Army West Point Athletics
Saturday, February 25
Syracuse, NY
12 PM
Army West Point
at
Syracuse
Black Knights Travel to #6 Syracuse
February 24, 2017 | Men's Lacrosse
WEST POINT, N.Y. - The Army West Point men's lacrosse team is on the road for the third consecutive weekend with a visit to sixth-ranked Syracuse on Saturday for a 12 p.m. start.
THE OPENING FACEOFF
• The Black Knights and Orange meet for the 64th time and for the third-straight season at the Carrier Dome.
• Army is coming off a 20-5 win over VMI on Monday, following a 12-10 defeat at the hands of 18th-ranked Rutgers a week ago Saturday.
• The attack duo of Cole Johnson and Nate Jones both had big games in the last two contests with Johnson scoring five goals against Rutgers with three in the fourth quarter, while Jones had five versus the Keydets.
• The sixth-ranked Orange enter Saturday's game after an exciting win over in-state rival Albany with Nick Mariano scoring with one-second left in the game to give the Orange a 10-9 victory at home.Â
• Syracuse won its opening game over Siena by a 19-6 score and is averaging 14.5 goals per game.
MILESTONE ALERT
• Johnson is cementing his legacy as one of Army's best scorers in program history and his numbers are starting to reflect that.Â
• He is one point away from recording 150 in his career, which would tie him with Army great Pete Cramblet '70 and one goal away from catching Jeremy Boltus '11, who is one of the best scorers in Army's storied history.Â
• Johnson has four career points against the Orange in three games played with three goals and an assist.Â
JOHNNY ON THE SPOT
• Sophomore Johnny Surdick has moved into a defensive role this year after sliding down from the long-stick midfielder position.Â
• He has not missed a beat with eight ground balls and eight caused turnovers in three games.Â
• Surdick had five caused turnovers against Rutgers on Feb. 18, which was a career high.
• He is also key in the clearing game and with the LSM background can help Army with the transition game.Â
WINGMAN
• Army's attack duo of Johnson and Jones was one of the best in the Patriot League.Â
• So far, this year is no different with each player scoring five goals in the last two games.Â
• Jones was lethal from the outside with a team-high 36 goals and seventh in the Patriot League in goals per game at 2.12.Â
• He was named All-Patriot League Second Team and was tied for the team lead in man-up goals with six.Â
• Jones earned weekly honors three times, including offensive player and rookie of the week on April 11 after five goals against Boston University.Â
FACEOFF THREAT
• Dan Grabher provides Army with the threat to score on every faceoff opportunity.Â
• The senior posted 10 goals in 2016, which was among the most for faceoff specialist in the country, and he has two already this season to go along with two assists for four points.
• He allows Army to strike quick following an opposing score or if the Black Knights are on a run. He stopped Rutgers in its tracks last Saturday with a goal coming just eight seconds after a Johnson tally to cut the Scarlet Knight lead to 12-9 in the fourth quarter.Â
SCOUTING THE ORANGE
• Syracuse welcomes the Black Knights as the sixth-ranked team in the nation in both national polls.Â
• The Orange have started the year 2-0 with wins over Siena and No. 12 Albany at home.
• Army is playing the third of four home games to start the year for the Orange and they are averaging 14.5 goals per game, while giving up less than 10 goals a game.Â
• Nick Mariano leads the team with nine points on four goals and five assists and had the gamewinner with one second left against the Great Danes in last week's win.
• Brendan Bomberry and Sergio Salcido are also big contributors with eight points each in the first two games.Â
• Ben Willams is back as the faceoff specialist for Syracuse and is 29-of-42 so far this year. He won 13-of-19 in last year's matchup.Â
• Evan Molloy has earned the first two starts in net for the Orange and has a 7.58 goals against average and a .552 save percentage.
THE SERIES
• The Army-Syracuse series dates back to 1923, and the two New York schools are playing for the 63rd time in the series.Â
• Army leads the series by a 39-23 advantage heading into Saturday and had an 18-game winning streak over the Orange from 1935 to 1956.Â
• Syracuse has won the last five meetings since the Black Knights beat the top-ranked Orange in 2010 in the NCAA Tournament in double overtime at the Carrier Dome.Â
• The series has been competitive as of late with the last five games being decided by four goals or less, including three by one goal.Â
• Alberici comes into Saturday's game with a 2-9 record in 11 games opposite Syracuse.
