University of Massachusets Athletics
University of Massachusetts
Drexel
Men's Lacrosse Regular Season Finale Brings Drexel To Town
April 27, 2017 | Men's Lacrosse
Minutemen host the Dragons at 5 p.m. on Fri., April 28 live on Lax Sports Network
| University of Massachusetts Men's Lacrosse Game Notes & Information | |
| Game 13 | Massachusetts (5-7 overall, 2-2 CAA) vs. Drexel (6-6, 3-1) |
| Date | Time | Friday, April 28, 2017 | 5 p.m. |
| Location | Garber Field | Amherst, Mass. |
| Live Statistics | Sidearm Sports |
| Watch | Lax Sports Network |
| Series History | Series tied, 4-4 Last: Drexel 10, Massachusetts 5; April 29, 2016 • Philadelphia, Pa. |
| Game Notes | Massachusetts | Drexel |
| Team Information | Massachusetts | Drexel |
| @UMassAthletics | @UMassMLacrosse | |
| UMass Men's Lacrosse | |
| Buy Tickets | Home: Single game available at Garber Field | Season |
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.
Select Home Contests Available On UMass Sports Network
UMass men's lacrosse will have four of the six home games broadcast online UMassAthletics.com courtesy of the UMass Sports Network. The link for each broadcast is accessible in each game preview to direct fans or other interested parties to the event page. The UMass men's lacrosse home contests against Army (2/11), UMass Lowell (3/14), Brown (3/25) and Delaware (4/1) will be broadcast on this platform free of charge.
CAA Partners With Lax Sports Network For "Game Of The Week" Series
The Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) and the Lacrosse Sports Network (LSN) struck up a partnership to digitally stream 15 contests during the 2017 regular season in a "Game of the Week" series. Massachusetts will participate in two of those contests during home games against Fairfield (4/15) and Drexel (4/28). Those two contests will be available to watch exclusively through LSN's platform.
Minutemen Marching To CAA Tourney
UMass men's lacrosse is guaranteed to be one of the four teams participating in the CAA Championship this season. Drexel, Hofstra and Towson also secured berths following the fourth CAA contest of the year for each side. Seeding will be determined by the outcome of the final week's contests as Hofstra heads to Towson and Drexel treks to UMass. 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).
21 With The Tally
Tyler Bogart currently ranks tied for fifth in the CAA in goals per game (1.92) with 23 over the opening 12 games played. It is already 12 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 18 caused turnovers along with 21 groundballs in his seven appearances at the spot. Paparo, who previously played long-stick midfield, leads the team in caused turnovers with a career high 25 through 12 games (2.1). He ranks second in the CAA and seventh nationally in the category through games on Mon., April 24.
Rak-ing Up The Faceoff Wins
Over the last eight games, Noah Rak is 108-for-171 on faceoffs (63.2 percent) with 52 groundballs, two goals scored and one assist. 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) and Hofstra (19-26). Rak scored a goal each against UMass Lowell and Hartford and dished an assist against Fairfield. His 10 groundballs at Hartford marked a career high while he has at least six in six of those contests.
Rak ranks first in the CAA and ninth nationally with his 61.0 win percentage (111-182). He is also second in the CAA and 21st in NCAA Division I with 5.9 groundballs per game.
Making The Fifth Year The Best One
Dan Muller, a redshirt senior midfielder, ranks seventh in the CAA in assists per game (1.08) and 10th in points per game (2.50) as of games on Sat., April 22. After Muller recorded six points in the opening four games, with no more than two points in any single game, he averaged 3.0 per contest over the last eight games, with less than three in only one contest. 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 0-45 when he has two or fewer.
Carr Revs His Engine
After he was held scoreless against Army and at Ohio State, junior attack Buddy Carr has at least one point in nine of the last 10 games with 20 via 12 goals and eight assists this season. Four times, Carr collected three points (at Harvard; at Hartford, at No. 15 Towson & vs. Fairfield). He also has multi-point outings against Albany (two goals), UMass Lowell (goal, assist) and Brown (one goal, one assist). Carr's 56 career points (36 goals, 20 assists) rank as the most by a non-senior currently active on the team.
Getting It McDonough
Sophomore long-stick midfielder and first-year Minuteman Mike McDonough averages 2.3 groundballs per game with 25 over 11 appearances with the team. McDonough enhanced his efforts over the last six games with 19 groundballs in that span (3.2 per game). He also has four of his six 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, through 12 games, already surpassed his career best totals for a single season. Gruder owns 29 groundballs, 10 caused turnovers and three points via a goal and two assists. He had 24 groundballs and seven caused turnovers in 13 appearances as a junior.
Smith With The Stop
Senior goalie D.J. Smith made 123 saves over the opening 12 games of the season, an average of 10.3 per game. His 123 saves already more than double his career total entering the season (50). Smith made at least 10 in eight games this season, including a career high 16 against Brown.
Caused Turnover & Effect
UMass leads the CAA and is 22nd in NCAA Division I with an average of 7.17 caused turnovers per game. Led by Isaac Paparo (25 CTs) and supported by balance across the lineup (17 Minutemen with one or more CTs), Massachusetts outpaces the next CAA team, Towson (7.00). A caused turnover has directly led to 18 UMass goals through 12 games (1.5 per game).
Sharing Is Caring
Massachusetts sports assists on 68 of the team's 103 goals (66.0 percent) through the opening 12 games, tied for the second-most per contest (5.67) with Drexel and trailing only Hofstra (81, 6.75). Dan Muller (13) and Grant Consoletti (10) rank as the top two distributors among Minutemen and both 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 11 weeks of the season, putting Spencer 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 tied for first-most among active Minutemen with Gianni Bianchin (10).
