University of Massachusets Athletics
Massachusetts Contends With Fairfield At McGuirk Saturday
April 01, 2015 | Men's Lacrosse
| University of Massachusetts Men's Lacrosse Game Notes | |
| Game 10 | Massachusetts (3-6 overall, 1-1 CAA) vs. [RV/RV] Fairfield (6-4, 1-0) |
| Date | Time | Saturday, April 4, 2015 | 1:00 p.m. |
| Location | McGuirk Stadium (17,000) | Amherst, Mass. | Directions |
| Live Statistics | GameTracker | StatBroadcast |
| Watch | UMass All-Access |
| Listen | WMUA 91.1 FM |
| Series History | UMass leads, 7-2. Last meeting: No. 19 Towson 11, No. 11 UMass 5; March 18, 2014 |
| Game Notes | Massachusetts  | Fairfield |
| Team Records | Massachusetts | Fairfield |
| Social Media | @UMassAthletics  | @UMassMLacrosse
|
| Buy Tickets | Available through the UMass Athletics Ticket Office |
Scouting Fairfield Men's Lacrosse
Fairfield sits at 6-4 overall entering competition at UMass' McGuirk Stadium. The Stags earned their first Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) win with a 7-4 decision at Drexel in their latest action. The squad is on a four-game winning streak and each of their losses went as one-goal decisions.
Tristan Sperry leads the team with 33 points balanced between 16 goals and 17 assists. He dished out the most assists through 10 games on attack and is second in tallies behind TJ Neubauer's team-leading 21. Charlie Schnider (15 goals, 12 assists) and Colin McLinden (nine goals, 16 assists) also buoy the Stags' offense ahead of Neubauer's 23 points.
Strong defense guides Fairfield currently as they only allow 5.50 goals per game during their current four-game winning streak and 7.06 through 10 games in 2015. Brad Nordstrom started seven games so far and is 3-4 overall with an 8.53 goals-against average and .544 save percentage. Tyler Behring took over for Nordstrom during the previous three games and holds a 3.63 goals-against average with a .760 save percentage in wins over UMass-Lowell, 11-5; No. 20 Villanova, 11-4 and Drexel, 7-4.
Andy Copelan is in his ninth season as the head coach of Fairfield men's lacrosse and 11th overall as a program leader, including two at Marist College. Copelan is 55-35 with the Stags and 79-54 during his collegiate head coaching career.
Last Meeting: Fairfield 11, UMass 5; March 18, 2014
Fairfield scored four consecutive goals to start play and UMass was unable to close the gap en route to an 11-5 loss at the Stags' Alumni Field on March 18, 2014. Nick Mariano and Connor Mooney combined to pace the offense with four goals and an assist.
Tristan Sperry scored both of his goals during the opening three minutes as Fairfield push in front, 2-0. Dave Fleming and Drew Federico combined to double the Stags' advantage during the second frame before Mariano got the Minutemen on the scoreboard with four minutes, 35 seconds remaining in the second.
The squads exchanged goals into the fourth quarter, when Mooney's second of the day made it 8-5 Fairfield with 9:45 to play. The Minutemen did not draw closer while the Stags earned three more scores to reach the final margin.
On Top Of The Tweet Game
Instant information about the 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.
All Home Contests Available On UMass All-Access
UMass men's lacrosse will have each of its seven home games broadcast online through UMass All-Access, a CBS Interactive product. The link for each broadcast was accessible in each game preview to direct fans or other interest parties to the subscription page, where the viewer is asked to purchase the plan he or she believes to be appropriate.
Two Decades Under The Influence
The 2014 season marked Greg Cannella's 20th as the head coach of UMass. The University of Massachusetts graduate is 181-116 overall in his 21st season as the program leader and he stands as one of the longest tenured coaches in Division I men's lacrosse. In terms of total Division I experience, Cannella is eighth while his 20 years in Amherst place him fifth for longest head coaching tenure at a current school among the 70 head coaches in D-I during the 2015 season.
Cannella has guided the Minutemen to many of the most successful campaigns in program history since being named the head coach on Nov. 9, 1994. The Lynbrook, N.Y., native took the 2006 squad to the NCAA Championship Game and led UMass to the most single-season victories in program history (15) as well as the No. 1 national ranking during the 2012 season, which culminated in the most recent of the team's eight trips to the NCAA Tournament under Cannella.
Izzo Collects 100th Career Groundball
UMass redshirt-senior short-stick defensive midfielder Ryan Izzo picked up his 100th career groundball during the game at No. 18 Towson on Saturday, March 28. Izzo, who is a mainstay on the faceoff unit as well as a part of the clear and ride units in addition to his work on defense, set a career high with 52 in 2013 after he had six in his first year of competition. The Walpole, Mass., native added 25 in 2014 and has 20 more through nine games of his final year.
He is the active leader among Minutemen for career groundballs and caused turnovers, which he has 30 of.
Muller's Strong Return From Injury
Dan Muller returned from a year-long absence due to a knee injury vs. Army. It marked his first appearance in the Maroon and White since May 1, 2013 at Penn State during the CAA Tournament semifinals. Muller had seven points on six goals and an assist as a freshman in 2013. He scored his first points of 2015 at No. 5 North Carolina when he had two on a goal and assist.
