Game Data

• Loyola University Maryland returns to Ridley Athletic Complex for the first time since the second day of March to host Fairfield University in a 2:30 p.m. ECAC Lacrosse League game on Saturday, April 6.
• The game is part of a doubleheader at Ridley. Loyola’s women host Georgetown University in the first game, starting at 12 noon.

Series History

• Loyola and Fairfield will play for the 16th time in series history when the teams meet on Saturday. The Greyhounds hold a 13-2 advantage in the all-time series after winning both meetings last season.
• In last year’s regular-season meeting, the Greyhounds rallied from a two-goal fourth-quarter deficit to score the last four game to defeat Fairfield, 8-6, on April 7, 2012, in the regular-season meeting between the teams. The Stags took a 6-4 lead with 11:59 left in regulation on a John Snellman goal, but Davis Butts assisted a J.P. Dalton goal eight seconds later to start the 4-0 run that led to the win in Connecticut.
• The teams met again on May 4, in the ECAC Championship Game at Denver University, and Loyola used an 8-1 run that spanned three quarters to take a 14-7 decision. Fairfield pulled within a goal when Sam Snow scored with 27 seconds remaining in the opening quarter, but Loyola got a once-in-a-lifetime goal from defender Reid Acton. Loyola goalkeeper Jack Runkel made a save on a Fairfield shot, and he passed the ball to Acton. Acton threw the ball nearly 75 yards, and it went over the stick of Fairfield goalkeeper Charlie Cipriano to make the score 5-3 with one second to go in the first quarter.
• Justin Ward had two goals and three assists in the game, while Mike Sawyer scored three goals and Chris Layne tallied two goals and an assist.

In The Polls

• Loyola remained at No. 5 in the Nike/Inside Lacrosse media poll this week while checking in at No. 6 in the USILA Coaches rankings.

Last Time Out

• Loyola held host Ohio State to just 23 shots and did not allow a Buckeyes’ goal for a stretch of 32 minutes, 54 seconds, during a 9-4 ECAC Lacrosse League victory last Saturday in Columbus.
• Ohio State scored with 3:03 left in the second quarter, tying the score at 3-3, but Loyola would score three times before halftime to lead 6-3 at the break.
• The three goals were the first part of a 6-0 run that saw the Greyhounds go ahead, 9-3, off the opening faceoff of the fourth quarter.
• Loyola’s defense held Ohio State to only 10 shots, and the Buckeyes had 10 turnovers, in the final 33 minutes of the game.
• Nikko Pontrello scored three goals, while Chris Layne had a goal and two assists for Loyola. Justin Ward added two assists, and Davis Butts, Zach Herreweyers and Scott Ratliff each scored a goal and assisted on another. Jack Runkel made nine saves in goal for the Greyhounds.

Defensively Speaking

• Loyola has allowed just 15 goals over its last three games, an average of 5.0. In the first two games, at Georgetown and Michigan, the Greyhounds gave up just one goal before halftime, and they then allowed only one after the break at Ohio State
• In the two games, Loyola’s opponents have made just 17.9-percent of their shots, converting on 14-of-78 attempts.
• The Greyhounds have forced 54 turnovers in the games, as Georgetown committed 20, Michigan had 18 and Ohio State, 16. Of those 54 turnovers, Loyola was credited with 34 caused turnovers.
• The 17 caused at Georgetown were the most this season by Loyola and the most by a Greyhounds’ team since they posted 19 in back-to-back games against St. John’s and Massachusetts in March 2009.
• Entering the game against Fairfield, Loyola is fifth in Division I with 10.0 caused turnovers per game. Four players – Scott Ratliff (20th, 1.0), Pat Laconi(37th, 1.6), Joe Fletcher (48th, 1.4) and Reid Acton (95th, 1.11) – are ranked among the nation’s top 100 in caused turnovers per game.

CLASSy Senior Candidate

• Earlier this week, Scott Ratliff was named one of 10 finalists for the prestigious Senior CLASS Award, an honor given yearly to a NCAA Division I senior who has notable achievements in four areas of excellence – community, classroom, character and competition
• Ratliff has continued his high production on defense, transition and offense that helped him earn USILA All-America Third Team and ECAC Defensive Player of the Year honors a year ago when he led the team last year in ground balls (88) and caused turnovers (37), was fifth in goals (12) and seventh in assists (7).
• He had one of his stat-sheet filling games against Air Force, scoring a goal and assisting on another while picking up five ground balls and causing three turnovers, and he turned in another with a goal, four ground balls and two caused turnovers while going 4-of-4 on faceoffs against Georgetown. Ratliff came one shy of his career-high with eight ground balls at Michigan.
• His career totals now stand at 23 goals and 13 assists, and his 36 career points are second-most among active long-poles to Bryant’s Mason Poli. Last year, he set the school’s single-season long-pole scoring record with 12 goals and seven assists, eclipsing the previous high of 16 points on 11 goals and five assists set in 1995 by current Loyola assistant coach Matt Dwan.
• Additionally, Ratliff now stands 10th in school Division I history in career ground balls (190) and second in caused turnovers (78). His caused turnovers are 12 shy of tying the school record set in 2008 by P.T. Ricci.

Acton Garners ECAC Award

• Reid Acton earned ECAC Co-Defensive Player of the Week honors last Monday, marking the fifth week in a row a Loyola player has won at least a share of the weekly laurel.
• Against Ohio State, Acton had primary marking responsibilities for the Buckeyes’ Logan Schuss who entered the game with a team-best 20 goals. Acton held him without a goal while covering him – Schuss’ lone goal came 55 seconds into the game when he was running with the midfield – allowing just five total shots by the reigning ECAC Offensive Player of the Year.
• Acton has now won the award three times in his career after picking up the honor twice last season.
• During the last five weeks, Jack Runkel, Scott Ratliff, Joe Fletcher (twice) and Acton have been named the week’s top defender. Also, during that stretch,Justin Ward and Zach Herreweyers were named Offensive Players of the Week.

