GENEVA, N.Y.—Second-seeded Hobart College will host third-seeded Bryant University in the semifinals of the Northeast Conference Men's Lacrosse Championship Tournament on Wednesday, May 5. The opening faceoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. on Boswell Field at Urick Stadium. 

The game will be webcast on NEC Front Row and broadcast on WHWS-FM (105.7 in Geneva). Fans can also follow the action with Live Stats. Before faceoff, fans can hear Coach Greg Raymond's thoughts on the game and more by listening to Episode 25 of the Hobart Lacrosse Podcast.

The game will mark the 14th all-time meeting between the teams with the Bulldogs leading the series 7-6. The Statesmen have won each of the past two games, including an 11-10 triumph in Smithfield, R.I., on April 3. This will be the fifth time Hobart has faced Bryant in the NEC Tournament. The Statesmen are 1-1 against the Bulldogs in the semifinal round and 0-2 in the championship game.

Junior Derrek Madonna was named the NEC Co-Player of the Week for the second week in a row today. Senior defenseman Sam Mueller earned the NEC's Defensive Player of the Week Award.

Madonna produced 10 points and eight ground balls in a pair of NEC wins last week. He notched a game-high five points on four goals and an assist and corralled a career-high four ground balls in Tuesday's 9-8 overtime win at Wagner. On Saturday, Madonna scored twice, handed out a career-high three assists, and again picked up four GBs as the Statesmen closed out the regular season with a 14-12 win over Sacred Heart. He has 22 points over the past four games.

Mueller produced 13 ground balls and was credited with three caused turnovers as Hobart closed out the regular season with a pair of NEC wins. At Wagner, he had six GBs and a caused turnover as the Statesmen limited the Seahawks to just 14 shots on goal and the fewest goals by a Hobart opponent this season. Mueller grabbed seven GBs and caused two more turnovers against the Pioneers.

Hobart finished the regular season with a 6-2 overall record.

Hobart eked out an 11-10 win at Bryant back on April 3. In that game, the Statesmen got a career-high 23 saves from sophomore goalie Kevin Holtby and a game-high four points from senior Tommy Mott.

Hobart enters the game seventh in the nation in faceoff winning percentage (.656). The Statesmen have benefited from two of the top faceoff men in the nation, senior Drew Blanchard and sophomore Adam Shea. Blanchard is second in the conference and sixth in the nation with a .671 winning percentage, while Shea is third in the NEC and eighth in the nation at .645.

 

TALE OF THE TAPE
BRY		HOB
13.6	Offense	12.25
11.0	Defense	10.62
.894	Clearing	.836
.598	Faceoff	.656
36.2	Ground Balls	32.88
.255	Extra-man	.225
.694	Man-down	.694
16.1	Turnovers	16.62

Bryant brings a 7-3 record to Geneva. The Bulldogs are fifth in the nation in ground balls per game and sixth in clearing percentage.

First-year Logan McGovern leads the team with 22 assists and 38 points. Classmate Bennett Abladian counts a team-high 22 goals among his 30 points. Bryant has split faceoffs between first-years Jacob Alexander (82-135, 46 GB) and Nathan Laliberte (82-137, 45 GB). First-year defenseman LaJohn Jones has a team-high 14 caused turnovers to go with 26 ground balls. Sophomore goalie Luke Caracciolo has played a majority of minutes, producing a 7-2 record, a 10.98 GAA and a .517 save percentage.