University of Massachusets Athletics
UMass Faces Fairfield In CAA Semifinal Action Thursday
April 28, 2015 | Men's Lacrosse
| University of Massachusetts Men's Lacrosse Game Notes: 2015 CAA Semifinals | |
| Game 14 | Massachusetts (4-9 Overall) at #T19/RV Fairfield (9-5) |
| Date | Time | Thursday, April 30, 2015 | 7:00 p.m. |
| Location | Rafferty Stadium (3,500) | Fairfield, Conn. |
| Tournament Info | CAA Championship Central | Parking & Directions |
| Live Statistics | StatBroadcast |
| Watch | CAASports.TV |
| Listen | WMUA 91.1 FM |
| Series History | UMass leads, 7-3. Last meeting: Fairfield 10, UMass 9; April 4, 2015 |
| Game Notes | Massachusetts  | Fairfield |
| Team Records | Massachusetts | Fairfield |
| Social Media | @UMassAthletics  | @UMassMLacrosse
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| Buy Tickets | Available through the Colonial Athletic Association |
Scouting Fairfield Men's Lacrosse
Fairfield men's lacrosse earned the No. 1 seed and right to host the CAA Championship during the final regular season weekend as the Stags ended 9-5 overall and 4-1 in league play with a 5-4 win over Hofstra on Friday, April 24. The Stags' win coupled with Towson's loss sent the No. 1 spot to Fairfield in its first year competing in the CAA.
Tristan Sperry continues to lead the way with 20 goals and 23 assists for a team-best 43 points. He also has 33 groundballs on the year, the most among CAA attackmen. TJ Neubauer (29 goals, three assists) and Colin McLinden (12 goals, 20 assists) add 32 points apiece as the squad outscores foes, 136-103 on the year with 213 points to 167 for the opposition.
Tyler Behring stepped between the pipes against UMass-Lowell midway through the season and has not relinquished goalie duties since. He holds a 6-1 record, with the lone loss an 8-7 defeat against No. 16 Towson, with a 5.95 goals-against average and .645 save percentage over 443 minutes in the cage.
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 58-36 with the Stags and 82-55 during his collegiate head coaching career.
Last Meeting: Fairfield 10, Massachusetts 9; April 4, 2014
UMass had its furious fourth quarter rally fall one goal shy of tying late as the Minutemen dropped a 10-9 decision to Fairfield at McGuirk Stadium. Buddy Carr led eight from the Maroon and White in the scoring column with two goals.
The Stags made use of a five-goal run covering the close of the first half and entire third quarter to turn a 4-3 deficit into an 8-4 advantage entering the final frame. Nick Mariano snapped the UMass drought when he bested Fairfield goalie Tyler Behring with a shot 10 yards out from the right post. After Mariano's goal at the nine-minute, 43-second mark of the fourth, the Minutemen poured in four more tallies in the next six minutes and 51 seconds of game action.
Carr ended the streak with back-to-back scores, the final of which brought UMass within 10-9 of Fairfield with nearly three minutes to play in the game. Neither side was able to find the back of the net again during the remainder of play while Neubauer and Charlie Schnider kept the Minuteman rally at bay with a goal each in the fourth during UMass' run of offensive success.
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.
UMass In The CAA Championship
UMass men's lacrosse makes its fifth appearance in the CAA Championship during six years with the league. The Minutemen joined the CAA ahead of the 2010 season and won the league title in 2012. The squad has another appearance in the championship game in 2011 and exited the tournament in the semifinal round during 2010 and 2013. Their five appearances stand tied with Drexel (2010, 2012-15) and Towson (2010, 2012-15) for the most in the span. The Maroon and White own a 3-3 all-time record in the event.
The Rest Of The 2015 CAA Championship Field
Fairfield is the No. 1 seed and host in 2015 during the program's first season in the CAA. Drexel earned the No. 2 seed with a win over No. 3 Towson during the final game of the regular season.
Five Minutemen Pick Up All-CAA Laurels
The UMass men's lacrosse program took home five All-CAA awards as announced by the conference on Wednesday, April 29. Kyle Karaska highlighted the group with All-CAA First Team at close defense while Ryan Izzo (short-stick defensive midfield) and Nick Mariano (attack) earned nods on the second team. Peter Lindley secured a spot as one of only two attackmen on the CAA All-Rookie Team while Andrew Sokol was part of the six-man CAA All-Academic Team.
Izzo Collects 100th Career Groundball
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 personnel 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 30 more through 13 games of his final year.
He is the active leader at UMass for career groundballs (113) and caused turnovers, which he has 33 of.
Cannella Reaches 300 Games As UMass Head Coach
UMass men's lacrosse head coach Greg Cannella is in his 21st season as the program leader with 300 games guiding the Minutemen to his ledger. Cannella is 182-119 in those contest (60.5 win percentage). He coached his 300th game at the helm of the program on April 18 versus Drexel, a 12-9 Minuteman victory.
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 13 games played in the midfield, Muller owns 23 points via 13 goals and 10 assists. He has multiple points in nine of the previous 12 contests after he was held scoreless versus the Black Knights. He is tied for the fourth-most points among Minutemen with Brendan Hegarty.
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.
An Unselfish Approach To Offense
UMass leads the CAA in assists per game through contests on Saturday, April 25 as the Minutemen have 92 for an average of 7.08 per game. Fairfield is second at 5.50 per game (77 in 14 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.
It is the 13th-best per game mark in the NCAA Division I as of games played on Saturday, April 25.
Mariano Eclipses 75 Points, 50 Goals At UMass
Sophomore attackman Nick Mariano surpassed 75 points for his career and 50 goals with the Minutemen during the contest against Delaware on April 24, 2015. He needed only 26 collegiate games played to reach 75 points (2.88 per game) and 50 goals (1.92 per game).
He is the first Minuteman to reach 50 goals before the end of his sophomore season since Jim Connolly (2006-07, `09) scored 51 over his first two years via 22 as a freshman and 29 as a sophomore.
Will Manny (2010-13) was the last to reach 75 points as an underclassmen wearing the Maroon and White. Manny totaled 90 over his freshman and sophomore campaigns combined.
Hegarty Makes Impact Felt On Attack
One year removed from recording two points on as many goals in 10 games played, now-sophomore attackman Brendan Hegarty is tied for fourth on the squad with 23 points via 17 goals and six assists as a starter in all 13 games.
In addition to his impact in the points column, Hegarty has 21 groundballs and seven caused turnovers as a sophomore after he only had one groundball and did not record a caused turnover as a freshman.
The Veteran Sniper...
Grant Whiteway, like his younger counterpart Peter Lindley is short of qualifying for the national shot percentage rankings but holds a mark that would rank among the best in NCAA Division I. Whiteway has goals on 14 of his 23 attempts for a .609 conversion percentage. Whiteway missed the first three games of the year due to injury but has appearances in the previous 10. He is seven shots shy of qualifying.
To qualify for the NCAA rankings in shot percentage a player must average 3.0 per game and have played in 75.0 percent of his team's contests.
...And His Freshman Compatriot
Peter Lindley scored a goal on 16 of his 31 attempts for a .516 conversion rate. The Darien, Conn., native falls eight tries shy of qualifying for the national rankings for shot percentage. If his .516 shot percentage qualified him, Lindley would trail only trail Stony Brook's Brody Eastwood (.648; 59-91), Boston University's Adam Schaal (.575; 23-40) and Notre Dame's Mikey Wynee (.534; 31-58).