Pontrello Keeps Tallying Points

• Nikko Pontrello notched his third hat trick of the season on Saturday at Ohio State, scoring a game-high three against the Buckeyes. He also had three-goal outings against UMBC and Air Force earlier this year.
• In his first season as a starter, Pontrello has scored 13 goals while assisting on the same number for 26 points, second most on the team. As a freshman in 2012, he scored four goals and assisted on six.
• He posted his second six-point game this season March 16 against Air Force, scoring a career-high four goals to go with two assists. He scored in the first quarter, tallied a pair during Loyola’s 4-0 third-quarter run and added his fourth in the final frame. Earlier this year against UMBC, Pontrello posted three goals and three assists for six points against the Retrievers.

Defensive Midfield Production

• Loyola’s defensive midfield had a productive game against Georgetown, finishing the outing with three goals, two assists, 11 ground balls and nine caused turnovers.
• Short-sticks Josh Hawkins, who was playing his first game of the 2013 season, and Pat Laconi each scored a goal and assisted on another, while causing three turnovers each. Hawkins had four ground balls and Laconi picked up one. Freshman short-stick Tyler Albrecht also had a ground ball in the game.
• Long-stick midfielder Scott Ratliff had Loyola’s first goal of the game, caused two turnovers and picked up four ground balls. Fellow long-stick Thomas Robinson had a ground ball after causing a turnover.
• This season, Laconi is seventh on the team with eight points, and Ratliff is tied for eighth with seven. Laconi has four goals and four assists, while Ratliff has scored six times and assisted on one goal. Hawkins’ two points were his first of the year.

Another Multi-Point Venture For Ward

• With two assists at Ohio State, Justin Ward had his 10th multi-point effort in as many games this season. He has now tallied at least two points in all 10 games this season, and he has three or more in seven those outings..
• In the Georgetown game, he became the 10th player in the program’s Division I history (since 1982) to log 50 or more assists in his career. With 54 career assists, Ward now stands 10th in school Division I history, one shy of Stephen Brundage’s 55 in ninth place.
• Ward put up his second game with seven or more points on March 16 against Air Force, logging seven with two goals and five assists in the win over the Falcons. His five assists tied his career-high, set twice in 2012 against Towson and Fairfield.
• On February 26, against UMBC, as the junior finished with seven goals and three assists for 10 points. His goal and point outputs were career-highs. He became the first player to score at least seven goals in a game since Gavin Prout tallied eight in a 19-11 win at Hobart on April 28, 2001.
• Ward’s 10-point effort was the first 10-point game for a Greyhound since Tim Goettelmann tallied the same amount in a 19-9 win on March 25, 2000, against Fairfield. In that game, Goettelmann scored four goals and had six assists. Later that season, he would score seven goals on May 16 in the NCAA First Round against Notre Dame.
• Through 10 games this year, Ward leads the team with 21 goals and 22 assists for 43 points.

Fletcher Turns Up ‘D’

• Joe Fletcher earned ECAC Defensive Player of the Week honors on March 18 after picking up three ground balls and causing a turnover against Air Force. More impressive was the defense Fletcher played on Air Force’s offensive quarterback, preseason All-American Keith Dryer.
• Dryer entered the game with four goals and a team-leading 10 assists, but Fletcher held him without a point.
• This season, Fletcher, who was a Preseason All-America First Team honoree, has 37 ground balls and 13 caused turnovers.

Offensive Addition

• Freshman Zach Herreweyers made his first career start on March 16 against Air Force on attack for the Greyhounds, and he made his debut to the opening 10 an impressive one.
• Herreweyers scored his first collegiate goal with 12.3 seconds left in the first quarter, and he finished with a hat trick, tallying goals for Loyola in the third and fourth quarters, as well. He also picked up three ground balls.
• He followed that game with a four-goal outing Wednesday at Georgetown, a hat trick at Michigan and a goal and an assist at Ohio State.
• The freshman from London, Ontario, made his collegiate debut against Duke on March 8. In five games played, he is tied for fourth on the team with 11 goals.
• Herreweyers became the first Loyola freshman to score three times in a game since current senior Patrick Fanshaw scored five goals and assisted on another on March 20, 2010, also against Air Force.

Eighth To 100

• With his goal at 9:25 in the third quarter against UMBC, Mike Sawyer became the eighth player in Loyola men’s lacrosse history to score 100 in his career, the seventh in the program’s Division I history.
• Sawyer joined a list that includes Gary Hanley (151), Pat Lamon (133), Gewas Schindler (120), Tim O’Shea (115), Kevin Beach (114), John Carroll (112) and Chris Colbeck (108).

Layne Keeps Tallying Points

• Chris Layne had his fifth multi-point game of the season against Ohio State, recorda goal and two assists. He has scored at least one point in all 10 of the Greyhounds’ games this year.
• Through 10 games this season, Layne has scored 11 goals and has eight assists.
• Last season, he had a total of five multi-point games while finishing with 11 goals and 14 assists. With his two goals against Delaware, Maryland and UMBC, Layne has more than doubled his multi-goal games during his time at Loyola to five. He also had one as a sophomore in 2010 for North Carolina.

Helmet Stickers

• Loyola players are wearing three stickers on their helmets this season to remember those who have passed away. The stickers are in memory of Adam Pomper, a member of the 2012 team who passed away on June 12, 2012, Mandy O’Sullivan, mother of current players Sean and Ryan O’Sullivan who died in March 2012 from pancreatic cancer, and the 26 victims of the Newtown, Conn., shooting in December 2012 where Loyola put on a youth lacrosse clinic in January.