Through nine games played in the midfield, Muller owns 14 points via eight goals and six assists. He has multiple points in five of the previous eight contests after he was held scoreless versus the Black Knights.
Lindley Picked For CAA And ECAC Rookie Of The Week
Freshman Peter Lindley took home CAA Rookie of the Week on Monday, March 16 and followed it up one day later with ECAC Rookie of the Week after he recorded eight points over a pair of wins versus Quinnipiac, 18-5 and Penn State, 12-8. Lindley had five points during the victory over the Bobcats and added three more on two goals - including the game-winner - and an assist in the comeback effort versus the Nittany Lions.
The Small Set Of Senior
The 2015 senior class of short-stick defensive midfielder Ryan Izzo, midfielder Chas Robino, short-stick defensive midfielder Brendan Schroeder, midfielder Andrew Sokol, close defenseman Peter Von Rosenvinge and attackman Grant Whiteway is one of the smallest in the nation. Of all men's lacrosse programs in at least their fourth season of NCAA Division I competition, the six-member senior class at UMass ranks tied as the ninth-smallest.
Recent Defensive Improvement Nets Three Victories
The Minutemen gave up 14.80 goals per game during the five consecutive losses to begin the 2015 season. Since then, UMass only allows opponents 6.50 goals per game during wins over Quinnipiac, Penn State and Hofstra and the loss at No. 18 Towson. Redshirt-junior Zach Oliveri improved noticeably in the last four games as he dropped his goals-against average from 14.48 in the five-game losing streak to 6.42 during the latest four contests.
The defense, as a unit, limits foes to 30.0 shots and a .217 shot percentage over the previous four matchups after the squad allowed 38.0 attempts and a .389 shot percentage in the five consecutive losses.
An Unselfish Approach To Offense
UMass leads the CAA in assists per game through contests on Saturday, March 30 as the Minutemen have 64 for an average of 7.11 per game. Hofstra is second at 6.11 per game (55 in nine contests) while Delaware has the second-highest volume of assists with 58 through 11 completed contests. The Minutemen were second in the league in assists per game during the 2013 and 2014 seasons after they led the conference in the category during 2012.
Offense Erupts In Win Over Quinnipiac
UMass men's lacrosse scored 18 goals during the win over Quinnipiac on Tuesday, March 10, the most by the program in one game since an 18-12 victory over Drexel in the CAA Championship Game on May 5, 2012. It ended a streak of 34 consecutive contests with fewer than 18 goals scored. The last time UMass had more than 18 in one game was a 20-10 win over Hartford on Feb. 20, 2010.
Mariano Good For Multiple
Nick Mariano has multiple points in 15 of the last 16 games and 20 of the 22 contests he has played in. Mariano's first game with less than two points doubles as his only career contest without a goal, March 11, 2014 against Providence when he assisted on one tally in the 16-11 victory. He was held to one point on a goal at No. 18 Towson on March 28, 2015. The Yorktown, N.Y., native has 69 career points on 47 goals and 22 assists for an average of 3.13 points per appearance.
Schneider Rejoins Coaching Staff As A Volunteer Assistant
UMass men's lacrosse head coach Greg Cannella announced Doc Schneider has returned to the staff as a volunteer assistant coach on Dec. 4. Schneider previously helped Cannella during the 2010-14 seasons after he completed a stellar playing career with the Minutemen from 2006-09.
Schneider will work with the goalies and will assist in on- and off-field game preparations. As an assistant coach from 2010-14, Schneider was responsible for various components of the direction of the defense and goalie units. Schneider returns to the coaching ranks after he pursued opportunities in the private sector following the completion of the 2014 collegiate lacrosse season.
McDonald Named Assistant Coach
The University of Massachusetts men's lacrosse team and head coach Greg Cannella announced the addition of Craig McDonald as an assistant coach on Wednesday, July 30, 2014. McDonald spent the previous three seasons at Rutgers, where he coached the defense and served as the team's recruiting coordinator.
Prior to working with the Rutgers men's lacrosse program, McDonald was on-staff at Siena to help the team win the Mid-American Athletic Conference and advance to the 2011 NCAA Tournament. He joined the coaching ranks in 2008 following his graduation from Albany when he spent a year coaching under 1999 National Lacrosse Hall of Fame inductee Paul Wehrum at Union College.
McDonald played four seasons at Albany from 2005-08, totaling three all-conference selections as a starter on close defense for the Great Danes. The native of Geneva, N.Y., helped the squad make NCAA Tournament appearances in 2005 and 2007 while the program won 41 games during his playing tenure.
James Fahey Joins Coaching Side As Undergraduate Volunteer
James Fahey became part of the men's lacrosse coaching staff in the Fall 2014 as he finishes up his undergraduate degree as the University of Massachusetts. Fahey will assist the coaching staff in various aspects of the program's day-to-day operation.
Fahey competed for the Minutemen as an undergraduate student from 2011-14. In his senior season, Fahey led the squad in caused turnovers with 20 and had the most groundballs on the close defense and the second-highest total on the team with 31. He participated in 39 career contests with 15 starts and accumulated 53 groundballs with 28 caused turnovers.
