NEC Offensive Player of the Week
Peter McMahon, Bryant
5-10, 180lbs
Jr., A, Wilton, CT/Wilton
Bryant scored a season-high 17 goals in its win over Mount St. Mary’s, and junior Peter McMahon had a hand in nearly half of them, scoring twice and setting up six more to earn this week’s NEC Offensive Player of the Week award. In downing the defending league champion Mountaineers, 17-9, the Wilton, CT product did half of his damage in the first half with both goals and two of his career-high six helpers. After the break, McMahon found teammate Alex Zomerfield for the game-winning score just two minutes into the third before finishing the day with three more assists that helped the Bulldogs achieve their largest margin of victory of the season. The team’s leader in both assists and points, McMahon currently ranks second in assists per game (1.64) and in a tie for third in points per game (3.00) in the league.
NEC Defensive Player of the Week
Jameson Love, Bryant
5-8, 175lbs
Sr., GK, Darien, CT/Darien
No. 19 Bryant’s Jameson Love stretched his winning streak to eight games thanks to a pair of wins last week that earned him the title of NEC Defensive Player of the Week. Love, a native of Darien, CT, combined for 22 saves, six ground balls and three caused turnovers in victories over Brown, 10-9, on Tuesday and Mount St. Mary’s, 17-9, on Saturday. Against the Bears, Love posted 14 stops to help the Bulldogs capture their second straight Ocean State Cup. He then turned aside eight shots in the win over the Mountaineers. Love currently boasts league-leading figures in wins (9), saves per game (12.73), save percentage (.609) and goals against average (8.06).
NEC Rookie of the Week
Kevin Massa, Bryant
6-0, 185lbs
Fr., M, Huntington, NY/Elwood John Glenn
Freshman Kevin Massa is not showing any signs of slowing down, as the rookie faceoff specialist won nearly 70 percent of his attempts taken last week to help the Bulldogs go 2-0 and win his sixth NEC Rookie of the Week honor. For the week he went 36-for-52 and gathered 20 ground balls to go along with two points. In a 10-9 win over Brown on Tuesday, Massa won 17 of his 22 attempts taken and strung together 16 straight wins as the Bulldogs captured the Ocean State Title for the second year in a row. He then went 19-for-30 in a 17-9 win over Mount St. Mary’s on Saturday. Massa currently leads the league in faceoff wins (158), faceoff winning percentage (.642) and ground balls per game (8.36).
TEAM-BY-TEAM NOTES
#19/19 Bryant (9-2, 2-0 NEC)
Last Week’s Opponents: Apr. 3 at Brown W, 10-9; Apr. 7 vs. Mount St. Mary’s W, 17-9
This Week’s Opponents: Apr. 10 at Holy Cross; Apr. 14 at Quinnipiac
• The 19th-ranked Bulldogs saw the program’s first Division I national ranking last week and proved they deserved the honor with victories over a pair of rivals on a 2-0 week, extending their current winning streak to eight straight with wins over intrastate foe Brown, 10-9, and conference rival Mount St. Mary’s, 17-9. The Bulldogs won the 2012 Ocean State Cup title with Tuesday night’s victory after also topping Providence College last week, capturing the title for the second-straight season.
• Junior captain Peter McMahon (Wilton, CT/Wilton) saw his 40-game consecutive points scored streak, third-longest among active players, snapped Tuesday against the Bears, but responded in a big way Saturday against the Mountaineers, recording a career-high eight points off two goals and a career-best six assists to end up leading the team on the week.
Mount St. Mary's (3-6, 0-2 NEC)
Last Week’s Opponent: Apr. 7 at #19 Bryant L, 17-9
This Week’s Opponent: Apr. 14 at Robert Morris
• The Mount fell at No. 19 Bryant, 17-9, on Saturday to fall to 0-2 on the season. The Mount is now 1-3 this season against ranked opponents.
• Christian Kellett (Audubon, PA/Malvern Prep) paced the Mountaineers with three goals while Andrew Scalley (Arnold, MD/Archbishop Spaulding) and Bryant Schmidt (Great Mills, MD/St. Mary’s Ryken) each had two goals and an assist.