Well-Represented In MLL Draft

• Five members of the Loyola men’s lacrosse team were selected in the top 26 of the January 11 Major League Lacrosse draft. The Greyhounds tied Virginia for the most draft picks in the selection process.
• Josh Hawkins and Mike Sawyer were both taken in the first round, going fifth and eighth overall to the Hamilton Nationals and Charlotte Hounds, respectively.
• Scott Ratliff was the first pick of the second round, going ninth to the Boston Cannons, and Davis Butts was taken early in the third round, 19th overall to the Denver Outlaws. Joining Hawkins in Hamilton will be Reid Acton, the team’s fourth round pick, 26th overall.
• Sawyer will be joined in Charlotte by former teammate Eric Lusby who was the top waiver pick after the NCAA season ended in early June. After missing the majority of the MLL season with an injury, the NCAA Championships Most Outstanding Player made his MLL debut on July 28 at Long Island and scored a goal. He then tallied three goals  in an August 11 win over Rochester.

Preseason Accolades

• Six Loyola players were named to the Inside Lacrosse Face-Off Yearbook Preseason All-America teams: defender Joe Fletcher and short-stick midfielderJosh Hawkins (first team); attackman Mike Sawyer and long-stick midfielder Scott Ratliff (second); midfielder Davis Butts (third); and, defender Reid Acton(honorable mention).
• All six earned All-America honors last season with Sawyer earned Second Team honors and Ratliff was named to the Third Team. Acton, Butts, Fletcher and Acton earned Honorable Mention along with graduate student Eric Lusby.
• In his first year as a starter, Fletcher was named to the NCAA and ECAC Championships All-Tournament Teams and earned a reputation as one of the top defenders in the nation. In 19 games as a sophomore, Fletcher caused 26 turnovers, second most on the team, and had 41 ground balls.
• Hawkins has continued to be one of the top defensive midfielders in the nation and garnered considerable respect nationally for his play during the NCAA Championships. He earned NCAA All-Tournament honors and helped the Greyhounds limit Notre Dame and Maryland to a combined eight goals on Championships weekend. In addition to his six goals and two assists in 15 games last year, Hawkins was second on the team with 63 ground balls.
• Sawyer was a finalist for the Tewaaraton Award as the nation’s top player last season when he scored 52 goals and assisted on 10 more and was named the team’s Offensive Most Valuable Player. During the regular-season, he led the ECAC in goals and goals per game while earning All-ECAC First Team honors. He became the second player to score 50 or more goals in a season and was joined by a third on last year’s team.
• Ratliff continued to be one of the top long-stick midfielders in the nation and set a Loyola scoring record for the position last year. He finished with 12 goals and seven assists, exceeding current Loyola Assistant Coach Matt Dwan’s previous record for a long-stick midfielder set in 1995. In addition to his scoring, he tallied 88 ground balls and 37 caused turnovers while earning ECAC Defensive Player of the Year, ECAC Championships Most Valuable Player, NCAA All-Tournament Team and team co-defenisve player of the year honors.
• Butts was a first-line midfielder for the Greyhounds for the second year in a row. He excelled as a dodger and finisher and ranked fourth on the team in points (35) and third in goals scored (21). A versatile player, Butts also saw plenty of action on the wings of faceoffs and in the defensive midfield where he picked up 40 ground balls.
• Acton will enter 2013 having started on the Greyhounds’ defense each of the last three years. He finished the 2012 season with 44 ground balls and 20 caused turnovers, while helping Loyola record a 7.21 goals allowed per game average, the fifth-best mark in Division I. The Greyhounds set a pair of defensive records during Championship Weekend, holding Notre Dame and Maryland to a combined eight goals in the two games and allowing the Terrapins just three in the title match.

Toomey Receives Morris Touchstone Award

• Loyola Head Coach Charley Toomey was named the ECAC Coach of the Year for the third time in his seven-year career, and in December, he received the coaches association’s Morris Touchstone Award as the national coach of the year.
• The Greyhounds became the second team in USILA Coaches Poll history to start a season unranked and ascend to the No. 1 spot in the rankings. The only other team was Duke in 2007 – a year after the Blue Devils had their season suspended in March – which accomplished the feat after being unranked in the first poll, moving to second in the next version and first in the third. Duke was knocked from its perch as No. 1 that season when it lost to the Greyhounds at the First Four in San Diego.
• The win over Georgetown this was the 70th victory of his coaching career, becoming the second coach in Loyola history to win 70 or more, joining – Dave Cottle (181-70, 1983-2001).

Big Runs

• Last season, runs of three-plus goals were critical in the Greyhounds success, as they had runs of 3-0 or better in all 19 games. In all, Loyola scored three or more in a row on 37 occasions last year.
• The Greyhounds have opened the 2013 season in similar fashion as they scored three-straight in the second quarter to take a 4-2 lead against Delaware after trailing, 2-1. They then had two runs of 3-0 or better at Towson.
• Against UMBC, Loyola had a 3-0 first-half run before putting together a 10-0 stretch in the third and fourth quarters. The Greyhounds then had a 4-0 run that spanned both halves to help beat Bellarmine, and they runs of 3-0 and 4-0 to beat Air Force.
• In the Georgetown game, Loyola had its longest run of the year, scoring eight straight.
• At Ohio State, the Greyhounds went on a 6-0 run that spanned the final three quarters to take control of the game.

Second-Half Success

• Last season, the Greyhounds outscored opponents 66-22 in the third quarters of games, and 123-63 overall in the second half (including overtime). The second-half scoring continued a trend from 2011 when Loyola outscored opponents, 69-52, after halftime (including two overtime goals), and 77-56.
• This year, Loyola is outscoring opponents 39-18 in the third quarter and 60-42 overall after halftime.

Acton Earns ECAC Weekly Defensive Honor

CENTERVILLE, Mass. – Loyola University Maryland senior defender Reid Acton was named the ECAC Co-Defensive Player of the Week on Monday after helping the Greyhounds’ defense hold Ohio State University just four goals and 23 shots in a 9-4 conference win on Saturday afternoon in Columbus.

Acton, who shared this week’s award with the U.S. Air Force Academy’s Kyle O’Brien, took on primary marking responsibilities for the Buckeyes’ Logan Schuss, Ohio State’s leading scorer with 20 goals entering Saturday’s contest.

The Loyola co-captain held Schuss without a goal during the time that he was covering him; the reigning ECAC Offensive Player of the Year’s only goal came 55 seconds into the contest when he pushed up to the midfield and scored against a Loyola defensive midfielder.

