Game Info: Saturday, May 1 - 1:00 p.m.
Location: Quick Stadium - Chester, Pa.
Social Media: @WidenerSports |
@WidenerLacrosse
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Opening Face-off
Widener opens its postseason run with a MAC Commonwealth Championship quarterfinal matchup against the Hood Blazers on Saturday, May 1 at 1:00 p.m.
Last Time Out - @WidenerLacrosse Forces OT In Regular Season Finale vs. Stevens
The Pride came back from down three goals against Stevens to force overtime, but ultimately fell 14-13 to the Ducks in its regular season finale.
HIGHLIGHTS
HOW IT HAPPENED
Stevens jumped to an early 2-0 lead by the midpoint of the first quarter. However, a Ducks penalty gave the Pride its first man-up opportunity that Dyer capitalized on at the 4:23 mark. The score opened up five straight Widener goals, including two from DiIorio, as the Blue and Gold took a 5-2 lead by the beginning of the second period. Stevens quickly slashed its deficit to one as it exchanged scores with the Pride, but a pair of goals from Heisman and
Mario Scotese in the period's final minutes allowed Widener to enter halftime up 9-6.
Heisman secured his hat trick with an early score in the third quarter, but the Ducks controlled much of the second half, netting six straight to go up by three with seven minutes remaining in regulation. Still trailing with 4:13 to go, the Pride netted the trio of scores it needed that were capped off by another goal from DiIorio as he picked up his hat trick. However, Stevens found the back of the cage at the 2:50 mark in overtime as it dealt the Blue and Gold its fourth setback of the season.
Scouting Report
Hood enters play 4-4 overall and is coming off a 16-7 loss to No. 8 Stevenson on Tuesday. The Blazers have been busy as of late, playing three games in nine days to close the regular season.
Senior Bentley LeBarron leads Hood with 34 points on the strength of 26 goals and eight assists. Michael Mullen has been the primary setup option with nine assists. Garrett Hitchens gets things started at X, winning 53.4 percent of his faceoffs and scooping 57 ground balls.
Goalkeeping has been a major reason for Hood's success this season as Trenton Lazorchak is third in the conference in save percentage at 60.1 and second in the MAC Commonwealth with 128 saves, ranking in the top-30 nationally in both categories.
Brad Barber is 49-59 as the head coach of the Blazers, now in his eighth year. He guided Hood to a 10-5 record in 2019, the most wins ever in program history.
25 And Counting
With its appearance in the MAC Commonwealth Championship on Saturday, Widener men's lacrosse is making it's 25th consecutive postseason appearance, dating to the 1996 season.
All-Time Vs. Hood
The Pride is 8-0 all-time against the Blazers, with the most recent win coming on March 27 in Frederick, Md. Hood has made strides in recent games, however, as the last two contests are among the closest in the series and the nine goals from the March game are the most the Blazers have scored against the Pride.
Milestone Watch
Both
Paz Gismondi and
Connor Heisman are on the verge of major milestones for the Pride. Gismondi needs three points to break into the top-10 on the Widener career scoring list. Heisman is four goals shy of the 100 mark for his career.
#LaxTop5
Against Eastern, senior starting goalkeeper
Carter Landry achieved something not many goalies ever do: he scored the first goal of his career. The play was so unique that it garnered national attention and was featured as the number two play on ESPN's Top Five Lacrosse Plays of The Week during their college lacrosse halftime show.
Top Notch Transition
Coach
Jamie Lockard always puts an emphasis on getting the ball from the defensive side of midfield and into the attacking area. Widener has been successful on 85.7 percent of its attempted clears this spring, a mark good for second in the conference and is 35th nationally. Lockard's teams have also led the conference in clearing percentage the past two seasons, boasting a percentage of 85.1 percent in 2020 and 84.6 percent in 2019.
Up Next
The winner of the Widener-Hood game will face top-seeded Stevenson on Wednesday, May 5 at Mustang Stadium in Owings Mills, Md.
