Utica, NY (3/28/14) – The Utica College men's lacrosse team (4-3, 1-0 Empire 8) returns to action Friday at Oswego State right after playing on the road Thursday at Potsdam. Game time is set for 4 p.m.
 
Last Time Out: The Pioneers played Thursday on the road and fell to Potsdam State 11-8, after a comeback bid fell short … UC was down 7-3 at halftime, but after scoring two goals in the third period to make it 7-5, Potsdam answered with four goals in the last quarter to put the game away 11-8 … Trent Jacobs (Akwesasne/Brewster Academy) and Ross Cree (Akwesasne/Salmon River ) led the Pioneers with two goals apiece while Joe Schoen (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) chipped in with one goal and two assists.

On the Road Again: UC is 0-3 on the road, but looks to turn that record around at Oswego Friday … Three Pioneers have stood out in those road games, Ross Cree (Akwesasne/Salmon River ), Trent Jacobs (Akwesasne/Brewster Academy), and Christian Reiller (Salamanca, NY/Genesee CC) … In the three games, Cree has six goals with an assist, Jacobs has five goals and an assist, and Reiller has two goals and six assists … Another factor in the Pioneers' travelling woes is penalties in which they have committed 24 total in the three games.
 
Third Quarter Domination: After halftime, the Pioneers have come out strong this season … After experiencing slow starts in the beginning of games,  UC has come out firing in the third quarter, outscoring opponents 25-13 … Part of the scoring can be attributed to the number of possessions UC has gained thanks to the faceoff crew of Zack Stevenson (Elbridge, NY/Jordan-Elbridge) and Ross Cree (Akwesasne/Salmon River ), who have outfaced opponents 26-19 in third quarters this year.
 
Cree Stepping Up: Freshman midfielder Ross Cree (Akwesasne/Salmon River ) has scored in every game this season … On the year he has 16 points (ten goals, six assists) … He has played a vital role on all three of the Pioneers' comeback attempts, with three multi-goal games in UC's losses … Cree has scooped up 17 ground balls this season, which is good for third-best on the team.
 
Schoen Back to Form: After going pointless in the first four games of the season, senior midfielder Joe Schoen (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) has been packing on the points in the last three games … He has four goals and three assists (seven points) in the last three contests and is heating up just at the right time before Empire 8 play returns next Wednesday against Nazareth.
 
Don't Get Byrned: Junior long-stick midfielder Tom Byrne (Lancaster, NY/Lancaster) has been on a tear this season … He has been an offensive midfielder's nightmare as he is averaging three caused-turnovers and 4.43 ground balls per game … He is well ahead of his 2.25 caused-turnovers and 4.25 ground balls per game last season that helped name him to the Empire 8 All-Conference second team.
 
Scouting Oswego State: The Lakers are currently 3-2 on the year and are coming off of a 11-6 loss at St. John Fisher last Saturday … They have only one common opponent with the Pioneers so far this year as Oswego beat SUNY IT 13-8 (3/1/14) and UC defeated SUNY IT 14-4 (3/6/14) … The Lakers have a balanced scoring attack with six players totaling between eight and 12 points on the year … Their top scorer is junior Torry Whitcher (ten goals, two assists) … The Pioneers hold a 6-4 advantage all-time against the Lakers, but UC's last win was in 2009.
 
Looking Ahead: The Pioneers return home looking to add to their 1-0 mark in the Empire 8 Conference next Wednesday as they face familiar foe Nazareth College at Charles A. Gaetano Stadium. Faceoff is set for 4 p.m.