When the Hobart College lacrosse team visits Bryant University on Saturday, April 21, the marquee matchup will be on display right from the opening whistle at 2 p.m. Statesman junior Matthew Pedicine and Bulldog senior Kenny Massa are two of the top faceoff men in the nation this season.
 
Pedicine's .664 winning percentage is sixth in the nation and well ahead of Bobby Dattilo's 2011 Division I era record (.649). Pedicine has taken nearly 84 percent of the team's faceoffs this year. He's 15th in Division I in ground balls per game at 6.67. Pedicine has been on a tear lately, scooping up 10.5 per game over the past four games. He had a career-high 16 GBs last Saturday at Mount St. Mary's.
 
Massa is third in the country with a .707 winning percentage, taking all but six of the team's restarts this year. He's second in the nation, collecting 11.92 ground balls per game. Massa has a winning record against Hobart over the past three seasons (.539 in six games), but far below his career success rate (.609).
 
The Statesmen have an ace in the hole with senior J. Andrew Spallanzani. He's played exclusively as a defensive midfielder over the past six games and hasn't been Hobart's fulltime faceoff man since the season opener. In two games against the Bulldogs last season, Spallanzani won 22 of 33 faceoffs; he's .479 in six career games against Bryant. Pedicine has only taken 12 faceoffs against BU, winning five, during two games in 2016.
 
The Statesmen (4-8, 1-3) are looking to halt a three-game slide that includes heartbreaking one-goal NEC losses to then No. 19 Robert Morris 10-9 in OT and at Mount St. Mary's 15-14.
 
Hobart's offense features four players with more than 30 points this season. Junior Chris Aslanian leads the way with 45 points on 23 goals and a team-high 22 assists. Sophomore Eric Holden adds 36 points on 21 goals and 15 assists and classmate Justin Scott has a team-high 27 goals to go with five assists for 32 points. First-year Ryan Archer rounds out the quartet with 31 points on 18 goals and 13 assists. It's the first time the Statesmen have had four players produce 30-plus points in a season since 1998.
 
At the defensive end of the field, sophomore Sam Lucchesi is 4-6 in goal with a 9.16 goals against average and a .500 save percentage. Senior defenseman Christopher Willman leads the team with 15 caused turnovers and 35 ground balls.
 
Bryant (6-6, 4-1) is led by senior Cam Ziegler and first-year Marc O'Rourke, who both have 37 points. Ziegler has a team-high 14 assists and O'Rourke boasts a team-high 25 goals. Junior goalie Kevin Beimfohr has a 5-4 record with a 9.49 GAA and a .500 save percentage.
 
The game will be broadcast live on WEOS-FM (89.5/90.3). Fans can also track the action online. Streaming video will be available on NECFrontRow.com and live stats can be accessed on BryantBulldogs.com.