PREVIEW: No. 14 men's lacrosse vs. Southern New Hampshire

4/6/2021 7:30:00 PM

MANCHESTER, N.H. – The nationally-ranked Saint Anselm College men's lacrosse team will take on the Penmen from Southern New Hampshire University on Wednesday, Apr. 7 under the lights at Grappone Stadium.

The Hawks (4-0, 4-0 NE10) are ranked 14th in NCAA Division II, according to the most recent national poll from the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association. Based upon the latest New England Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association poll, Saint Anselm also checks in as the top team in the region.

Saint Anselm is coming off a historic performance against Saint Michael's on Saturday, scoring a team-record 29 goals in a convincing victory over the Purple Knights. The Hawks are one of only two undefeated NE10 programs (Le Moyne, 4-0 overall).

Southern New Hampshire owns a 3-2 overall record, most recently posting a 14-13 victory in double overtime against Franklin Pierce. The Penmen also narrowly lost to the Purple Knights on Mar. 27, 17-14, and posted a 17-10 loss to Saint Anselm on Wednesday, Mar. 24.

Spectators of any kind are not allowed at Grappone Stadium. To view the complete spectator policy, click here. Live Video and Live Statistics will be available for fans.

SCOUTING SAINT ANSELM

Saint Michael's entered Wednesday's game with a matching 3-0 record, but the Hawks ran their winning streak to seven games dating back to the pandemic-shortened 2020 season with the 29-3 win.
Leading the Purple Knights by a 15-0 margin at halftime, Saint Anselm has now won 10 consecutive regular season games dating back to Apr. 16, 2019, a 16-6 win over Saint Michael's.
16 student-athletes recorded at least one point of offense in the convincing victory as the 29 goals eclipsed the previous all-time mark of 26 goals in one game, set against Green Mountain on Feb. 24, 2007. The 29 goals are the most scored by an NE10 team against another NE10 team since Bryant scored 31 against American International on Mar. 26, 2008.
The 43 points of total offense (29-14=43) ranks third in team annals and the team's 26 face-off victories matched the team record most recently set against Post on Mar. 23, 2019. The Hawks also fired 73 shots in the game, the third-most ever recorded in the team's program history.
Senior co-captain Griffin Shoemaker (Shirley, Mass.) led the way against Saint Michael's with five goals and an assist for six points. He was followed by sophomores Jack Robinson (Wilbraham, Mass.) and Jack Andrews (Cumberland, R.I.) who each logged three goals and an assist for four points (3-1=4). Junior Matt Rawding (Beverly, Mass.) posted a career-high four points, as did freshman Nick Larsen (Northborough, Mass.).
Senior Matt Ward (Shrewsbury, Mass.) had two goals and an assist for three points versus Saint Michael's, as did freshman AJ Caprio (Scituate, Mass.), whose pair of goals were the first of his collegiate career. Senior Ryan Melley (Reading, Mass.) tallied three goals, posting the first multi-goal game of his career, and won nine of his 12 face-off attempts in the game.
Sophomore Jake Athanas (Manchester-by-the-Sea, Mass.) and junior Thomas Ackil (Southborough, Mass.) each logged the first multiple-goal games of their careers against Saint Michael's. Freshman Chase Lilly (Trumbull, Conn.) and junior Kyle Fisher (Nashua, N.H.) posted one assist, each recording their first collegiate point in the process.
Sophomore Craig Yannone (Lynnfield, Mass.) picked up a team-leading 11 ground balls against the Purple Knights after winning 16 of his 22 face-off attempts in the game. Melley had six ground balls and Ward reeled in five on the evening. Seven student-athletes logged a caused turnover in the winning effort.
Yannone and senior CJ Hart (Reading, Mass.) were each named to the USILA Division II Team of the Week on Tuesday. Hart earned the win in goal against the Purple Knights, making six saves without conceding a goal. On the week, he allowed just six goals on 17 shots.
Among Hawks goaltenders to have played at least 500 minutes in team history, Hart ranks first with an 8.19 goals-against average. Ranked second is Jonathan O'Reilly '13, who played over 1,800 minutes in net for Saint Anselm and won 13 games.
Saint Anselm finished the shortened 2020 season with a 3-0 record, picking up two victories over nationally-regarded programs. Saint Anselm logged a season-opening win over No. 18-ranked New York Tech to crack the USILA national coaches' poll.
Last month, Ward and Thomas Mapstone (Andover, Mass.) earned Honorable Mention Preseason All-America honors from the USILA. In early January, Ward and Shoemaker were named captains of the squad.
Saint Anselm has posted a 25-12 record since the start of the 2018 season and has made the last four NE10 postseason tournaments.

PREVIEWING THE PENMEN

Southern New Hampshire picked up its first overtime win since the 2017 season last time out, downing Franklin Pierce to capture the season series against the Ravens. Franklin Pierce held the narrow edge in shots, 47-to-44, but the Penmen overcame a 13-10 deficit in the game's final 2:16 to force extra time.
Freshman Ronan DePaul made 16 saves in the winning effort while graduate student David Wiedenfeld scored the game-winner at 2:22 of the second overtime period. Cole Jacobsen potted three goals and two assists with Chris Valentine notching a hat trick and tallying an assist in the win.
Jack Terrones leads the Penmen with 15 goals and four assists for 19 points (15-4=19) on the year. Stephen Dubois and Wiedenfeld each have 18 points and Gennaro Marra has taken each face-off for Southern New Hampshire, winning 96-of-151 (63.5%).
SNHU has picked up at least 50 ground balls in two of the last three games on the season – the Hawks limited the Penmen to a season-low 34 ground balls in their victory on Mar. 24.
Southern New Hampshire is coached by Paul Calkins, the longest-tenured active Head Coach in NCAA Division II. He has registered 158 wins in his coaching career that dates back to 1989.

ALL-TIME vs. SOUTHERN NEW HAMPSHIRE

Including a seven-goal win earlier this season, Saint Anselm has won 17 of the first 27 meetings against Southern New Hampshire dating back to the program's inception in 1994.
The Hawks own a four-game winning streak over SNHU, winning by an average of nine goals across that span.
Out of the 10 losses by Saint Anselm against the Penmen, just three (the first three meetings in team history) have been by double digits and the rest have been decided by five or fewer goals.
In the win against the Penmen in late March, Ward led the way with five goals, posting a career-high three caused turnovers on defense in a well-rounded effort. Andrews contributed with four goals off the bench and Shoemaker was responsible for two goals and two assists.

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