Acton held Schuss to only five shots, just two that were on goal. Additionally, Acton was part of a Loyola defense that had a 29-20 advantage in credited ground balls, and he helped force 16 Ohio State turnovers, three by Schuss.

Over the past two games, Acton and the Greyhounds have allowed just seven total goals by opponents.

The award is the third of Acton’s career after he earned Defensive Player of the Week honors three times last season. It is also the fifth-straight week a Loyola player has won the award this season.

Loyola (8-2 overall, 4-0 ECAC) returns to Ridley Athletic Complex for its next game, a 2:30 p.m. contest against Fairfield University.

Defense Yields Just Four Goals In Men’s Lacrosse Win At Ohio State

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Loyola University Maryland’s defense allowed just 23 Ohio State University shots, and the Greyhounds shutout the Buckeyes for a stretch of nearly 33 minutes during a 9-4 ECAC Lacrosse League victory on Saturday afternoon at Jesse Owens Memorial Field.

Jack Runkel made nine saves in goal for the Greyhounds (8-2 overall, 4-0 ECAC), while Loyola forced 16 Ohio State (6-3, 1-2) turnovers.

The Greyhounds also held Ohio State without an extra-man goal despite five opportunities in the game. Entering the contest, the Buckeyes was tops in the ECAC and fifth in NCAA Division I with a 53.8-percent success rate on man-up chances.

David Planning rolled off a check and scored on a shot at the top right for Ohio State with 3:03 left in the first half, tying the score at 3-3, but that was the last goal the Buckeyes would score until just nine seconds remained in the game.

The Loyola defense held Ohio State without a goal for 32:54 between scores. Meanwhile, the Greyhounds’ offense and transition game reeled off six unanswered goals.

Chris Layne put Loyola on top with 1:54 to go before halftime with his first goal a goal off a Justin Ward assist. Ward used a quick restart from behind the cage after a wide Loyola shot and found Layne running down the right side after checking in from the box. Layne one-timed a shot past Ohio State goalkeeper Greg Dutton who had 14 saves in the loss.

Just 70 seconds later, Layne shot a pass to Zach Herreweyers below goal-line extended on the right, and Herreweyers rolled to the crease, using a low-to-low shot to score.

Nikko Pontrello, who had a game-high three goals, made it three goals for Loyola in just 1:41 of action with a goal after a toe-drag move. Davis Butts reversed the ball from the top of the box to Layne who then got the ball to Pontrello who used the toe-drag to beat his defender and score 13 seconds before halftime, staking the Greyhounds to a 6-3 halftime advantage.

Pontrello scored his second-straight with 8:31 on the third-quarter clock, scoring from close on the right side after a feed by Herreweyers.

A Runkel save and ground ball pickup led to the Greyhounds’ eighth goal just before the end of the third period. Loyola cleared the ball to its offensive end, and when it looked like it would allow time to run out in the quarter, Layne sent a 20-yard pass from the high right side to Scott Ratliff on the left side of the crease.

Ratliff used a multiple shot-fake and beat Dutton with four seconds left in the quarter, pushing the advantage to 8-3 for the Greyhounds.

Ohio State committed a faceoff violation on the opening faceoff of the fourth quarter, and Josh Hawkins took a Ratliff pass and raced down the right side, scoring with an overhand shot form five yards out 13 seconds into the final period.

From there, the Greyhounds’ defense took the leading role, as they gave up just four shots in the final 15 minutes, and Ohio State committed four turnovers during the same span.

Nick Liddil scored the game’s final goal, off a Planning assist, with nine ticks left on the clock, snapping the 32:54 scoreless streak.

Joe Fletcher led Loyola’s defense with five ground balls, while Runkel had three in addition to his nine saves.

Brendan Donovan went 6-of-8 on faceoffs for Loyola, picking up three ground balls. Pat Laconi caused two of the six turnovers Loyola was credited with.

Ohio State’s Logan Schuss, who entered the game leading the Buckeyes with 20 goals, scored the game’s first just 55 seconds after the opening faceoff.

Loyola responded with its first at 10:27 when Sean O’Sullivan flipped a pass to Butts who whipped a 10-yard sidearm shot for a goal.

Pontrello then gave Loyola its first lead at 4:36, ripping a 12-yard shot from the top right after a long feed from Ward near the crease.

Ohio State tied the game 1:21 into the second quarter when Jesse King dodged from the top and fed a pass inside for a goal by Carter Brown with a 30-second warning in play.

Mike Sawyer gave Loyola the lead back at 6:11 after Ward threw a skip pass to the right side out of a double-team.

Loyola outshot Ohio State, 41-23, in the game while picking up 29 ground balls to the Buckeyes’ 20.

The Greyhounds return to Ridley Athletic Complex for the first time since early March for an ECAC game on Saturday, April 6, against Fairfield University. The game against Fairfield starts at 2:30 p.m. following the Loyola women’s game against Georgetown University that commences at 12 noon.

BENIMON NAMED ECAC DIVISION I ALL-STAR
Junior Forward Averaged 17.1 Points and 11.2 Rebounds

CENTERVILLE, Mass. – Towson Junior forward Jerrelle Benimon has been selected to the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division I Men’s Basketball All-Star team, announced by ECAC Interim Commissioner Steve Bamford.

Benimon, the 2013 CAA Player of the Year, recorded double-doubles in 20 of the Tigers’ 31 contests, which is currently tied for the second most in Division I. He was the league’s fourth-leading scorer with 17.1 points per game and reached double figures in 27 of 31 outings.

The junior forward led the CAA and ranked third in the nation with 11.2 rebounds per game and his 346 rebounds set a Towson single-season record and were the sixth-most in a season in CAA history. Showing his all-around game, Benimon was also third in the conference in blocked shots (1.9 bpg) and fourth in field goal percentage (53.3 percent) and his 79 assists were the most of any Towson player.

