Lacrosse Titans Set for St. Patty's Day Showdown

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. - Two giants of the sport collide on Saturday, March 17 when #8 Syracuse (2-2) hosts third-ranked Johns Hopkins (3-1) at the Carrier Dome at 3:30 p.m. The annual clash is the the centerpiece of a lacrosse tripleheader that will take place Saturday. In addition, 2006 Division III national champion Cortland hosts Springfield at 12:30 p.m. and reigning Division II national champion Le Moyne entertains C.W. Post at 6:00 p.m. All six teams involved in the tripleheader have won at least one men’s lacrosse national championship. All day admission for adults is $10, while youth tickets are $5.

Saturday's SU-Hopkins game will be televised live locally on Time Warner Sports 26. Live streaming video and audio of the contest can be found on SUathletics.com via Orange All Access and fans can also tune in to the Syracuse ISP Sports Network radio broadcast on WNSS (1260 AM).

Syracuse and Johns Hopkins have won the most NCAA titles since the NCAA began sponsoring the sport in 1971. The Orange has won nine, while the Blue Jays have claimed. The two programs are tied for the most NCAA Tournament in history (53) and own the two longest streaks of consecutive winning season. The Blue Jays have posted winning records in each of the last 35 years. Syracuse has done it in 31 straight campaigns.

DESKO ONE WIN SHY OF 100
Syracuse University head coach John Desko can reach the 100- career win plateau on Saturday against Johns Hopkins. Desko picked up his 99th career victory on March 10 with a 14-9 SU win at Georgetown. A victory Saturday would make Desko the fastest active Division I head coach to reach the milestone and the eighth quickest Division I mentor to the 100-win mark all-time. Princeton head coach Bill Tierney is the fastest active coach to reach the mark, achieving the feat in 141 games. Desko currently owns a 99-32 overall record.

RENNIE TO BE RECOGNIZED AT HALFTIME
Former Syracuse men’s lacrosse player Tom Rennie will be honored Saturday. Rennie played for SU from 1963-65, and worked as an oral surgeon in Rochester, N.Y. before passing away last fall. Legendary Syracuse lacrosse coach Roy Simmons Jr. will present Rennie’s wife and family with a framed jersey at halftime. Rennie earned his bachelor’s degree from Syracuse before attending Fairleigh Dickinson University, where he was awarded a doctorate in dental surgery.

BROOKS BREAKS OUT
Junior midfielder Steven Brooks exploded for a career-best four goals to lead the Orange past Georgetown at Multi-Sport Field. Brooks’ goals output was the most for an SU player this year and eclipsed his previous personal best of three set against Hobart and Cornell in 2005. He tallied the Orange’s first goal against the Hoyas and fired three into the net in the first half. The 2007 Tewaaraton Trophy candidate then closed the game’s scoring with a tally at the 2:55 mark of the fourth period. Brooks has seven goals on the season, second on the team behind sophomore Dan Hardy’s nine.

ABBOTT IN THE CLEAR
Sophomore Matt Abbott has been a do-it-all midfielder for the Orange this season. He is a member of SU second midfield unit, plays some defensive midfield, and is utilized in man-down situations. His speed allows him to clear the ball on his own, and against Georgetown, that speed led to SU’s first man-down goal of the season when he fed Greg Niewieroski for a second-quarter goal.

Abbott has also been an offensive force in SU’s last two games. Against Virginia, he tallied his first goal of the season, then at Georgetown recorded a career-high three points (2g, 1a).

VAN SCHAACK FINDS SCORING COLUMN
Sophomore defensive middie Spencer Van Schaack registered the first point of his career at Georgtown. The Tuxedo Park, N.Y. native assisted on SU’s final goal of the first quarter. Van Schaack plays short-stick defensive midfield and also sees time on the wing during faceoffs. He has appeared in three games this season and also has two ground balls.

SCOUTING THE BLUE JAYS
The Blue Jays are coached by Johns Hopkins alum Dave Pietramala. "Petro" was one of best defensemen to ever pick up a stick. He was voted the National Defenseman of the Year in 1988 and 1989, and was tabbed National Player of the Year in 1989. Following his standout playing career, Pietramala served as an assistant at the Gilman School, Johns Hopkins (twice), Penn and Loyola before becoming the head coach at Cornell in 1998. He coached the Big Red through the 2000 season before taking over at his alma mater in 2001. In 2005, he guided the Blue Jays to a 16-0 record and their first NCAA title since 1987. Pietramala owns a 98-33 overall record and is 75-16 as the head coach at Johns Hopkins.

Johns Hopkins lost its season-opening game for the first time since 2001 on Feb. 24 against Albany, but has reeled off three consecutive wins since then. Each of the Blue Jays last two games have been close, defeating Princeton, 7-6, in double overtime at the Inside Lacrosse Face-Off Classic on March 3, and scoring a 9-8 triumph against Hofstra on March 10.

The Blue Jays boast perhaps the best midfielder in the country in junior Paul Rabil. Rabil is one of two First-Team All-Americans that returned to college lacrosse this season (Alex Hewitt of Princeton is the other). Rabil has five points on the season (4g, 1a) and draws a lot of attention from opposing defenses, opening up space for linemates Stephen Peyser (2g, 2a) and Michael Kimmel (5g, 5a), as well as the Blue Jays attackmen. Rookie attackman Steven Boyle leads the club in scoring with 12 points (8g, 4a). The other two members of Johns Hopkins top attack unit, Jake Byrne (5 goals) and Kevin Huntley (4 goals), are proven finishers. Peyser is the Blue Jays top faceoff man (24-41, .585). Goalie Jesse Schwartzman owns a 6.95 goals-against average and has 40 saves on the year.

ABOUT THE SERIES
The Blue Jays hold a 25-17-1 advantage in the all-time series and have won two out of the last three meetings. SU posted a victory in the most recent pairing, 13-12, in last year's NCAA Tournament quarterfinal.

Syracuse University Athletics

Lacrosse Titans Set for St. Patty's Day Showdown

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