Bucknell University
Lafayette
Men's Lacrosse Visits Lafayette for Pivotal Friday Night Patriot League Matchup
4/20/2023 10:52:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse
Bucknell (3-8, 2-4 PL) at Lafayette (5-8, 2-5 PL)
When: Friday, April 21 – 7:30 p.m.
Where: Fisher Stadium – Easton, Pa.
Watch: ESPN+
Live Stats: GoLeopards.com
Follow on Twitter: @Bucknell_MLAX
Bucknell at a Glance
• The Bison are back on the road Friday to face Lafayette. Bucknell enters the matchup 3-8 (2-4 PL) following its 18-12 victory over Holy Cross last Saturday.
• Bucknell's final two games are crucial to its postseason possibilities. The Bison are currently sixth in the Patriot League standings (the top six teams qualify for the Patriot League Tournament). With a win on Friday, the Bison would secure a spot in the 2023 Patriot League Tournament.
• Will Hopkins earned his third Patriot League Rookie of the Week award on Monday following his four-point performance against the Crusaders. Hopkins registered his third hat trick of the season in the win.
• The Bison have collected six Patriot League weekly awards this season and 11 of the last 24 PL Rookie of the Week awards dating back to last year.
• Junior Dutch Furlong was among the 11 student-athletes to appear on the second-round additions to the Tewaaraton Award Watch List. The prestigious award honors the top college lacrosse player in the United States. Furlong currently ranks sixth in NCAA Division I in assists per game (2.90).
• Bucknell posted a 9-6 (3-5 PL) record in 2022 and was back in the Patriot League Tournament after missing during the abbreviated 2021 season. The Bison have missed the tournament just three times since 2005. Bucknell fell to third-seeded Loyola in the 2022 PL quarterfinals.
• Bucknell got off to a 5-0 start last season and finished first in the Patriot League in assists per game, ground balls per game and points per game. They were second in goals per game and shots per game.
• Bucknell set program records for goals (203), assists (127) and points (330), as well as a host of individual records.
• Bucknell was picked sixth in the 2023 Patriot League preseason poll. Additionally, sophomore Connor Davis was one of 16 student-athletes named to the 2023 Preseason All-Patriot League Team. Davis, who earned PL Rookie of the Year last season, scored 45 goals to tie for second in program history and was named PL Rookie of the Week six times.
• Bucknell lost 12 seniors to graduation, including 2022 All-League defenseman Drew Wellington and standout faceoff specialist Nick Crovatto. The Bison welcomed 15 newcomers this year, including 13 freshmen.
• Along with Davis, Bucknell brought back second-leading scorer Furlong, who finished sixth in the Patriot League in both shots per game and goals per game.
• Midfielders Cam Doolan and Furlong are the two returning Bison that started all 15 games last season.
• Seniors C.J. Baroni, Jack Feda, Conor McCusker, Andrew Stanzel and Danny Striano were voted team captains for the 2023 season.
• Head coach Frank Fedorjaka is in his 18th season leading the Bison. He possesses a 147-104 career record and is a three-time Patriot League Coach of the Year selection.
Category Leaders
• Goals: Connor Davis (24)
• Assists: Dutch Furlong (29) – 6th in NCAA in assists/game (2.90)
• Points: Dutch Furlong (48) – 15th in NCAA in points/game (4.80)
• Shots: Connor Davis (79)
• Ground Balls: Danny Striano (53)
• Caused Turnovers: Andrew Stanzel (24) – 6th in NCAA in caused turnovers/game (2.18)
• Face-Off Wins: Brendan Coyle (71)
• Face-Off Percentage: Griffin Shaffer (.452)
• Save Percentage: Jaz Zanelli (.492)
• Goals Against Average: Rich O'Halloran (9.52)
• Saves: Jaz Zanelli (119)
Milestone Watch
• Cam Doolan: Eclipsed 50 career points last game at Holy Cross.
• Danny Striano: Needs 2 ground balls to reach 146 and crack Bucknell's all-time career top 10.
• Conor McCusker: Needs 14 faceoff wins to reach 100 for his career.
• Dutch Furlong: Needs 5 assists to reach 59 for his career and crack Bucknell's all-time top 10.
• Dutch Furlong: Needs 4 assists to reach 33 on the season and enter Bucknell's all-time top 10.
Inside the Holy Cross Box Score
• Jack Feda scored a career-high six goals, and Bucknell more than doubled Holy Cross' shot total in an 18-12 win at Kuzniewski Field last Saturday.
• Eleven other Bison joined Feda with points, as Dutch Furlong contributed five points on four assists and a goal, and Will Hopkins supplied one helper and three goals for the third hat trick of his rookie campaign.
• Bucknell's 63 shots, 42 of which were on target, were a season high and the most the team has attempted since rattling off 65 against the Crusaders last year. Meanwhile, the Bison limited Holy Cross to 30 shots and just 16 successful clears on 24 attempts.
• Bucknell won 20 of 33 faceoffs as well, with Brendan Coyle going 18 for 31.
• Bucknell scored seven times by the 8:18 mark of the second quarter and allowed just one Holy Cross goal over the first 27:22 of game time. The Bison held a staggering 16-3 advantage in shots over the first 15 minutes.
• Bucknell's offense exploded in the fourth, scoring five unanswered to begin the period and registering seven total over the last 15 minutes.
Lafayette at a Glance
• The Leopards are 5-8 (2-5 PL) following their 9-6 loss at Navy last weekend. Lafayette, which sits one spot behind the Bison in the standings, has Patriot League wins over Holy Cross and Colgate.
• Lafayette was picked to finish eighth in the Patriot League Preseason Poll following a 4-11 (1-7 PL) season in 2022.
• Junior attack Peter Lehman currently leads the Leopards in points with 27 goals and seven assists. Lehman was a Second Team All-Patriot League selection last season and was the 2021 PL Rookie of the Year.
• Freshman Joe Doherty has started all 13 games for the Leopards and has a 12.34 goals against average.
• Bucknell is 47-7 in the all-time series with Lafayette dating back to 1968. The Bison have won 11 in a row, with the Leopards' last win coming in 2010.
• Bucknell defeated Lafayette 19-16 at home last April. Four different players recorded at least five points for the Bison. Lafayette tied the game at 9-9 early in the third quarter, but Bucknell responded with a 4-0 run. The 35 goals scored in the game tied for the second-highest combined total in Bucknell's history.
Up Next
• Bucknell wraps up the regular season at home against Navy on Friday, April 28. The Bison will celebrate their 11 seniors prior to the game, which begins at 7:30 p.m.
