The Boston University men's lacrosse team will conclude the annual Lax-a-Palooza doubleheader on Saturday when the Terriers host No. 19/17 Lehigh at Nickerson Field. Game time is set for 3:30 p.m.
The women's lacrosse team will kick off Lax-a-Palooza at noon when the Terriers take on Loyola Maryland. There will be a cash bar, free food, a DJ, games, prizes and more throughout the afternoon.
RECAPPING LAST YEAR'S PLAYOFF WIN
- BU held Lehigh scoreless for a stretch of 43:47 en route to a 10-4 win in a Patriot League quarterfinal contest at Nickerson Field.
- James Burr tallied four goals and added an assist for five points while John MacLean (2g, 1a) and Ryan Hilburn (1g, 2a) each added three points.
- Jack Wilson recorded an assist and picked up three ground balls.
- BU caused 13 of the Mountain Hawks' 23 turnovers, with Quintin Germain recording two of those caused turnovers.
LOOKING AT LEHIGH
- The Mountain Hawks suffered their first conference loss on Saturday, falling at home to Navy, 10-7.
- Junior Andrew Pettit leads Lehigh in goals (27), assists (18) and points (45), while classmates Lucas Spence (21g, 16a) and Tristan Rai (16g, 17a) each have 37 and 33 points, respectively.
- Junior Craig Chick is tied for second in the nation with 27 caused turnovers and has also collected 28 ground balls.
- Conor Gaffney leads Lehigh with 65 ground balls and has won 61.8 percent of the faceoffs he has taken this year (134-of-217).
- Freshman James Spence has started all 10 games in the cage for Lehigh.
- Spence owns an 8.14 goals-against average and a .503 save percentage.
HISTORY WITH LEHIGH
- Last year's quarterfinal win was the first time BU had bested Lehigh.
- The Mountain Hawks earned a 10-6 home win over the Terriers in their regular-season meeting on April 1.
- BU has allowed just 8.4 goals per game against Lehigh, with all four Terrier losses being decided by four goals or fewer.
- Two of those four defeats were by just one goal.
LENDING A HAND
- Saturday's showdown will feature two of the top three teams in the NCAA in total assists, as BU (76) trails only Lehigh (78) and No. 1 Albany (84) in that category entering the weekend.
- BU is tied for seventh in assists per game (7.60) while Lehigh is fourth (7.8).
- In total, 69 of the Terriers' 110 goals this year have been assisted.
MAN-UP MAGIC
- Saturday will also feature two of the top man-up units in the nation.
- The Terriers are sixth in the NCAA, converting on 55.6 of their EMOs (15-of-27) this year.
- Lehigh is second, having clicked at a 62.1 percent clip (18-of-29).
- Both teams have the same exact man-down numbers this year, as each squad has killed 17 of 27 man-up chances.
WILSON REWRITES RECORD BOOK
- Senior Jack Wilson became the first Terrier to score 100 goals at Lafayette on March 24.
- Wilson finished the day with 101 goals thanks to a hat trick.
- That final goal of the afternoon also propelled Wilson to the top of the all-time points leaderboard.
- Wilson has notched 154 career points, one more than Cal Dearth ('17).
- The Manlius, New York, native enters Saturday's contest against Lehigh with 101 goals and 53 points in 56 games.
GRAY NAMED PL ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
- Freshman Chris Gray was named Patriot League Rookie of the Week on Monday following his record-setting week.
- He led all Patriot League players with 15 points in two games last week, including a program-best 10-point effort on March 20 at Harvard in which he recorded a team-record eight assists.
- Gray followed that performance at Harvard with a five-point effort (2g, 3a) in the Terriers' 12-8 win at Lafayette.
- This is somehow Gray's first weekly honor from the Patriot League despite recording six five-point efforts in just 10 games.
ONE OF THE BEST ROOKIES IN THE NATION
- Freshman Chris Gray has been outstanding all season for the Terriers.
- He has tallied a point in each of his first 10 collegiate contests, and Gray has also recorded at least five points six times, including in each of the last four contests.
- Gray leads all NCAA freshmen in both points (46) and assists (28), and he also leads BU in both categories.
- He is tied for fourth in the country in assists and ranks sixth overall in points.
BURR KEEPS SCORING
- Junior James Burr leads the Terriers and is tied for 10th in the nation with 26 goals.
- That total ranks third among Patriot League players.
- He has tallied at least one goal in every game and at least two goals in nine of the Terriers' 10 contests, including two markers in the victory at Lafayette.
- His five goals and six points at Harvard on March 20 matched his career high in both categories, which he first set at Air Force on March 3 with five goals and one assist.
- Burr has added eight assists for 34 points, which is good for second on the squad.
NEXT UP: ARMY WEST POINT
- BU will close out the home portion of its 2018 schedule on April 7 when the Terriers host Army West Point on Senior Day.
- Game time is set for 3:15 p.m., with the game being nationally televised live on CBS Sports Network.
