'Cuse Opens NCAA Tournament Versus Bryant

2014 NCAA First Round – #4 Syracuse (11-4) vs. #19 Bryant (15-4)
Details	Sunday, May 11 \| Syracuse, N.Y. \| 7:30 p.m. Tournament Bracket \| Carrier Dome \| Tickets \| Weather
Game Coverage	TV: ESPNU \| Radio: WTKW 99.5 FM (Syracuse) Cuse.com: Listen \| Live Stats \| WatchESPN.com \| Watch Twitter: @Cuse, @SUMensLax
Syracuse Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Stats \| Notes \| Guide
Bryant Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Stats \| Notes \| Guide

SYRACUSE, N.Y – For the second year in a row, Syracuse hosts Bryant in the opening round of the NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Championship. Faceoff is at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, May 11 at the Carrier Dome.

The Orange is the No. 2 seed and received an at-large berth into the field on the strength of an 11-4 record. Bryant is making its second consecutive NCAA appearance. The Bulldogs are champions of the Northeast Conference and received the league's automatic berth.

Syracuse is coming off perhaps its most dominant performance of the season, beating Colgate by the score of 19-6 in its regular-season finale.

On Wednesday, Bryant defeated Siena, 9-8, in an NCAA play-in game to set up Sunday's date with the Orange.

FAMILIAR TERRITORY
This is SU'S 34th trip to the postseason, the fourth-most NCAA appearances by a Division I program and the Orange enters the 2014 tournament with a 65-22 postseason record. Its 65 tournament victories are the second-most behind Johns Hopkins (67). In addition, SU owns the all-time best postseason winning percentage at .747 and boasts the most NCAA titles (11) of any Division I program.

NO. 2 SEED SUITS ORANGE WELL
This is the eighth time overall Syracuse has been seeded second in the NCAA Tournament. The Orange owns a 15-4 all-time record when serving as the No. 2 seed, including winning the 1983, 2002 and 2009 national championships.

DESKO OWNS HIGHEST TOURNAMENT WINNING PERCENTAGE
Head coach John Desko took over the program in 1999 and has guided the Orange to 15 NCAA Tournaments in 16 seasons and five NCAA titles (2000, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2009). Desko's clubs are 31-9 in the NCAA playoffs, good for a .775 winning percentage. That mark is the best among all head coaches that have coached at least 10 NCAA games. Legendary Johns Hopkins mentor Henry Ciccarone is second with a .750 (18-6) winning percentage.

NCAA DOME-INATION
The Orange holds a 24-2 (.923) record in NCAA playoff games contested in the Carrier Dome. Its only two Dome postseason losses came in the 1991 national semifinals to North Carolina and in 2010 to Army.

A WIN AGAINST BRYANT WOULD …
… Be the program's 858th victory, second all-time behind Hopkins (943).
… Improve SU's record to 97-24 since the start of the 2008 season.
… Be John Desko's 199th career coaching win.
… Increase the Orange's all-time NCAA Tournament record to 66-22.
… Improve Desko's career NCAA Tournament record to 32-9.
… Boost the team's record to 11-3 all-time in first-round NCAA games.
… Clinch a berth in the quarterfinals for the 31st time in 34 NCAA appearances.
… Improve the Orange's record in playoff games contested in the Carrier Dome to 25-2.
… Extend SU's home winning streak to five games.

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Bryant has won four straight games, including a 9-8 triumph against Siena in Wednesday's NCAA Tournament play-in game. Overall, the Bulldogs have a school-record 15 wins this season and captured their third straight Northeast Conference title.

Two-time NEC Player of the Year Kevin Massa is the NCAA leader in faceoff winning percentage (.714, 282-395) and ground balls per game (11.0). Massa scored one goal and was 15-for-18 at the X versus Sacred Heart and Hobart during the NEC Championship to win tournament MVP honors.

Shane Morrell (41 goals, 17 assists) and Colin Dunster (33 goals, 11 assists) lead the Bryant offense. Morrell had two goals and one assist against Siena. Tucker James (26 goals) and Dan Sipperly (26 goals) give the Bulldogs a total of four 20-goal scorers.

Goalie Gunnar Waldt leads a Bryant defense that is fifth nationally in fewest goals allowed (7.42 per game). Waldt has 209 saves and ranks among the national leaders in goals-against average (7.44) and save percentage (.611). Against Siena, Waldt made 14 saves to help preserve the victory.

The Bulldogs are coached by Mike Pressler who is in his eighth year at the helm. He is 92-46 with Bryant after spending 16 seasons as the head coach Duke. Pressler is one of five active Division I coaches with at least 300 wins. In addition, he is sixth among active Division I coaches in winning percentage (.684, 321-148).

THE BRYANT SERIES
Syracuse is 1-0 all-time against the Bulldogs. The Orange topped Bryant in the opening round of last year's NCAA Tournament, 12-7.

UP NEXT ...
The winner of the Syracuse-Bryant matchup will face the winner of Cornell-Maryland on Saturday, May 17 in the NCAA quarterfinals at Hofstra's Shuart Stadium.

Syracuse University Athletics

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