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Saturday's game is going to be featured around the state of New York on Time Warner Cable Sports, while also being offered online through ACC Network Extra and WatchESPN.Â
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HOW TO FOLLOWÂ
TELEVISION • Time Warner Cable Sports
RADIO • None
VIDEO • ACC Network Extra
LIVE STATISTICS • Cuse.com
GAME NOTES • Army Notes • Syracuse Notes
TWITTER • ArmyWP_MLax
INSTAGRAM • ArmyWP_MLaxÂ
THE OPENING FACEOFF
• The Black Knights and Orange meet for the 64th time and for the third-straight season at the Carrier Dome.
• Army is coming off a 20-5 win over VMI on Monday, following a 12-10 defeat at the hands of 18th-ranked Rutgers a week ago Saturday.
• The attack duo of Cole Johnson and Nate Jones both had big games in the last two contests with Johnson scoring five goals against Rutgers with three in the fourth quarter, while Jones had five versus the Keydets.
• The sixth-ranked Orange enter Saturday's game after an exciting win over in-state rival Albany with Nick Mariano scoring with one-second left in the game to give the Orange a 10-9 victory at home.Â
• Syracuse won its opening game over Siena by a 19-6 score and is averaging 14.5 goals per game.
MILESTONE ALERT
• Johnson is cementing his legacy as one of Army's best scorers in program history and his numbers are starting to reflect that.Â
• He is one point away from recording 150 in his career, which would tie him with Army great Pete Cramblet '70 and one goal away from catching Jeremy Boltus '11, who is one of the best scorers in Army's storied history.Â
• Johnson has four career points against the Orange in three games played with three goals and an assist.Â
JOHNNY ON THE SPOT
• Sophomore Johnny Surdick has moved into a defensive role this year after sliding down from the long-stick midfielder position.Â
• He has not missed a beat with eight ground balls and eight caused turnovers in three games.Â
• Surdick had five caused turnovers against Rutgers on Feb. 18, which was a career high.
• He is also key in the clearing game and with the LSM background can help Army with the transition game.Â
WINGMAN
• Army's attack duo of Johnson and Jones was one of the best in the Patriot League.Â
• So far, this year is no different with each player scoring five goals in the last two games.Â
• Jones was lethal from the outside with a team-high 36 goals and seventh in the Patriot League in goals per game at 2.12.Â
• He was named All-Patriot League Second Team and was tied for the team lead in man-up goals with six.Â
• Jones earned weekly honors three times, including offensive player and rookie of the week on April 11 after five goals against Boston University.Â
FACEOFF THREAT
• Dan Grabher provides Army with the threat to score on every faceoff opportunity.Â
• The senior posted 10 goals in 2016, which was among the most for faceoff specialist in the country, and he has two already this season to go along with two assists for four points.
• He allows Army to strike quick following an opposing score or if the Black Knights are on a run. He stopped Rutgers in its tracks last Saturday with a goal coming just eight seconds after a Johnson tally to cut the Scarlet Knight lead to 12-9 in the fourth quarter.Â
SCOUTING THE ORANGE
• Syracuse welcomes the Black Knights as the sixth-ranked team in the nation in both national polls.Â
• The Orange have started the year 2-0 with wins over Siena and No. 12 Albany at home.
• Army is playing the third of four home games to start the year for the Orange and they are averaging 14.5 goals per game, while giving up less than 10 goals a game.Â
• Nick Mariano leads the team with nine points on four goals and five assists and had the gamewinner with one second left against the Great Danes in last week's win.
• Brendan Bomberry and Sergio Salcido are also big contributors with eight points each in the first two games.Â
• Ben Willams is back as the faceoff specialist for Syracuse and is 29-of-42 so far this year. He won 13-of-19 in last year's matchup.Â
• Evan Molloy has earned the first two starts in net for the Orange and has a 7.58 goals against average and a .552 save percentage.
THE SERIES
• The Army-Syracuse series dates back to 1923, and the two New York schools are playing for the 63rd time in the series.Â
• Army leads the series by a 39-23 advantage heading into Saturday and had an 18-game winning streak over the Orange from 1935 to 1956.Â
• Syracuse has won the last five meetings since the Black Knights beat the top-ranked Orange in 2010 in the NCAA Tournament in double overtime at the Carrier Dome.Â
• The series has been competitive as of late with the last five games being decided by four goals or less, including three by one goal.Â
• Alberici comes into Saturday's game with a 2-9 record in 11 games opposite Syracuse.
Â
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Lacrosse
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/ Men's Lacrosse
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/ Men's LacrosseD
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