UTICA, NY- The Utica College men's lacrosse team will play Alfred University for an Empire 8 conference game on Saturday. The game will take place at Alfred University's Yunevich Stadium and will start at 1 p.m.

Last Time Out: The Pioneers played their ninth game of the season against Oswego in a non-conference matchup on Wednesday. They lost to the Lakers 9-5. This brings the Pioneers to a 4-5 record so far this season. Four different players ended up scoring for the Pioneers in the win. Sophomore Dale Wagner (Elbridge, NY/Jordan Elbridge) was the first to score for the Pioneers, tying the game during the first quarter. Junior Jared Smaldon (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) scored next for the Pioneers, followed by freshman John Avery (Pittsford, NY/Pittsford-Mendon) to give Utica an early 3-1 lead. Oswego notched the next two tallies to tie the score before John Hanlon (Coconut Creek, FL/St. John Paul Academy) scored to re-take the lead in the second quarter. From there, the visitors turned on the heat. The Lakers rallied with the next six goals, and Avery netted his second goal late in the game as the Pioneers fell 9-5.

Dueling Goalies: Senior Harrison Bower (Northport, NY/Kings Park) and sophomore Ryan Boshart (Fayetteville, NY/Fayetteville-Manlius) have both been hard at work in the Pioneer net. Bower is currently seventh in the Empire 8 conference in goals against average with a 10.37 average. He is presently ranked third in the E8 in saves per game with an average of 10.71 per game. He is also ranked seventh in the conference for his .521 save percentage. Boshart is also doing well in his second year on the team. He is ranked ninth in the conference in saves per game with 8.33 saves per game. Boshart is also ranked 11th in the conference with a .521 save percentage.

Double Digits:  Four Pioneers have scored double digit goal totals so far this season. Sophomore Dale Wagner (Elbridge, NY/Jordan Elbridge) has scored 18 goals so far. His season high in goals came when he scored four goals in a win against Castleton. Freshman John Avery (Pittsford, NY/Pittsford-Mendon) has netted 16 goals so far, and had a hat trick on March 2 in a win against SUNY Poly. Senior John Hanlon (Coconut Creek, FL/St. John Paul Academy) has scored 11 goals, including four goals against Keuka College on March 20. Freshman James Daniele (Pleasantville, NY/Pleasantville) has scored ten goals so far this season. 

Ranking in the E8: John Hanlon (Coconut Creek, FL/St. John Paul Academy) is currently ranked seventh in the E8 conference in assists per game, averaging 1.75 per game. John Avery (Pittsford, NY/Pittsford-Mendon) is ranked seventh in the conference in shots per game with an average of 8.22 per game. Freshman defender Kevin Parisi (Glenwood, NJ/Vernon Township) is ranked ninth in the conference currently in ground balls per game with an average of 4.78. Parisi is also ranked fifth in the conference in caused turnovers per game with an average of 2.78. Tyler Crouse (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) is tenth in the conference with 1.75 caused turnovers per game.

Starting Them Young: The Pioneers have had only two players start every game, and both are freshmen. John Avery (Pittsford, NY/Pittsford-Mendon) and defensive stalwart Kevin Parisi (Glenwood, NJ/Vernon Township) are the only two Pioneers to get credited with the start in all nine games this season.

Scouting Alfred: The Saxons have a 5-2 overall record, and won 28-6 against Hilbert in their last appearance. 14 different players scored during the game for Alfred. Sophomore Cale Donegan and Freshman Jack Chapman each had five goals during the game.

Against Alfred: Utica is 10-9 all-time against Alfred, with their first game played against the Saxons happening in 2000 where Utica lost 18-10. Utica first beat the Saxons in 2004 by a score of 18-10. Utica last beat Alfred in 2017 by a score of 16-15, and the Saxons won last season's meeting by a score of 23-5.

Looking Ahead: The Pioneers will play Sage College of Albany in an Empire 8 matchup on Wednesday, April 3rd. The game is scheduled to start at 4 p.m.