CANISIUS COLLEGE ATHLETICS
Date: Friday, April 27
Time: 4 p.m.
Location: Demske Sports Complex | Buffalo, N.Y.
TV/Webcast: ESPNU
Live Stats: GoGriffs.com
Game Notes: Canisius | Monmouth
Series History: Monmouth leads, 3-1
Last Meeting: Monmouth 11, Canisius 6 (April 21, 2017)
The Canisius men’s lacrosse team closes out the regular season Friday when it hosts Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference foe Monmouth in a 4 p.m. matinee at the Demske Sports Complex.
The winner of Friday’s contest will earn the No. 3 seed for the upcoming MAAC Championship while the loser will serve as the tournament’s No. 4 seed.
The game will be shown live on ESPNU, the first nationally-televised men’s lacrosse contest to take the place at the Demske Sports Complex.
Pop Socket Giveaway, $1 Hot Dogs on Tap for Friday
• The Canisius athletic department will be giving away pop sockets to the first 500 fans in attendance on Friday.
• There will also be $1 hot dogs available at the concession stand.
Scouting Canisius
• The Golden Griffins (6-7, 3-2 MAAC) enter Friday’s finale hoping to build some momentum after clinching a spot in the MAAC Championship with a 19-11 victory over Manhattan last Friday.
• Senior Connor Kearnan has been the catalyst of the Canisius attack this season as the Courtice, Ontario product leads the team in assists (39) and points (66). Kearnan already ranks among the top five players in program history for assists (2nd) and points (4th) in a campaign.
• Sophomore Mathieu Boissonneault leads the Griffs in goals (33) and is tied for second on the team in points (42). Boissonneault has recorded multiple goals in 11 of 13 games played this season.
• Senior Steven Coss is tied with Boissonneault in points (42) and is second on the squad in assists (22). Coss has recorded three assists in each of the Griffs last two contests.
• Sophomore Reece Eddy has highlighted the team’s defensive efforts as the long pole has posted team highs of 20 caused turnovers and 64 ground balls. Eddy ranks among the top 35 players nationally in both ground balls (3.92/31st) and caused turnovers (1.54/21st) per game.
• Senior Liam Ganzhorn has started all 13 games in goal for the Griffs, posting a .428 save percentage and a 13.33 goals against average in 746 minutes played this season. Ganzhorn has recorded double-digit saves in six of 13 games played this season.
• Canisius has been one of the more efficient shooting teams in the country as it enters Friday’s matchup with Monmouth ranked third in the nation in shooting percentage (.375). The Griffs established a season high for shooting percentage against Manhattan, converting on 19 of its 37 attempts on goal (.514) last Friday.
Canisius Earns MAAC Berth with Win over Manhattan
• Three different players recorded hat tricks to pace Canisius in a 19-11 victory over Manhattan April 20 at the Demske Sports Complex.
• Senior Ryan McKee and sophomores Mathieu Boissonneault and Carter Stefaniak all posted hat tricks to lead a Golden Griffins (6-7, 3-2 MAAC) attack that established a season high for goals with the victory.
• Seniors Steven Coss and Connor Kearnan and junior Mario Caito chipped in two goals apiece as 10 different Canisius players recorded a goal in the contest.
• The win clinched the Griffs a berth in the 2018 MAAC Men’s Lacrosse Championship, scheduled for May 3-5 at Kessler Stadium on the campus of Monmouth University.
• Canisius’ 19 goals against the Jaspers were the most for the Griffs in a game since a 20-6 victory at VMI on April 19, 2015.
• With his four points against the Jaspers, Kearnan moved into a tie with Ned Franz (1994) for fourth place on the program’s single-season points chart (66).
• Kearnan’s two assists versus Manhattan also vaulted him into a tie with Cort Knodel for fifth place on the program’s career assists chart (78).
• Boissonneault and Stefaniak both recorded their fifth hat tricks of the season in the win.
• McKee posted his fourth hat trick of the season and the 11th of his career with a three-goal effort against the Jaspers.
• Coss tallied five or more points in a game for the second time this season and third time in his career as he finished with two goals and three assists.
Scouting Monmouth
• The Hawks (6-7, 3-2 MAAC) head into Friday’s regular season finale looking to get back in the win column following a double-overtime setback at Quinnipiac last Friday that secured the Bobcats the No. 1 seed for the MAAC Championship.
• Bryce Wasserman leads the Monmouth attack, pacing the squad in goals (33), assists (13) and points (46). Wasserman was recently selected by the Denver Outlaws in the seventh round of the MLL draft.
• Griffin Figel is second on the squad in points (29) while Hunter Jones ranks third (25) as both players are tied for second on the team with 18 goals apiece.
• Noah Lode has quickly adjusted to the college game as the freshman keeper leads the MAAC in both goals against average (8.45) and save percentage (.578). Lode has allowed single-digit goals in 10 of 13 games played.
Canisius-Monmouth Series Notes
• The schools are set to meet for the fifth straight season, all of which have come since Monmouth’s inaugural campaign in 2014.
• The Hawks hold a 3-1 edge in the series, having won each of the last three matchups, including an 11-6 victory last April at the Kessler Stadium in West Long Branch, N.J.
• Canisius holds a 1-1 mark at home against Monmouth. The Griffs won the inaugural matchup, 5-4, during the 2014 campaign before suffering an 11-6 setback during the 2016 season.
Up Next
• Canisius takes part in the 2018 MAAC Men’s Lacrosse Championship, scheduled for May 3-5 at Kessler Stadium on the campus of Monmouth University.
• The Griffs will play either top-seed Quinnipiac or No. 2 seed Detroit Mercy depending on the outcome of Friday’s contest.
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