STAFF REPORTS
The Canisius men’s lacrosse team completes its season-opening road swing Sunday with a trip out West to face Air Force in a non-conference contest.
Opening faceoff for the matchup between the Golden Griffins and Falcons is set for 2 p.m. EST at Cadet Lacrosse Stadium on the grounds of the United States Air Force Academy near Colorado Springs, Colo.
Scouting Canisius
• Canisius (0-4) returns to action for the first time in more than two weeks after suffering a 10-4 setback at Hartford back on Feb. 22.
• Sophomore Jacob Buck has paced the Canisius attack in the early going, racking up team highs of six assists and 14 points through four games. Buck has tallied multiple points in three of four games played this season.
• Senior Mathieu Boissonneault leads the Griffs with nine goals and ranks second with 12 points.
• Sophomore defenseman Ryan Sharkey has accounted for nearly half of Canisius’ caused turnover total through the Griffs’ first four games (6). Sharkey is also tied for fourth on the squad with eight ground balls thus far.
• Freshman goalie Otto Bergmann has gotten off to a stellar start in his collegiate career, averaging 16.0 saves per contest, the highest per-game total in the nation. Bergmann has recorded double-digit saves in all four games this season, including a season-best 23 stops in the Griffs’ last outing at Hartford.
• Canisius will look to get its offense on track this weekend after recording a combined total of just 30 goals in its first four games. The Griffs have been held to single-digit goal totals in three of its four contests this season.
Scouting Air Force
• Air Force (3-3) heads into Sunday’s matchup looking to get back into the win column after falling in its most recent contest, a 15-5 setback at defending national champion Virginia on March 1.
• Brandon Dodd has led the Falcons attack thus far with 19 points, thanks in large part to his team-high 12 assists.
• Trey Lervick serves as the team’s top goal scorer, with 10 goals to go along with five assists to put him second on the team’s scoring chart with 15 points.
• Braden Host has gotten the start in goal for all six of the Falcons’ game this season, posting an 11.55 goals against average and a .555 save percentage in 348 minutes of work. He was recently named the Southern Conference’s Defensive Player of the Month for February.
Canisius-Air Force Series Notes
• Sunday’s contest will be the seventh meeting between Canisius and Air Force.
• Air Force holds a 5-1 edge in the all-time series, having won each of the last three matchups between the two programs.
• Canisius’ lone win in the series came in a 7-6 triumph over the Falcons at the 2014 edition of the University of Denver’s Faceoff Classic in Denver, Colo. Five of the six previous matchups between the Griffs and Falcons have taken place in the Centennial State.
• Last season, Air Force out-scored Canisius by a 9-2 margin in the second half to overcome a halftime deficit and post a 13-7 victory in its first-ever visit to the Demske Sports Complex in March.
Up Next
• Canisius opens Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference play March 14 when it welcomes Manhattan to the Demske Sports Complex for a noon matchup.
• Tickets for the contest are available. They can be purchased by calling 716-888-TIXX or by visiting Ticketmaster.com.