Junior forward Otto Porter from Georgetown and Boston College freshman guard Olivier Hanlan were named ECAC Player of the Year and ECAC Rookie of the Year, respectively.

The teams were selected based on a vote of Division I coaches.

Player of the Year   
Otto Porter, Georgetown University

Rookie of the Year
Olivier Hanlan, Boston College

First Team
Khalif Wyatt, Temple University
Shabazz Napier, University of Connecticut
Lamont Jones, Iona College
Mason Plumlee, Duke University
Otto Porter, Georgetown University
Mike Muscala, Bucknell University

Second Team  
Ramon Galloway, LaSalle University
Joe Harris, University of Virginia
Jerrelle Benimon, Towson University
Jamal Olaswere, LIU Brooklyn

Steady Performance For Men’s Lacrosse In Win At Michigan

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Loyola University Maryland’s defense forced 18 University of Michigan turnovers, causing 11, and yielded just three goals on 26 shots, as the Greyhounds defeated the host Wolverines, 10-3, on Saturday afternoon in ECAC Lacrosse League action at Michigan Stadium.

Loyola’s attack of Zach Herreweyers, Mike Sawyer and Justin Ward combined for eight of the goals. Herreweyers and Sawyer each had hat tricks, and Ward scored a pair for the Greyhounds who never trailed in the game.

On the defensive end, Jack Runkel and Jimmy Joe Granito split halves in goal, combining for seven saves; Runkel stopped four and allowed one goal in the first half, and Granito tallied three.

The close defense of Joe Fletcher (three), Pat Frazier and T.J. Harris (two each) had a combined seven caused turnovers, and short-stick midfielder Josh Hawkins recorded two. Fletcher also had four ground balls, while Harris and Hawkins finished with three ach.

Loyola (7-2 overall, 3-0 ECAC) won 11-of-17 faceoffs with Blake Burkhart winning 9-of-15 and Brendan Donovan successful on both of his attempts. Scott Ratliff led all players with eight ground balls in the game, as Loyola had a 31-17 advantage off the ground.

Sawyer put the Greyhounds on the board after the teams played to a scoreless tie for the first 9:35 of the game. Davis Butts dodged to the middle and found Sawyer for a low-to-low shot from six yards out on the left side.

Hawkins then dug out the ground ball on the ensuing faceoff, got free down the middle and shot a hard overhand rip from nine yards to make it 2-0 Greyhounds.

Will Meter got a goal back for Michigan, getting topside from X on the left side for a fadeaway shot at 4:58, but Phil Dobson dodged from the right side and stepped to the middle for a goal at 3:33.

Ward scored unassisted 3:34 into the second quarter when he rolled topside on the left and got to the front of the crease. Minutes later, Nikko Pontrello fed a cross-field pass to Sawyer who dodged his defender for a six-yard shot at 9:01 to put the Greyhounds up 5-1 going into halftime.

Michigan (0-9, 0-3) pulled back within three 1:09 into the second half when Thomas Parras came off a check and send a strong sidearm shot into the goal to cut Loyola’s lead to 5-2.

The Greyhounds used some swift passing, however, to push its lead quickly back to four. Ratliff picked up a ground ball and cleared the ball for the Greyhounds. He found himself in trouble and got a pass to Ward who was then doubled near midfield. Ward flipped a long lob pass back to Ratliff who found Herreweyers alone on the right side of the crease for his first goal of the game at 12:39 in the third quarter.

Loyola took possession back on the next faceoff, and 38 seconds after his first goal of the game, Herreweyers scored again, this time rolling from X and sticking a fadeaway shot from the right side into the next.

The Greyhounds pushed their advantage to 8-2 minutes later when, with a 30-second warning in place, Kevin Ryan dodged from behind the cage and sent a pass to Sawyer who buried a sidearm shot from 13 yards out at 8:06.

Just over a minute later, Loyola caused a turnover on a Michigan clear, and Ward came into the box, beat a defender and scored after a shot fake from inside three yards.

Before the end of the third quarter, Peter Kraus scored for Michigan to bring the score to 9-3, but Loyola shut the Wolverines out in the final quarter, and Herreweyers scored, again with a 30-second warning on, off a Pontrello assist from behind.

The Greyhounds take a week off before returning to ECAC action on Saturday, March 30, at The Ohio State University.

Ward, Fletcher Earn ECAC Weekly Honors

CENTERVILLE, Mass. – A pair of Loyola University Maryland juniors – attacker Justin Ward (co-offensive) and defender Joe Fletcher (defensive) – earned weekly honors from the ECAC Lacrosse League on Monday following the Greyhounds’ 13-7 victory over the United States Air Force Academy in the Whitman’s Sampler Mile High Classic on Saturday.

Ward, who was named the Mile High Classic game Most Valuable Player, tallied his second game with seven or more points this season, scoring two goals and matching his career-high with five assists, contributing to more than half of the Greyhounds’ goals. Three of his five assists were to players within two yards of the crease, giving his teammates one-on-one opportunities with the goalkeeper. He scored the Greyhounds’ third goal of the game, wrapping up a 3-0 run that put Loyola on top, 3-1, with 3:47 to play in the first quarter.

Ward also had two assists during a 4-0 third-quarter run that pushed Loyola’s lead to six. He also caused a turnover and picked up two ground balls. Ward continues to lead the team in scoring this season with 18 goals and 16 assists for 34 points in seven games.

Fletcher had an outstanding performance on close defense when he took the assignment of covering Air Force’s offensive quarterback, Preseason All-American Keith Dryer, and he held the attacker without a point. Dryer had four goals and a team-leading 10 assists entering the game.

Fletcher, a Preseason First Team All-American had three ground balls and a caused turnover in the game, and he did the little things that did not show up in the box score. He twice outraced Air Force players after a Falcons’ shot that went out of bounds, garnering possession for the Greyhounds.

The weekly awards are the third and fourth of the season for Loyola players and the first of both Ward and Fletcher’s careers. Goalkeeper Jack Runkel and long-stick midfielder Scott Ratliff earned Defensive Player of the Week honors each of the two preceding weeks.

