Terriers Set to Face No. 1 Loyola Maryland
April 11, 2014 | Men's Lacrosse
April 11, 2014
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The Boston University men’s lacrosse team will face the toughest test of its inaugural season on Saturday afternoon when the Terriers travel to Baltimore to face top-ranked Loyola Maryland. Game time is set for 1 p.m.
BU (1-10, 1-5 PL) will be facing its third straight ranked opponent and its first top-10 team when it faces off against the Greyhounds. The Terriers have played some of their best lacrosse against ranked teams this season, losing by a combined six goals to Army, Colgate and Lehigh. Those three teams join first-place Loyola in the top four of the Patriot League standings.
Four of the Terriers’ nine goals at No. 17 Harvard on Tuesday came on extra-man opportunities, with freshman Ryan Johnston netting two of them. He is tied for the NCAA lead with eight man-up goals this season has scored twice during extra-man opportunities in two of the Terriers’ last three tilts.The Elora, Ont., native is also tied for the team lead in overall goals with 13.
Also playing well offensively for the Terriers is freshman Adam Schaal. He collected two assists on Tuesday against the Crimson and has recorded a point in eight of his last nine games. Schaal has had six multi-point efforts this season. Redshirt freshman Sam Tenney also has a hot hand, as he has scored a goal in three straight and four of the last five games. Tenney tallied at least three goals in three of those four tilts.
Loyola (10-1, 6-0 PL) has won 10 straight games after losing its season opener at Virginia, 14-13, in overtime. The Greyhounds needed overtime to stave off Navy, 7-6, in their last game on April 5. Loyola is led offensively by junior Nikko Pontrello and senior Justin Ward. Pontrello is second in the country with 37 goals while Ward is second in the land with 36 assists. The duo is the No. 2 point-scoring tandem in the country with 91 combined points. Senior Jack Runkel has started all 11 games for Loyola and owns a 7.07 goals-against average along with a .607 save percentage.
The Terriers will conclude their Patriot League schedule on April 19 when they travel to Worcester, Mass., to face Holy Cross.
