Massachusetts Men's Lacrosse Heads To Richmond For First-Ever Meeting With Spiders

Game 10	Massachusetts (6-3, 1-0 A-10) at Richmond (5-4, 0-1 A-10)
Date \| Time	Saturday, April 8, 2023 \| 11:30 a.m.
Location	Robins Stadium \| Richmond, Va.
Live Statistics	StatBroadcast
Watch	ESPN+
Series History	First Meeting
Twitter	@UMassAthletics \| @UMassMLacrosse
Instagram	UMass Men's Lacrosse
Tickets	N/A

Against High Point

- Massachusetts and Richmond will meet for the first time in the history of the two programs this Saturday, one of three opponents in the newly-minted Atlantic 10 Conference that the Gorillas will meet for the first time this season including High Point and St. Bonaventure.
- UMass is 8-2 all-time against Hobart and 2-1 all-time vs. Saint Joseph's heading into its first-ever A-10 meetings with those squads.

Where UMass Stacks Up

- UMass is currently sixth in the nation in scoring defense at 9.00 goals per-game, first in the Atlantic 10. The Gorillas are also first in the A-10 in saves per-game, 14.44, ninth nationally.
- Massachusetts ranks fourth nationally in man-down defense at .769, first in the A-10.
- Senior Matt Knote leads the nation in save percentage (.615), sixth in goals-against average (8.88) and fifth in saves per-game (14.00). He is the A-10 leader in all three categories.

A Knote-Worthy Performance

- Senior goalkeeper Matt Knote collected a host of accolades after UMass' win over Army on Feb. 11.
- Knote was named USA Lacrosse Magazine Division I Player of the Week, to the USILA Division I Team of the Week and earned the first-ever Atlantic 10 Men's Lacrosse Defensive Player of the Week.
- The Speonk, New York, native made 19 saves and picked up the win in a 10-8 victory over Army at Garber Field, also collecting four ground balls. He made 11 stops in the first half and allowed just one goal. The win marked the first for UMass vs. Army since 2014, ending a streak of seven straight wins by the Black Knights.

Knote Honored Again

- Goalkeeper Matt Knote was selected as the Atlantic 10 Defensive Player of the Week on March 13, earning the honor for the second time this season after helping the Gorillas to a pair of road wins over UAlbany (9-6) and Vermont (12-4).
- Knote posted a 4.15 goals against average and a .771 save percentage on the week, making 27 saves over the two games and collecting five ground balls. He had 15 stops on 21 shots on goal vs. UAlbany then followed up with 12 saves on 14 shots at Vermont.

Tobin Earns A-10 Weekly Recognition

- Senior midfielder Mike Tobin has been selected as the Atlantic 10 Offensive Player of the Week, the league office announced on April 3. It marked the first career honor for Tobin and the third time a UMass player has been recognized this season.
- Tobin helped the Gorillas secure the program's first-ever conference win as a member of the A-10, in a thrilling 12-10 win over High Point on Garber Field on April 1. The Reading, Massachusetts native posted his first hat trick of the season and added an assist for a four-point afternoon.
- Two of his goals came in man-up situations, while he grabbed two ground balls and had two caused turnovers. Tobin scored the game winner, his third tally of the day with the score tied at 10-10 with 4:06 to play in regulation.
- Through nine games on the season, Tobin ranks third on the squad in scoring with 19 points on eight goals and 11 assists.

To Quickly Recap

- After building an early six-goal cushion, University of Massachusetts men's lacrosse, held off a second half push by High Point to secure the program's first conference victory as a member of the Atlantic 10, 12-10, last Saturday at Garber Field.
- Offensively for UMass, Mike Tobin posted his first hat trick of the season and added an assist for a four-point afternoon and Gabriel Procyk dished three assists and scored his 17^th tally of the year. Shane O'Leary had two goals and an assist, while Carter Castillo and Mason Bregman logged two goals each, as well.
- Caleb Hammett grabbed a game-high nine ground balls and won 15 of 23 (.652) over X. Ryan Sharkey led the defense for the Maroon & White with five caused turnovers.
- For High Point, Jaxson Lamb netted four, Hunter Vines logged four helpers and Brayden Mayea finished with a hat trick.
- High Point out-shot UMass, 51-36 in the contest, but the Maroon & White held the edge in ground balls, 36-32. The Gorillas went 3-for-6 on extra man opportunities and successfully killed off all three man down situations.
- Goalkeeper Matt Knote finished with 14 stops for Massachusetts, surpassing the 500-save mark for his career. Parker Green had 10 saves for High Point.

Minutemen Milestones

- With a hat trick against Albany, Gabriel Procyk moved into sole possession of seventh all-time in program history for career goals. He passed Kevin Patterson (1975-77) for sixth with a goal against Brown and is now 16 goals away from cracking the top-five all-time. Procyk is the program record holder in man-up goals with 23.
- Freshman Aiden Drunsic scored his first collegiate goal against Yale on March 3. Sophomore John Krisch scored his first career goal against High Point on April 1.
- Freshman Zach Auble registered his first career point vs. Army on Feb. 11 with an assist. Redshirt sophomore Jack Wittmaack picked up his first career goal at Vermont on March 11.
- Redshirt sophomore Caleb Hammett dished an assist on April 1 vs. High Point for his first collegiate point.