Ward, Fletcher and the Greyhounds return to the field on Wednesday, March 20, for their final midweek game of the 2013 regular-season when they play at Georgetown University in a 7 p.m. contest.

Game Data

Loyola University Maryland returns to ECAC Lacrosse League action on Saturday, March 16, 2013, when it participates in the Whitman’s Sampler Mile High Classic, an Inside Lacrosse Experience.

The Greyhounds will play the Air Force Academy at Sports Authority at Mile High, home of the National Football League’s Denver Broncos. Faceoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. Mountain time, 4 p.m. Eastern.

Notre Dame and Denver follow the Greyhounds and Falcons with the Classic’s second game, starting at 4:30 p.m. Mountain.

Follow The Action

Fans can watch the game live on ESPN3, the broadband arm of ESPN. Mark Dixon will call the play-by-play, and Jamie Munro will provide the analysis.

Series History

Loyola and Air Force will meet for the eighth time in series history when the teams take the field Saturday, the fourth time in ECAC Lacrosse League action.

The Greyhounds hold a 6-1 advantage in the all-time series with the Falcons after winning the March 17, 2012, contest, 15-8.

Air Force reeled off four-straight second-quarter goals in last year’s game to take a 7-4 lead on Ryland De Pol’s goal with 2:42 to go before halftime. J.P. Dalton, who won 18-of-26 faceoffs in the game, scored off a Scott Ratliff assist 16 seconds into the second half to ignite a 10-0 Loyola run that would put the Greyhounds in control of the game.

Mike Sawyer scored three goals in last year’s game, while Davis Butts had a career-best four assists. Ratliff tallied two goals and an assist while picking up seven ground balls, and Sean O’Sullivan and Chris Layne each scored twice.

Since Air Force joined the ECAC in 2009, Loyola is 2-1 against the Falcons with the lone loss coming on May 19, 2011, when Air Force took an 8-6 decision in Colorado Springs.

In The Polls

Loyola sits at No. 8 in the USILA Coaches and 10th in the Nike/Inside Lacrosse Media polls.

Inside Lacrosse Events

Saturday’s game will be the second Inside Lacrosse-run event that the Greyhounds have competed in.

Loyola lost, 11-9, to Notre Dame, another participating in this year’s Mile High Classic, on March 6, 2010, in the Konica-Minolta Face-Off Classic at Baltimore’s M&T Bank Stadium.

It will also be Loyola’s second game at what is now Sports Authority Field at Mile High. The Greyhounds played Denver in a regular-season game on May 2, 2010, and lost, 12-4, to the Pioneers.

Last Time Out

Duke scored five goals in the fourth quarter to overcome a deficit to start the period, and the host Blue Devils held off Loyola for a 9-8 non-conference victory in Durham, N.C., last Friday night.

Phil Dobson broke a 4-4 tie with his first goal of the season with 7:28 to go in the third quarter, and the Greyhounds carried the 5-4 lead into the final 15 minutes.

Duke’s Case Matheis took a Jordan Wolf feed from behind and scored with 13:59 left in regulation after Wolf picked up a ground ball when a Duke shot went wide of the cage and directly to him.

Josh Offit then put the Blue Devils in front for the first time since the second quarter with a goal 1:33 later. Sean O’Sullivan tied the game for Loyola with an extra-man goal at 10:36, but Duke tallied the next two goals to go up 8-6.

Justin Ward led the Greyhounds offensively, scoring twice and adding an assist.

Scott Ratliff scored a goal in transition and had game-highs of seven ground balls and four caused turnovers. Joe Fletcher picked up five ground balls, and Pat Laconi scored once, had a pair of ground balls and a caused turnover.

Ratliff Earns ECAC Award

Scott Ratliff was named the ECAC Defensive Player of the Week on Monday, March 11, after scoring a goal, causing four turnovers and picking up seven ground balls against Duke last week.

It was the second time in as many weeks that a Loyola player has earned the league’s Defensive Player of the Week honors after Jack Runkel won the award on March 4 following a week with 18 saves in two games.

Ratliff has now won an ECAC weekly award five times in his career after picking up three last season and one the year before.

Davis Off The Ground

Davis Butts is second on the team this season with 25 ground balls and has picked up five in four of the Greyhounds’ five contests: Delaware, Maryland, UMBC and Bellarmine. He also had two in the game at Towson.

Through five games this season, he is already more than halfway to his total of 40 a year ago. He has also scored at least one point in all but one game this year and has three goals and five assists.

Ward’s Big Night

The foul weather did not slow Justin Ward on Tuesday against UMBC, as the junior finished with seven goals and three assists for 10 points. His goal and point outputs were career-highs.

He became the first player to score at least seven goals in a game since Gavin Prout tallied eight in a 19-11 win at Hobart on April 28, 2001.

Ward’s 10-point effort was the first 10-point game for a Greyhound since Tim Goettelmann tallied the same amount in a 19-9 win on March 25, 2000, against Fairfield. In that game, Goettelmann scored four goals and had six assists. Later that season, he would score seven goals on May 16 in the NCAA First Round against Notre Dame.

His seven goals are tied with Ohio State’s Logan Schuss and Army’s Garrett Thul for the most in a game this season, and his 10 points tie Schuss for game-high honors, as well.

He then chipped in two goals and an assists on Saturday versus Bellarmine.

With 43 career assists, Ward is now tied for 18th in Loyola’s Division I history with Gunnar Goettelmann who registered the same total in 1999-2001 and 2003.

Through six games this year, Ward leads the team with 16 goals and 11 assists for 27 points.

Pontrello Puts Up Points, Too

Somewhat lost in Justin Ward’s 10-point night against UMBC were the career-high numbers put up by fellow attacker Nikko Pontrello. The sophomore finished with career-bests in goals (3), assists (3) and points (6).

It was his first career multi-goal game, and his assists exceeded his previous best of two.

