Marquette faces Villanova in program’s 100th game

MILWAUKEE – The Marquette University men's lacrosse team continues BIG EAST Conference action on Saturday, March 30 at Villanova in its second league game.

The noon Central time game at Villanova Stadium will air live on Nova Nation All-Access through Villanova's athletics website.

Following the game at VU, Marquette returns to Milwaukee to face St. John's on Saturday, April 6 as the first game in a double-header with the MU women at Valley Fields. The Golden Eagles will honor their 13-player senior class prior to that contest against the Red Storm.

GAME DETAILS
Marquette (5-3) at Villanova (5-4)
Villanova Stadium (Villanova, Pa.)
Saturday, March 30 at noon CT

LIVE COVERAGE
VIDEO | STATS | GAME NOTES (PDF) | TWITTER | INSTAGRAM

MARQUETTE (5-3): The Golden Eagles held on for a 9-8 victory at then-No. 14 Georgetown in their league opener on Saturday afternoon in Washington, D.C. BIG EAST weekly award winners John Hulsman (12 saves) and Thomas Washington (10-of-17 face-offs) led the way as Marquette reeled off an 8-0 run over the second and third quarters for the victory. Tanner Thomson scored a hat trick for the third straight game and MU held off a 6-0 surge from the Hoyas over the final 25 minutes for the win. Thomson leads the Golden Eagles with 19 goals and 24 points this season, while John Wagner has 22 points (nine goals, 13 assists).

VILLANOVA (5-4): The Wildcats won a pair of games on Saturday and Monday at Fairfield and Brown, respectively, and own an 11-10 overtime win over then-No. 1 Yale earlier this season. That victory over the Bulldogs was VU's second in as many seasons against Yale and the Wildcats also own losses this year to ranked teams in then-No. 9 Penn State and No. 6 Maryland. Prior to the two wins in the last week, Villanova had suffered three-straight losses to Penn, Drexel and Maryland. Connor Kirst leads the Wildcats with 20 goals and 39 points on the season, while Matt Campbell has 19 goals and 25 points. Saturday's game is VU's first BIG EAST contest of the year.

KEY STORYLINES:

Saturday's game marks the 100th in the history of Marquette men's lacrosse, which played its first games in the spring of 2013. MU is 51-48 all-time entering Saturday.
Both squads suffered three-game losing streaks during non-conference play and are looking to get back on track in league action.
Villanova has won the last two games in the series after MU swept VU in 2016 on its way to its first BIG EAST Tournament title and NCAA appearance.
The last two games in the series at Villanova have resulted in one-goal decisions, with VU winning 10-9 in overtime in 2017 and Marquette claiming a 9-8 win in 2015.
Last season, MU won 17-of-26 face-offs and outshot VU, 39-36, but fell 14-9 at Valley Fields. Keegan Khan scored seven goals for the Wildcats, who used an 8-0 run to pull away.
Marquette has won over 50 percent at the face-off X in each of its last two games but faces a VU unit that leads the BIG EAST with a winning percentage of 53.7 percent on the year. Dan Fischer and Zach Ornstein lead the Wildcats, while Jared Hershman, Thomas Washington and Jack Devine have shared duties for MU.
MU has won all three of its true road games so far this season: at Jacksonville, Robert Morris and Georgetown.
Marquette has won three-straight games after dropping three in a row to Detroit Mercy, No. 9 Ohio State and Cleveland State.
Tanner Thomson became the sixth player in Marquette history to reach 50 career goals with his fourth of the day at RMU on March 12. He joined Ryan McNamara (102), Conor Gately (77), Kyle Whitlow (70), John Wagner (63) and Tyler Melnyk (59) on the prestigious list. He currently has 58 after scoring a hat trick against the Hoyas. He has scored in 15 straight games in which he has appeared, the ninth-longest streak in the nation.
John Wagner's 13 assists are a career-high and more than any Golden Eagle totaled during the entirety of the 2018 season. The single-season program record of 20 was set by Conor Gately as a freshman in 2013.
Eighteen players have scored a goal for Marquette and nine have at least six points.
The Marquette program and head coach Joe Amplo captured their 50th victory all-time on Saturday against Michigan. The Golden Eagles are 51-48 in their seventh season of existence.

