Men's Lacrosse | 5/14/2013 11:13:00 AM

ROCHESTER, NY -- The RIT (17-2) men's lacrosse team will face Tufts University (16-4) in the quarterfinals of the 2013 NCAA Division III Men's Lacrosse Championship on Wednesday, May 15 at 4:30 pm at Tiger Stadium.

The Tigers received a first round bye and advanced to the quarterfinals with a 22-13 win over Cabrini in the second round last Saturday. The 22 goals scored on Saturday were the most RIT has scored in 26 NCAA Tournament games. Eddie Kiesa (Syracuse, NY/Jamesville-Dewitt) tallied a career high eight points on four goals and four assists, while Kyle Aquin (Hamilton, Ontario/St. Jean De Brebeuf) scored a career-high six goals.  RIT went on a 12-1 run over a 16:08 stretch in the second half to break open a close game. Tyler Brooks-Lambert (Seneca Castle, NY/Midlakes) won 17-of-27 face-offs and had a career high 13 ground balls, while Pat Johnston (Long Beach, CA/Norwell (MA)) picked up his 17th win of the season, making eight saves.

The Jumbos advanced to the quarterfinals with a 13-9 win over Stevens in the second round on Saturday. Tufts erased an 8-4 deficit early in the second half with a seven-goal run that paved the way to victory. Cole Bailey led the Jumbos with seven points on four goals and three assists. Beau Wood scored three goals, and Chris Schoenhut tallied a pair of goals. Junior Patton Watkins got the win in net for Tufts, making 16 saves. Tufts also defeated Norwich 26-4 in the first round on May 8.

This is the fourth straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament for RIT and 15th overall. The Jumbos are appearing in their sixth NCAA Tournament and fifth straight, having won the National Championship in 2010.

Wednesday's winner advances to the national semifinals on Sunday, May 19 and will face the winner between SUNY Cortland and Western New England who play on Wednesday in Cortland, New York.

RIT comes into Saturday seventh in Division III in scoring averaging 14.89 goals per game. The Tigers have outscored their opponents 283-138 this season and have scored 10 or more goals in 16 of 19 games. RIT's man-up unit is tops in all of Division III, converting 42 of 72 (58.3%) chances on the season.

RIT features 10 players with 10 or more points, eight with 20 or more points, five with 50 or more points and three players with at least 60 points on the season. Jack Krzyston (Bedford, NH/Bishop Guertin), who tallied his 100th career point last Saturday, leads the team in scoring with 71 points on 46 goals and 25 assists. Krzyston, the 2013 Liberty League Offensive Player of the Year, scored at least one point in 18 of 19 games this season, including three goals versus Cabrini. Kiesa is second on the team in scoring with 64 points on 36 goals and 24 assists, while Aquin is third with 62 points on 54 goals and eight assists. Aquin's 54 goals is seventh most in a season at RIT. Sophomore Allister Warren (Toronto, Ontario/Malvern Collegiate Institute) is fourth with 54 points (33g, 21a), and Taylor Wisman (Seattle, WA/Inglemoor) is fifth with 52 points (26g, 26a).

Defensively, RIT is 24th in Division III allowing 7.26 goals per game. Sophomore Pat Johnston (Long Beach, CA/Norwell (MA)), the 2013 Liberty League Defensive Player of the Year, is 17-2 on the season with a 6.81 goals against average, and is sixth in Division III with a .651 save percentage. Senior defenseman Elliott Cowburn (Oakville, ON/Holy Trinity) leads the Tigers with 24 caused turnovers, while grabbing 57 ground balls, and freshman Matt Hossack (Port Perry, Ontario/Port Perry) has 13 caused turnovers and 41 ground balls. Junior Tyler Brooks-Lambert (Seneca Castle, NY/Midlakes) has been impressive at the face-off “X”, winning 63.4 percent of his face-offs to go along with 100 ground balls.

Tufts comes into the quarterfinals ranked 17th in Division III in scoring, averaging 14.10 goals per game and have outscored its opponents 284-189 this season.  The Jumbos man-up unit has scored on 20 of 64 (31.2%) of their opportunities this season.

The Jumbos feature eight players with 20 or more points, and four players with 50 or more points, led by Cole Bailey who has 71 points on 29 goals and 42 assists. Beau Wood is second in scoring with 67 points on 47 goals and 20 assists, and Chris Schoenhut is third in scoring with 51 points on 45 goals and six assists. Andrew Fiamengo is fourth with 50 points (33g, 17a) and John Uppgren is fifth with 34 points (23g, 11a).

Defensively, Tufts is allowing 9.45 goals per game and has held its opponents to fewer than 10 goals in 10 of 20 games. Watkins has seen the majority of the minutes in net this season for the Jumbos, posting a 10-2 record with a 9.91 goals against average and .568 save percentage. John Heard leads the team with 27 caused turnovers, while Brian Ruggiero has taken the bulk of the face-offs, winning 47.5 percent while picking up 79 ground balls.

Ticket prices for Wednesday's game are $5 for adults, $3 for students, and $1 for children. Book bags, duffle bags, and coolers are not permitted in Tiger Stadium. All other bags are subject to be searched.

Wednesday's game will be the third straight meeting between the two schools in the NCAA Tournament. Overall, RIT is 0-2 versus Tufts. In 2011, Tufts defeated RIT 16-12 in the semifinals in Rochester. Last year, RIT fell to the Jumbos 15-13 in the quarterfinals in Medford, Mass.