Utica, NY (4/24/13) – The Utica College men's lacrosse team is set to host crosstown rival Hamilton College in the third-annual Contineer Cup on Wednesday at 5 p.m. at Gaetano Stadium.

In the Last Seven: The Pioneers are 5-2 in their last seven games, including a four-game win streak from Mar.29-April 10... UC snagged its fifth victory on Saturday, April 20 as it beat Empire 8 contender, Elmira College, 15-7… The Pioneers are currently 8-5 overall with a 3-3 mark in the E8, putting them in fifth place.

Ranking in the Conference: Four different Pioneers are ranked in the top five of the Empire 8 so far this season... Senior Ben Winkler (Rodman, NY/IHC) ranks third in total shots (144) and fourth in goals (34)… Junior Joe Schoen (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) ranks fourth in assists (22), while sophomore Andrew DiOrio (Greenlawn, NY/CW Post) is first in goals against (40), second in save percentage (57.0%) and fifth in goals-against average (9.26)… Freshman Trey Adams (Hogansburg, NY/Brewster Academy) rounds out the rankings in third in goals against (60) and goals-against average (8.17), and is fourth in the E8 with a 55.6 save percentage.

Triple Threat: Winkler, classmate Justin Edelstein (Hartsdale, NY/Harvey School), and freshman Trent Jacobs (Akwesasne/Brewster Academy) lead the Pioneer attack this season... All three of them recorded hat tricks in Utica's victory over Elmira last Saturday and are ranked in the top three on the team in points... Winkler leads the squad with 44 points, including a team-high 34 goals to go along with ten assists… He has recorded 73 shots on goal with a 50.7 shot on goal percentage, while also scooping up 16 groundballs... Jacobs sits in second with 31 points off of 23 goals and eight assists... Edelstein sits one point behind Jacobs, with 24 goals and six assists… He has also collected 18 groundballs this season. 

Sharing Time Between the Pipes: DiOrio and Adams have split time in the net this season and both have established themselves in the top five of the Empire 8 goalkeeping categories... DiOrio currently has a record of 2-2, while freshman Adams has a 4-3 record after earning his most recent win over Elmira.

Scooping it Up: Sophomore Zack Stevenson (Elbridge, NY/Jordan-Elbridge) leads all Pioneers this season with 57 groundballs, almost doubling the next closest person... He has also tallied a career-high 16 points off 10 goals and six assists in all 13 games so far this season.

Scouting Hamilton: Hamilton is currently 8-5 overall with a 5-5 mark in the NESCAC... They are on a four game win streak heading into Utica... The Continentals are led by sophomore John Zimmerman… He has tallied 32 points this season off team-high goals (15), assists (17) and shots (67).

All-time vs. Hamilton: The Pioneers have faced the Continentals eight times in the last ten years, dropping all eight competitions... UC is in search of its first win over Hamilton in the last ten years, along with its first Contineer Cup victory.

Looking Ahead: The Pioneers host St. John Fisher College on Saturday in the final game of the regular season… If UC wins, it will clinch a spot in the Empire 8 Tournament for the first time in program history… Game time is scheduled for 1 p.m.


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