Back For More

- The Gorillas have four players on this year's roster who are in their fifth seasons with the Maroon & White: midfielder Jack Gump, attack Gabriel Procyk, midfielder Tim Hoynes and attack Jackson Cummings.
- Procyk was second on the team in goals (26) and third in points (33). He is the leading active career points scorer with 143 points over 55 career games.

Out Of The Portal

- UMass has added five transfers to the squad ahead of the 2023 campaign: defenseman Giuseppe Chiovera from NJIT, defenseman Chris Campbell from Hartford and LIU, midfielder Will Abbott from Quinnipiac, attack Conor Foley from UMass Lowell and defenseman Ryan Sharkey from Canisius.
- Abbott and Sharkey are graduate transfers, Campbell and Foley are seniors and Chiovera is a sophomore.
- Sharkey was a two-time All-MAAC selection at Canisius (second team 2021, first team 2022).

Hammett & O'Leary Look To Build Off Breakout 2022 Campaigns

- Redshirt sophomores Caleb Hammett and Shane O'Leary are looking to build off stellar seasons as redshirt freshmen in 2022.
- Hammett was an All-CAA First Team and All-CAA Rookie Team selection in 2022. He appeared in all 14 games and went 185-for-301 (.615) over X, leading the CAA in faceoff percentage and ranking fifth in the nation. The Hanover, Massachusetts native also paced the league in ground balls per-game (8.50) and ranked sixth nationally. He finished the 2023 campaign with 119 ground balls on the year.
- O'Leary was named to the All-Rookie Team after registering 16 points over 13 games on 14 goals and two assists during the regular season with 24 ground balls and four caused turnovers. The Byfield, Massachusetts, native opened the 2022 season with a hat trick at Army, tallying the first three goals of his career. He also put up three points (2g, 1a) at Yale and scored a pair of goals in a 12-9 win over UAlbany as both games were part of a six-game goal scoring streak for the midfielder. He finished the 2022 campaign ranked sixth on the squad with 17 points on 14 goals and three assists.

Welcome To The Troop

- Massachusetts has 10 first-year players on its roster this season: midfielder Zach Auble (Burlington, Mass.), face off specialist TJ Casey (Medfield, Mass.), attack Aiden Drunsic (Exeter, N.H.), defender Russ Hutchinson (Marblehead, Mass.), midfielder Brian Jackman (Oakville, Ontario), defenseman Zander Johnson (Downers Grove, Ill.), midfielder Liam Maher (Melrose, Mass.), goalkeeper Ryan Mazzariello (Watervliet, N.Y.), defenseman Kyle Swanson (Evanston, Ill.) and defenseman Rob Travers (Wycoff, N.J.).

Leading The Way

- Graduate student defenseman Jack Gump, senior goalkeeper Matt Knote and senior midfielder Mike Tobin have been named team captains for the 2023 season.
- Tobin logged 28 points on 13 goals and 15 assists in 2022 as a junior, finishing fourth on the team in scoring and earning a NEILA All-New England Second Team nod.

Preseason Accolades

- Senior defenseman Chris Campbell and senior goalkeeper Matt Knote were named to the inaugural Atlantic 10 Preseason All-Conference Team. The duo was also selected to the NEILA All-New England Preseason teams alongside redshirt sophomore faceoff specialist Caleb Hammett.
- The Gorillas were picked third in the preseason poll with 20 points, while Richmond was selected as the preseason favorite (33 points) with Saint Joseph's in second (29). Behind UMass, High Point (19), Hobart (18) and St. Bonaventure (7) rounded out the poll in fourth, fifth and sixth.
- Campbell comes UMass from LIU where he was an All-NEC first team and NEC All-Tournament Team honoree in 2022 after starting 14 games, collecting 31 ground balls and forcing 19 turnovers. The Shrewsbury, Massachusetts native previously spent two seasons at Hartford where he earned an America East All-Rookie Team nod in 2019. He started all 21 games for the Hawks over the 2019 and 2020 campaigns.
- Knote started all 14 games of his junior season in 2022, logging an 8-6-0 record with an 11.07 goals against average and a .527 save percentage, making 173 stops between the pipes to garner his second consecutive First Team All-CAA nod. The Speonk, New York native finished the 2022 regular season as the CAA leader in GAA and save percentage, while ranking second in saves per-game.
- Knote currently ranks fifth all-time in the UMass record book in career saves (505) and holds a career save percentage of .549 and a goals-against average of 10.44 over 2385 minutes in net.
- Hammett was an All-CAA First Team and All-CAA Rookie Team selection in 2022. He appeared in all 14 games and went 185-for-301 (.615) over X, leading the CAA in faceoff percentage and ranking fifth in the nation. The Hanover, Massachusetts native also paced the league in ground balls per-game (8.50) and ranked sixth nationally. He finished the 2023 campaign with 119 ground balls on the year.

Looking Ahead

- Coming off trip to Richmond, the Gorillas will return home to face St. Bonaventure on Saturday, April 15, at 1 p.m. before heading to play Saint Joseph's in Philadelphia on Saturday, April 22 at 1 p.m.
- UMass will close out the regular season at home on Friday, April 28, at 5 p.m. against Hobart.

Scoreboard