Men's Lacrosse | 5/12/2016 1:36:00 PM

ROCHESTER, NY -- The RIT men's lacrosse team (18-1) will face Amherst College (13-4) in the second round of the 2016 NCAA Division III Men's Lacrosse Championship. That game will take place on Saturday, May 14 at 1 p.m. on the grounds of Tiger Stadium.

RIT comes into Saturday's contest 18-1 and ranked No. 2 in the final USILA Division III Coaches Poll of the season. The Tigers advanced to the second round after a 29-6 win over John Carroll University in the opening round on Wednesday. A season-high 17 different Tigers scored goals, as Kyle Sterzin (Fairport, NY/Fairport) led the way with four tallies.
 
Amherst, ranked No. 11 in the final USILA poll, advanced to the second round after a 16-11 win at Rensselaer on Wednesday. Kane Haffey and Dylan Park led Amherst with three goals apiece. Quinn Moroney had two goals and dished out four assists. Thomas Gilligan got the win in net, making nine saves.
 
RIT comes into Saturday among the Division III leaders in scoring offense, averaging 17.37 goals per game. RIT has outscored its opponents 330-147 this season and has scored at least 10 goals in all 19 games. The Tigers have scored 20 goals in five of their last six games, out scoring opponents 135-36 in that stretch. RIT ran off a program-record four straight games scoring 20 or more goals late in the season. RIT's man-up unit is converting 17-of-49 (34.7%) of its chances.

RIT features 18 players with 10 or more points, eight players with at least 20 points, and three players with 50 or more points. Ryan Lee (Sharon, Ontario/The Hill Academy) leads the team in scoring with 86 points on 61 goals and 25 assists. He enters Saturday fourth all time at RIT in scoring with 258 career points, and is third with 168 career goals. Chad Levick (Newmarket, Ontario/The Hill Academy) is second in scoring with 68 points on 51 goals and 17 assists, and Kyle Sterzin (Fairport, NY/Fairport) is third with 62 points on 39 goals and 23 helpers. Braden Wallace (Oakville, Ontario/Abbey Park) has 27 goals, while Jay Vakiener (Fairport, NY/Fairport) has 17 goals and 16 assists.

Defensively, RIT allows 7.74 goals per game. Nick Nesbitt (Burlington, Ontario/Salisbuury School) is 9-0 on the season with a 7.74 goals against average and a .630 save percentage. Lee, who got the win Wednesday versus John Carroll, is 9-1 this season. Two-time Liberty League Defensive Player of the Year, Matt Hossack (Port Perry, Ontario/Port Perry) leads the Tigers with 108 ground balls and 24 caused turnovers. Jakob Krzyston (Bedford, NH/Bishop Guertin) has 22 caused turnovers, and Patrick Hannigan (Hanover, MA/Hanover) has 21 caused turnovers, while Josh Harris (St. Catharines, Ontario/Sir Winston Churchill) has 61 ground balls.
 
RIT has won 333-of-544 (61.2%) of its face-offs, led by junior Steven Ricci (Rochester, NY/Pittsford Sutherland) who has won 139-of-215 (64.7%) of his draws. Hossack has won 65-of-113 (57.5%) draws this season, while senior Anthony Contento (Homer, NY/Homer) has won 48-of-85 (56.5 percent) of his draws this season.

Amherst comes into Saturday 13-4 on the season. The Purple and White are averaging 14.12 goals per game, and have outscored their opponents 240-144, and converting 48.3% (29-of-60) of their man-up chances. Defensively, Amherst allows 10.75 goals per game and has held opponents to 10 goals or less eight times.

Moroney leads the team in scoring with 91 points on 29 goals and 62 assists. Haffey is second in scoring with 55 points (42 goals, 13 assists), and Park is third in scoring with 41 points. Austin Park has won 41.5% (95-of-229) of his face-offs, while Moroney leads the team with 61 ground balls. Cody Tranbarger has seen the majority of the minute in net. He has a 10-3 record with a 11.10 goals against average and a .531 save percentage.

RIT is making its 18th appearance in the NCAA Tournament and seventh in as many years. Overall, RIT is 20-17 all time in NCAA Tournament games, and has made six straight trips to the national quarterfinals, played eight times in the national semifinals (1984, 1985, 1987, 1999, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015) and appeared in its first championship game in 2013. RIT is 15-4 all-time at Tiger Stadium in the NCAA Tournament.

The Tigers are 18-1 overall this season, and have an impressive 78-6 (.929 winning percentage) record over the last four seasons. The Tigers have won seven straight conference championships, including two Empire 8 titles (2010, 2011), and five Liberty League crowns (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016).

The only meeting between these two teams came in the 2011 NCAA Quarterfinals at RIT. The Tigers used a five-goal run late in the third quarter to pull away and defeat Amherst 15-10.