who scored three. The other ten goal scorers for UMass were Kevin Dell, Keith Gabrielli, Jeremy Guski, Mike Janowicz (Upper Arlington, Ohio), Don Little, John Madigan, Marc Morley, Alex Racioppi (Winchester, Mass.), Jeff Seals, Dusty Smith (West Chester, Pa.) and Mike Young (Devon, Pa.).
HEAD COACH GREG CANNELLA: UMass head coach Greg Cannella is in his sixth season at the helm of the Minuteman lacrosse program. Cannella has recorded a 38-33 record in his tenure and led UMass to its 13th NCAA Tournament appearance in 1997, advancing to the quarterfinals before falling to eventual national champion Princeton. Prior to being named head coach, Cannella served as an assistant to Ted Garber at UMass for two seasons. Cannella also played at UMass in 1986 and 1987 for Hall of Famer Dick Garber.
SHORT STICKS: Junior Rich Kunkel finished 1999 with the best shooting percentage on the team. Kunkel had a team-leading 22 goals on 56 shots (39.3). He has done an even better job this season, scoring 18 goals on only 43 shots (41.9) ... UMass has had just six losing seasons in the 46-year history of the program. Three of those seasons came in the first 11 years after the sport was granted varsity status in 1954.