Pontrello now has three multi-point games this season after scoring a goal and assisting on two at Towson on February 20 and tallying one of each against Bellarmine. In four games, he has six goals, and his eight assists are second-most on the team.

Back-To-Back Hat Tricks

Mike Sawyer recorded his second hat trick in as many games last week when he tallied three over a six-minute stretch of action against Bellarmine. He also finished with three goals against UMBC earlier in the week.

Sawyer scored with 1:46 to play in the first half and then twice within 20 seconds in the third quarter, his third goal of the day putting Loyola in front, 7-2, with 11:17 left in the stanza.

He now has 20 hat tricks in his career, one of only four players currently active to reach that plateau. Colgate’s Peter Baum leads the nation with 29, while Army’s Garrett Thul has 26. Saywer is tied with Cornell’s Steve Mock with 20 each.

Eighth To 100

With his goal at 9:25 in the third quarter against UMBC, Mike Sawyer became the eighth player in Loyola men’s lacrosse history to score 100 in his career, the seventh in the program’s Division I history.

Sawyer joined a list that includes Gary Hanley (151), Pat Lamon (133), Gewas Schindler (120), Tim O’Shea (115), Kevin Beach (114), John Carroll (112) and Chris Colbeck (108).

Layne Keeps Tallying Points

Chris Layne had his fourth multi-point game in as many contests this season, recording two goals and an assist for the Greyhounds against UMBC after tallying the same amount three days prior against Maryland.

Through six games this year, Layne has scored nine goals and has five assists.

Last season, he had a total of five multi-point games while finishing with 11 goals and 14 assists. With his two goals against Delaware, Maryland and UMBC, Layne has more than doubled his multi-goal games during his time at Loyola to five. He also had one as a sophomore in 2010 for North Carolina.

At Delaware in the season-opener, Layne tallied the first and last goals of the game for the Greyhounds, the initial coming at 12:17 in the first quarter, and the second with 4.4 seconds left in the fourth. He also assisted on a Scott Ratliff transition goal just over five minutes into the third quarter.

Spreading The Scoring

Nine Loyola players scored goals at Towson with seven recording two or more points, and nine was also the number of scorers versus Maryland and UMBC, and seven had two or more points against the Retrievers. Against Towson, Mike Sawyer and Justin Ward led the way with four points, Chris Layne and Kevin Ryan tallied three, while Nikko Pontrello, Sean O’Sullivan and Brian Schultz each recorded two.

Last season, Loyola had just two games with seven players scoring two or more points (Michigan, Air Force).

Two At The ‘X’

Loyola has had two primary faceoff men in their six games this season. Brendan Donovan started the season at Delaware, and he then took all but two of the 33 restarts against UMBC. He won 19-of-31 against the Retrievers where his 19 wins were the most by a Loyola player since Dan Kallaugher went 27-of-33 in the NCAA First Round at Albany on May 13, 2007. He also went 7-of-14 versus Bellarmine

In the Greyhounds’ other three games, Blake Burkhart took the majority of the restarts, winning 17-of-28, a career-high, at Towson, and 14-of-25 against Maryland. Burkhart then all 21 face-offs at Duke, winning 12.

Acton Active On Defense

Reid Acton tied his career-high on against Delaware with five caused turnovers to lead all players. He also picked up five ground balls, one shy of Scott Ratliff’s team-best six. He was part of a unit that held Delaware’s starting attack to just three goals in the game. Acton also caused five turnovers last season against Ohio State.

Acton has logged at least two ground balls in all but one game (at Towson) this year.

A Lot Of Everything

The adage that a player does a little bit of everything does not necessarily apply to long-stick midfielder Scott Ratliff. The Loyola senior does a lot, as he led the team last year in ground balls (88) and caused turnovers (37), was fifth in goals (12) and seventh in assists (7). His 37 caused turnovers were second-most in Loyola history – behind P.T. Ricci’s 51 in 2009 – since the stats became official that year.

Ratliff, who was also an USILA All-America Third Team member, an All-ECAC First Team honoree and ECAC Defensive Player of the Year.

He has scored a goal in three of the Greyhounds’ five games this year, at Delaware and versus Maryland and UMBC to bring his career totals to 20 goals and 10 assists. He is currently second among active long-poles in scoring behind Bryant’s Mason Poli who has 35 goals and 11 assists.

With his game-opening goal against Canisius in the NCAA First Round, he set the Loyola single-season record for long-pole scoring, surpassing the record of 16 points set by current assistant coach Matt Dwan his senior season in 1995 when he tallied 11 goals and five assists and earned All-America honors.

Helmet Stickers

Loyola players are wearing three stickers on their helmets this season to remember those who have passed away. The stickers are in memory of Adam Pomper, a member of the 2012 team who passed away on June 12, 2012, Mandy O’Sullivan, mother of current players Sean and Ryan O’Sullivan who died in March 2012 from pancreatic cancer, and the 26 victims of the Newtown, Conn., shooting in December 2012 where Loyola put on a youth lacrosse clinic in January.

Well-Represented In MLL Draft

Five members of the Loyola men’s lacrosse team were selected in the top 26 of the January 11 Major League Lacrosse draft. The Greyhounds tied Virginia for the most draft picks in the selection process.

Josh Hawkins and Mike Sawyer were both taken in the first round, going fifth and eighth overall to the Hamilton Nationals and Charlotte Hounds, respectively.

Scott Ratliff was the first pick of the second round, going ninth to the Boston Cannons, and Davis Butts was taken early in the third round, 19th overall to the Denver Outlaws.

Joining Hawkins in Hamilton will be Reid Acton, the team’s fourth round pick, 26th overall.

Sawyer will be joined in Charlotte by former teammate Eric Lusby who was the top waiver pick after the NCAA season ended in early June. After missing the majority of the MLL season with an injury, the NCAA Championships Most Outstanding Player made his MLL debut on July 28 at Long Island and scored a goal. He then tallied three goals  in an August 11 win over Rochester.

Newtown Youth Clinic

Fourteen members of the Loyola men’s lacrosse team took time from their holiday vacation to travel to Newtown, Conn., for a clinic with the Newtown Lacrosse Association.

