Saturday, March 5
Ulrich Sports Complex
12:00 pm
Lehigh University
vs
Colgate
Lehigh hosts Colgate Saturday in Patriot League showdown
3/4/2016 11:35:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse
Game Notes | Watch Live (Free) | Live Stats
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BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Coming off an exciting fourth-quarter win over Holy Cross, the Lehigh men's lacrosse team remains home this Saturday to host Colgate in a big Patriot League matchup. Opening faceoff is set for 12 p.m. Lehigh vs. Colgate has developed into an impressive rivalry as of late, which includes 2012 and 2013 meetings in the Patriot League Tournament.
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Last time out, Lehigh didn't trail for the entire first half, but Holy Cross scored four straight goals beginning at the end of the third quarter to take an 11-9 lead early in the fourth. The Mountain Hawks responded, however, scoring the final three goals for the 12-11 victory. Freshman Tristan Rai continued his stellar play, corralling a groundball behind the cage and finding senior Ray Mastroianni as Mastroianni's second goal of the season pulled the Mountain Hawks within 11-10 with 8:24 on the clock. Just over two minutes later, Rai converted a highlight-reel goal to even the score, then less than two minutes after that, senior Billy Oppenheimer scored his second of the game to give Lehigh a 12-11 advantage, which proved to be the final.
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In the end, Lehigh remained perfect all-time against Holy Cross, an improving program that was coming off a double overtime loss at No. 14 Harvard. Sophomore Matt Ernst played a big role in the victory, winning 16-of-26 faceoffs for the game, including 9-of-13 in the second half and 4-of-6 in the fourth quarter. His 16 faceoff wins and six groundballs tied a career high while the 26 faceoffs taken marked a new high. For his efforts, Ernst was named the Patriot League's Faceoff Specialist of the Week.
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Junior Matt Raposo enjoyed a stellar game, posting a career-high six points behind two goals and a career-high four assists. Rai finished with five points behind three goals and a career-high two assists, his fourth straight game with a hat trick and with four or more points. Senior Reid Weber tallied four points (one goal, three assists) while classmate Alex Eaton scored twice (already his third game with double-figure goals this season).
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Freshman Eddie Bouhall enjoyed a strong effort defensively, tallying four groundballs and a career-high three caused turnovers. Senior Tripp Telesco also had three caused turnovers to go with two groundballs. The win marked Lehigh's sixth straight in a Patriot League opener as the Mountain Hawks improved to 18-8 all-time in league openers and 26-0 all-time against the Crusaders. Lehigh has now won eight of its last 11 games dating back to last season as the Mountain Hawks stand 3-1 or better after four games for the first time since 2014. Lehigh was 4-0 that season and 3-1 after four games in 2012.
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Lehigh is looking to improve to 2-0 in the Patriot League for the first time since 2013. The Mountain Hawks will face Colgate on Saturday, looking to avenge a 12-8 loss last season as the Raiders went on to win the league championship. The defeat snapped Lehigh's four-game winning streak against the Raiders. The Lehigh vs. Colgate rivalry heated up in 2012, a season which saw both programs make the NCAA Tournament. The Mountain Hawks lost an 11-10 overtime game in the regular season, but came back to beat the Raiders 16-14 in the championship game. The two programs have combined to win three of the last four league titles (Lehigh in 2012 and 2013, Colgate in 2015). Lehigh or Colgate has appeared in each of the last four championship games (the Mountain Hawks advanced to the finals in 2014).
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Colgate enters the weekend with a 2-1 record and 1-0 mark in the Patriot League. The Raiders are coming off an 11-10 overtime win over Bucknell last weekend while also beating Binghamton (11-4) with its only loss coming at Michigan (9-8). Sam Cleveland leads Colgate in points with eight behind four goals and four assists. He's followed by Anthony Abbadessa (six goals, one assist), Eric Foote (five goals, two assists) and Peter Donato (two goals, five assists) with seven points apiece. Cleveland and Colin Orr have each scooped eight groundballs, two behind team-leader Connor Murphy. Orr has taken the majority of the faceoffs, winning 21-of-41 on the season. Brandon Burke has played every minute in goal and owns a 7.59 goals against average and .540 save percentage.
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Colgate's 12-8 win last season gave the Raiders a 28-14 lead in the all-time series. The victory snapped Lehigh's four-game winning streak, which featured a pair of Patriot League Tournament victories - in the 2012 championship game and 2013 semifinals. The teams first met in 1956, a 16-0 Colgate victory. Lehigh's first win was in 1960 by an 8-6 final.