• Brett Schmidt (Great Mills, MD/St. Mary’s Ryken) had a goal and two assists in the loss, stretching his consecutive games with a goal streak to 22.
• After winning its first four NEC regular season contests, the Mount has lost three in a row. The Mount fell to Bryant, 9-8, in double overtime in the regular season finale last year and is 0-2 this season with losses to Quinnipiac and Bryant.
Quinnipiac (3-6, 2-0 NEC)
Last Week’s Opponent: Apr. 7 vs. Wagner W, 15-5
This Week’s Opponents: Apr. 10 at Harvard; Apr. 14 vs. #19 Bryant
• Nine different Bobcats appeared in the scoring column on Saturday afternoon, as the Bobcats cruised past Wagner, 15-5, in Northeast Conference action at the QU Lacrosse Turf Field. Sophomore Dylan Webster (Brampton, Ontario/ St. Edmund Campion S.S.) paced the home team in their third straight win, registering four goals and five ground balls in the triumph.
• In addition to clear attempts and face-offs, the Bobcats controlled other statistics as well. QU totaled more shots (44-18) and ground balls (34-19) than Wagner. In goal, Dylan Torey (Darien, CT/Darien) made all four saves for the win, while Chris Coppolecchia (Somers, NY/Somers) aided the defense’s strongest showing with four caused turnovers on the afternoon.
• The Bobcats return to the turf on Tuesday night with a non-conference match-up at Harvard University. Faceoff is set for 7 p.m. under the lights at Harvard Stadium.
Robert Morris (8-3, 2-0 NEC)
Last Week’s Opponent: Apr. 7 at Sacred Heart W, 17-10
This Week’s Opponent: Apr. 14 vs. Mount St. Mary’s
• RMU has scored at least 15 goals in three consecutive games, achieving that feat for the second time in program history.
• Redshirt junior Mike Meagher (Chesterfield, MO/St. Louis University) broke the Colonials’ career caused turnovers record, extending his total to 44.
• Robert Morris has posted double-digit assist totals in each of its past three games.
• RMU has tallied 138 ground balls in its past three games compared to the 87 grabbed by its opposition.
• Senior Kiel Matisz (Stoney Creek, Ontario/Saltfleet) collected a goal and two assists to move into third place in career points at RMU with 147.
Sacred Heart (3-7, 0-2 NEC)
Last Week’s Opponent: Apr. 7 vs. Robert Morris L, 17-10
This Week’s Opponent: Apr. 14 at Wagner
• Mike Mawdsley (Innisfil, Ontario/Nouvelle-Alliance) led the Pioneers with four goals, all of which came in the first half of the 17-10 loss to Robert Morris.
• Faceoff expert Stephen Kontos (Danvers, MA/Danvers/KUA) won 16 of the 31 faceofs in Saturday’s game.
• Alex Miller (Ridgewood, NJ/Bergen Catholic/Avon Old Farms) scored his first goal of the season in the first quarter of Saturday’s loss.
Wagner (0-11, 0-2 NEC)
Last Week’s Opponents: Apr. 3 at Manhattan L, 20-5; Apr. 7 at Quinnipiac L, 15-5
This Week’s Opponent: Apr. 14 vs. Sacred Heart
• On April 3, Wagner played its final non-conference game of the season and came out on the short end of a 20-5 decision at Manhattan. Five different Seahawks hit the back of the net in this weeknight affair under the lights in Riverdale, NY.
• The Seahawks then returned to NEC play on April 7 when they traveled to Hamden, CT to meet Quinnipiac with the Bobcats coming away with a 15-5 victory. Wagner hung tough early, trailing by just a 4-2 margin after one quarter and by a 6-3 count following a goal by junior midfielder Colin O’Rourke (Worcester, MA/ St. John’s Shrewsbury) with 5:15 left in the first half. But the Bobcats ended the first half with three straight goals to go up 9-3 at halftime before opening the second half with five consecutive goals in building a 14-3 edge midway through the fourth quarter.
• The Seahawks have one game on tap this week as Wagner will host the Pioneers of Sacred Heart on Saturday, April 14 at 1:00 pm.