UTICA, NY - The Utica University men's lacrosse team will welcome nationally ranked No.5 St. John Fisher to Charles A. Gaetano Stadium on Saturday. Faceoff is set for 1 p.m.
Follow Along: Fans can keep up with live stats or watch live through
https://portal.stretchinternet.com/utica/.
Last Time Out: The team fell to visiting University of Scranton 15-7 in non-conference action Wednesday afternoon. The Royals jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first 10 minutes of play before Utica was able to put in two before the end of the first quarter. Scranton scored seven of the next eight goals in the game to take a commanding lead.
Connor Costanza (Deer Park, NY/Deer Park ) led the way for Utica as he netted two goals, while
John Avery (Pittsford, NY/Pittsford-Mendon) had one goal and one assist.
Sam Serrano (Stone Ridge, NY/Roundout Valley),
James Daniele (Pleasantville, NY/Pleasantville),
Ryan Washo (Syracuse, NY/West Genesee), and
Caiden Frey (Accord, NY/Roundout Valley) also found the back of the net for the Pioneers. Sophomore
Jon Goodspeed (Binghamton, NY/Chenango Forks) tallied a career-high 24 saves in the loss, marking his ninth game with over 10 saves on the season.
Freshman Sensation: Midfielder
Connor Costanza (Deer Park, NY/Deer Park ) has adapted to the collegiate level extremely well throughout his first season with the Pioneers. He is fourth on the team with 19 points over his 11 games played while his mark of 14 goals ranks third on the Pioneers. Costanza has recorded a point in all but one game this season with five of his 10 games with a point resulting in multi-point outings.
Consistency is Key: James Daniele (Pleasantville, NY/Pleasantville) is third on the team with 21 points as he has recorded one in each of Utica's 11 games. The senior leads the team with 14 assists with his average of 1.28 per game ranking just outside of the top-10 in the Empire 8. He has also netted seven goals on 24 shots on goal for a .706 shot on goal percentage.
Top-Notch: Coming off of a career-high 24 saves,
Jon Goodspeed (Binghamton, NY/Chenango Forks) climbed the ranks of the top Empire 8 goalkeepers even more. The sophomore now sits fifth in the E8 allowing 10.65 goals per game, fourth with a .563 save percentage and tied for second notching 13 saves per outing. Goodspeed has recorded double-digit saves in nine of 11 games this season including each of the last four contests.
About Fisher: The No. 5 St. John Fisher Cardinals are 9-2 overall this season and 2-0 in Empire 8 play with the team's only two losses coming to No. 1 RIT (16-15) and No. 4 Union College (13-12). Fisher leads the E8 averaging 17.55 goals per contest as well as with an averaging margin of victory of 7.8 goals. Ian Evans is second in the league netting 2.91 goals per game while teammate Nicholas Miller is second in the Empire 8 averaging just under five points per game. Goalie Ben Hammond is within the top-5 in goals against average, surrendering 10.08 per game to opponents while owning a .563 save percentage.
Up Next: Utica will travel to Hartwick College at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, April 20.