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Following Saturday's game, the Mountain Hawks hit the road for the next two games, beginning with a showdown at Army West Point next Saturday (Mar. 12) at 12 p.m.
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Like Lehigh men's lacrosse on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
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BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Coming off an exciting fourth-quarter win over Holy Cross, the Lehigh men's lacrosse team remains home this Saturday to host Colgate in a big Patriot League matchup. Opening faceoff is set for 12 p.m. Lehigh vs. Colgate has developed into an impressive rivalry as of late, which includes 2012 and 2013 meetings in the Patriot League Tournament.
Â
Last time out, Lehigh didn't trail for the entire first half, but Holy Cross scored four straight goals beginning at the end of the third quarter to take an 11-9 lead early in the fourth. The Mountain Hawks responded, however, scoring the final three goals for the 12-11 victory. Freshman Tristan Rai continued his stellar play, corralling a groundball behind the cage and finding senior Ray Mastroianni as Mastroianni's second goal of the season pulled the Mountain Hawks within 11-10 with 8:24 on the clock. Just over two minutes later, Rai converted a highlight-reel goal to even the score, then less than two minutes after that, senior Billy Oppenheimer scored his second of the game to give Lehigh a 12-11 advantage, which proved to be the final.
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In the end, Lehigh remained perfect all-time against Holy Cross, an improving program that was coming off a double overtime loss at No. 14 Harvard. Sophomore Matt Ernst played a big role in the victory, winning 16-of-26 faceoffs for the game, including 9-of-13 in the second half and 4-of-6 in the fourth quarter. His 16 faceoff wins and six groundballs tied a career high while the 26 faceoffs taken marked a new high. For his efforts, Ernst was named the Patriot League's Faceoff Specialist of the Week.
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Junior Matt Raposo enjoyed a stellar game, posting a career-high six points behind two goals and a career-high four assists. Rai finished with five points behind three goals and a career-high two assists, his fourth straight game with a hat trick and with four or more points. Senior Reid Weber tallied four points (one goal, three assists) while classmate Alex Eaton scored twice (already his third game with double-figure goals this season).
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Freshman Eddie Bouhall enjoyed a strong effort defensively, tallying four groundballs and a career-high three caused turnovers. Senior Tripp Telesco also had three caused turnovers to go with two groundballs. The win marked Lehigh's sixth straight in a Patriot League opener as the Mountain Hawks improved to 18-8 all-time in league openers and 26-0 all-time against the Crusaders. Lehigh has now won eight of its last 11 games dating back to last season as the Mountain Hawks stand 3-1 or better after four games for the first time since 2014. Lehigh was 4-0 that season and 3-1 after four games in 2012.
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Lehigh is looking to improve to 2-0 in the Patriot League for the first time since 2013. The Mountain Hawks will face Colgate on Saturday, looking to avenge a 12-8 loss last season as the Raiders went on to win the league championship. The defeat snapped Lehigh's four-game winning streak against the Raiders. The Lehigh vs. Colgate rivalry heated up in 2012, a season which saw both programs make the NCAA Tournament. The Mountain Hawks lost an 11-10 overtime game in the regular season, but came back to beat the Raiders 16-14 in the championship game. The two programs have combined to win three of the last four league titles (Lehigh in 2012 and 2013, Colgate in 2015). Lehigh or Colgate has appeared in each of the last four championship games (the Mountain Hawks advanced to the finals in 2014).
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Colgate enters the weekend with a 2-1 record and 1-0 mark in the Patriot League. The Raiders are coming off an 11-10 overtime win over Bucknell last weekend while also beating Binghamton (11-4) with its only loss coming at Michigan (9-8). Sam Cleveland leads Colgate in points with eight behind four goals and four assists. He's followed by Anthony Abbadessa (six goals, one assist), Eric Foote (five goals, two assists) and Peter Donato (two goals, five assists) with seven points apiece. Cleveland and Colin Orr have each scooped eight groundballs, two behind team-leader Connor Murphy. Orr has taken the majority of the faceoffs, winning 21-of-41 on the season. Brandon Burke has played every minute in goal and owns a 7.59 goals against average and .540 save percentage.
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Colgate's 12-8 win last season gave the Raiders a 28-14 lead in the all-time series. The victory snapped Lehigh's four-game winning streak, which featured a pair of Patriot League Tournament victories - in the 2012 championship game and 2013 semifinals. The teams first met in 1956, a 16-0 Colgate victory. Lehigh's first win was in 1960 by an 8-6 final.
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Following Saturday's game, the Mountain Hawks hit the road for the next two games, beginning with a showdown at Army West Point next Saturday (Mar. 12) at 12 p.m.
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Like Lehigh men's lacrosse on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
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