Led by freshman Jason Crane, the Greyhounds worked with more than 100 elementary and junior-high school-age players, many of whom attended Sandy Hook Elementary School where the shooting that killed 26 took place in December.

Preseason Accolades

Six Loyola players were named to the Inside Lacrosse Face-Off Yearbook Preseason All-America teams: defender Joe Fletcher and short-stick midfielder Josh Hawkins (first team); attackman Mike Sawyer and long-stick midfielder Scott Ratliff (second); midfielder Davis Butts (third); and, defender Reid Acton (honorable mention).

All six earned All-America honors last season with Sawyer earned Second Team honors and Ratliff was named to the Third Team. Acton, Butts, Fletcher and Acton earned Honorable Mention along with graduate student Eric Lusby.

In his first year as a starter, Fletcher was named to the NCAA and ECAC Championships All-Tournament Teams and earned a reputation as one of the top defenders in the nation. In 19 games as a sophomore, Fletcher caused 26 turnovers, second most on the team, and had 41 ground balls.

Hawkins has continued to be one of the top defensive midfielders in the nation and garnered considerable respect nationally for his play during the NCAA Championships. He earned NCAA All-Tournament honors and helped the Greyhounds limit Notre Dame and Maryland to a combined eight goals on Championships weekend. In addition to his six goals and two assists in 15 games last year, Hawkins was second on the team with 63 ground balls.

Sawyer was a finalist for the Tewaaraton Award as the nation’s top player last season when he scored 52 goals and assisted on 10 more and was named the team’s Offensive Most Valuable Player. During the regular-season, he led the ECAC in goals and goals per game while earning All-ECAC First Team honors. He became the second player to score 50 or more goals in a season and was joined by a third on last year’s team.

Ratliff continued to be one of the top long-stick midfielders in the nation and set a Loyola scoring record for the position last year. He finished with 12 goals and seven assists, exceeding current Loyola Assistant Coach Matt Dwan’s previous record for a long-stick midfielder set in 1995. In addition to his scoring, he tallied 88 ground balls and 37 caused turnovers while earning ECAC Defensive Player of the Year, ECAC Championships Most Valuable Player, NCAA All-Tournament Team and team co-defenisve player of the year honors.

Butts was a first-line midfielder for the Greyhounds for the second year in a row. He excelled as a dodger and finisher and ranked fourth on the team in points (35) and third in goals scored (21). A versatile player, Butts also saw plenty of action on the wings of faceoffs and in the defensive midfield where he picked up 40 ground balls.

Acton will enter 2013 having started on the Greyhounds’ defense each of the last three years. He finished the 2012 season with 44 ground balls and 20 caused turnovers, while helping Loyola record a 7.21 goals allowed per game average, the fifth-best mark in Division I. The Greyhounds set a pair of defensive records during Championship Weekend, holding Notre Dame and Maryland to a combined eight goals in the two games and allowing the Terrapins just three in the title match.

Toomey Receives Morris Touchstone Award

Loyola Head Coach Charley Toomey was named the ECAC Coach of the Year for the third time in his seven-year career, and in December, he received the coaches association’s Morris Touchstone Award as the national coach of the year.

The Greyhounds became the second team in USILA Coaches Poll history to start a season unranked and ascend to the No. 1 spot in the rankings. The only other team was Duke in 2007 – a year after the Blue Devils had their season suspended in March – which accomplished the feat after being unranked in the first poll, moving to second in the next version and first in the third. Duke was knocked from its perch as No. 1 that season when it lost to the Greyhounds at the First Four in San Diego.

The win over Canisius in the First Round was the 60th victory of his coaching career, becoming the fourth coach in Loyola history to win 60 or more – Dave Cottle (181-70, 1983-2001), Charles Wenzel (62-104, 1954-1970), Jay Connor (61-46, 1975-1982).  Toomey’s .640 winning percentage trails only Cottle’s .721 at Loyola.

Big Runs

Last season, runs of three-plus goals were critical in the Greyhounds success, as they had runs of 3-0 or better in all 19 games. In all, Loyola scored three or more in a row on 37 occasions last year.

The Greyhounds have opened the 2013 season in similar fashion as they scored three-straight in the second quarter to take a 4-2 lead against Delaware after trailing, 2-1. They then had two runs of 3-0 or better at Towson.

Against UMBC, Loyola had a 3-0 first-half run before putting together a 10-0 stretch in the third and fourth quarters. The Greyhounds then had a 4-0 run that spanned both halves to help beat Bellarmine

The game against Maryland marked the first time since May 5, 2011, against Fairfield that the Greyhounds did not put up a run of 3-0 or better.

Second-Half Success

The Greyhounds outscored opponents 66-22 in the third quarters of games, and 123-63 overall in the second half (including overtime), last season. The second-half scoring continued a trend from 2011 when Loyola outscored opponents, 69-52, after halftime (including two overtime goals), and 77-56.

This year, Loyola is outscoring opponents 23-10 in the third quarter and 38-28 overall after halftime.

Ratliff Picks Up ECAC Weekly Honor

CENTERVILLE, Mass. – Loyola University Maryland senior long-stick midfielder Scott Ratliff was named the ECAC Lacrosse League Defensive Player of the Week on Monday marking the second week in a row a Greyhounds’ player has claimed the honor.

Ratliff was the leader of the Greyhounds’ defensive and possession teams on Friday night against Duke. He scored Loyola’s first goal of the game in the first quarter after causing a turnover, picking up the ground ball and clearing it himself into the offensive end before firing a shot for a goal.

Ratliff finished the game with a game-high seven ground balls, helping Loyola to a 35-25 advantage in the category, and he also led all players with four caused turnovers.

Last week, Loyola goalkeeper Jack Runkel earned ECAC Defensive Player of the Week honors. This week’s award is the fifth of Ratliff’s career. He won a Defensive Player of the Week award in each of the last two seasons and two Specialist of the Week honors last year.