ROCHESTER, NY – The top-ranked RIT (19-1) men's lacrosse team will host No. 12 Union College (14-3) in the third round of the 2019 NCAA Division III Men's Lacrosse Championship 7 at p.m. on Saturday, May 11 at RIT's Turf Field.
The Tigers advanced to the third round with a convincing 20-5 win over John Carroll University in Wednesday's second round, while Union beat SUNY Cortland 12-7. RIT is making its tenth straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament and 21st overall, while the Dutchmen are making their fifth trip to the tournament and first since 2015.
RIT jumped out to a 12-0 lead Wednesday versus John Carroll en route to the 20-5 win.
Dawson Tait (Ottawa, Ontario/Mother Teresa) and
Adam Wolf (Oakville, Ontario/Everest Academy) each tallied three goals, while
Cam Isaac (Webster, NY/Webster Thomas),
Conor Bollin (Webster, NY/Webster Schroeder) and
Ryan Tandy (Montrose, NY/Hendrick-Hudson) each tallied two goals.
Walker Hare (Libertyville, IL/Libertyville) got the win in net, making six saves.
RIT enters Saturday's game 11th in Division III in scoring, averaging 17.20 goals per game. The Tigers entered the weekend second in the country with 223 assists, and were fifth nationally, converting 51.3 percent (40-of-78) of their man-up chances.
RIT features 15 players with 10 or more points and 11 student-athletes with at least 10 goals.
Shawn Nally (Rochester, NY/McQuaid), the 2019 Liberty League Offensive Player of the Year, leads RIT in scoring with 73 points on 42 goals and 31 assists, all career-highs.
Ryan Barnable (Whitby, Ontario/Donald A. Wilson) is second in scoring with 70 points and is tied with Nally for the team-lead with 31 assists.
Dawson Tait (Ottawa, Ontario/Mother Teresa), the 2019 Liberty League Tournament Most Outstanding Player, is third with 67 points, and
Cam Isaac (Webster, NY/Webster Thomas) is fourth in scoring with 58 points.
Defensively, RIT is among the best in Division III, allowing 7.70 goals per contest. The Tigers lead Division III with 910 ground balls, averaging 45.5 per contest. RIT has won 61.6 percent of its face-offs, caused 216 turnovers, and allowed 22 man-up goals in 83 chances.
Walker Hare (Libertyville, IL/Libertyville) is 19-1 in net this season and entered the weekend among the top-five in Division III with a .622 save percentage, and is 17th nationally with an 8.01 goals against average.
Nick Montemorano (Victor, NY/Victor) has won 209-of-337 (62.0%) of his face-offs this season and leads the team with 85 ground balls.
Trevor Smyth (Orangeville, Ontario/The Kiski School), the 2019 Liberty League Defensive Player of the Year, and
Chandler Allen (Ilderon, Ontario/Medway) are tied with 35 caused turnovers apiece.
Union's Keaton McCann tallied four goals, and Kieran McGovern scored three times in the Dutchmen's 12-7 win over Cortland Wednesday. Michael Sands scored two goals, and Jack Santilli got the win in net for Union, making eight saves.
Union enters Saturday averaging 13.06 goals per game. The Dutchmen have out-scored their opponents 222-136 this season, while converting just 5-of-42 (11.9%) of their man-up chances.
Kerry Lynne leads the team in scoring with 45 points on a team-high 36 goals and nine assists. McCann is second in scoring with 44 points and 34 goals, while Hayden Frye is third in scoring with 42 points and leads Union with three man-up tallies.
Defensively, Union enters Saturday's game among the top-20 nationally, allowing 8.00 goals per contest. The Dutchmen have allowed 10 or fewer goals 12 times, allowing 11 man-up goals.
Santilli enters Saturday with a 14-3 record in 2019 with a 7.73 goals against average and a .596 save percentage. Edward Winters leads the Dutchmen with 33 caused turnovers, while Alex Newhouse has won 140 face-offs this season and leads Union with 81 ground balls.
RIT is 22-3 all-time versus Union, including a 2-0 record over the Dutchmen in 2019. The Tigers won 12-9 on April 24 and 14-6 in the Liberty League Championship May 4. RIT outscored Union 13-4 over the final 45 minutes.
Spencer Bell (Fairport, NY/Fairport) tallied three goals for RIT, while McCann tallied a goal and an assist for Union.
The winner of Saturday's third round game will advance to the quarterfinals and will play the winner between Williams College and St. John Fisher College on Wednesday, May 15.