SERIES HISTORY: Villanova leads 4-3
VU leads 2-1 in Villanova, Pa.
3/22/14                H             L, 10-8
5/1/14 A             L, 9-6 (BIG EAST Semifinals)
3/28/15                A             W, 9-8
4/2/16 H             W, 11-3
5/5/16 N             W, 14-9 (BIG EAST Semifinals)
4/1/17 A             L, 10-9 (OT)
3/31/18                H             L, 14-9

CAREER VERSUS VILLANOVA:

Brendon Connolly: 4 GP/1 GS, 3 gb, 2 ct
Connor McClelland: 2 GP/1GS, 1g, 1a, 2 gb
Anthony Orsini: 1 GP/1 GS, 2g, 1a
Noah Richard: 2 GP, 8 gb, 3 ct
Tanner Thomson: 3 GP/3 GS, 4g, 2a
John Wagner: 4 GP/2 GS, 6g, 3 gb

GOLDEN EAGLES SET FOR TOUGH FINAL MONTH

A difficult schedule awaits the Golden Eagles over the final month of the season, beginning with the March 23 game at then-No. 14 Georgetown. MU's annual midweek contest at No. 12 Notre Dame on April 10 is sandwiched by games against St. John's and Providence before Marquette closes the year with No. 5 Duke and No. 9 Denver.

ANDERSON STEPS UP IN JUNIOR SEASON

Defensive midfielder Luke Anderson has stepped up in a big way for the Golden Eagles on both ends of the field this season. The Lakeville, Minnesota native has been called one of the most athletic SSDMs in the country by head coach Joe Amplo and has shown his ability as a junior. In addition to being MU's top short stick D-mid, the 6-foot-3 210-pounder has scored six goals and posted three assists in the first eight games of 2019. Those goal and point totals are the highest single-season marks ever for a defensive midfielder at MU. Both totals top the previous high of four goals and seven points recorded by current assistant coach Jacob Richard during the 2015 campaign.

TANNER THOMSON RETURNS FROM REDSHIRT

Fifth-year senior Tanner Thomson sat out the 2018 campaign after turning in an All-BIG EAST Second Team year in 2017 as a true junior. Thomson was MU's returning scoring leader entering last season with 39 goals and 55 points in 38 career games. He tallied 20 goals and added 14 assists as a junior in 2017 and was an All-BIG EAST Championship Team selection in 2016. Thomson is also a top prospect for the National Lacrosse League.
Thomson became the sixth Marquette player to reach 50 career goals with four markers at Robert Morris on March 12, while tying a career best with six points. He joined Ryan McNamara (102), Conor Gately (77), Kyle Whitlow (70), John Wagner (61) and Tyler Melnyk (59) among MU's 50-goal scorers.
Entering the March 30 game at Villanova, Thomson (58 career goals) is one goal shy of Tyler Melnyk for fifth in program history and 10 points from Melynk's 89 career points.
Thomson has scored 12 goals in the last three games and has a 15-game scoring streak dating back to early in the 2017 campaign.

FACE-OFF BY COMMITTEE

In replacing three-time All-BIG EAST face-off specialist Zachary Melillo this season the Golden Eagles have had to get creative over the season's first two months with Jared Hershman, Thomas Washington and Jack Devine all contributing.
- Jared Hershman started at the face-off dot against Bellarmine for MU and won 11-of-16 draws. Freshman Thomas Washington made his NCAA debut against BU and won all but one faceoff he took (8-of-9).
- Hershman set new Marquette single-game program records for face-off wins (22) and ground balls (21) in Saturday's 16-13 victory over Michigan. The junior went 22-of-27 against the Wolverines and 6-of-11 at Robert Morris, while also adding his first career point on an assist against Michigan. Overall, he won 28-of 38 (73.7 percent) of the draws he took in a 2-0 week.
- Freshman Jack Devine took 22 face-offs at Robert Morris on March 12 and won 10 of them. The offensive midfielder starting practicing with MU's face-off unit in early March.
- Washington returned from injury on March 23 at No. 14 Georgetown to win 10-of-17 draws on his way to BIG EAST Freshman of the Week honors.

HULSMAN SECURES THE CREASE

All four Marquette net-minders have seen action this season with John Hulsman, Chris Rolfing and Gabe Stein all making their first career starts in Blue & Gold. Hulsman, who started the season opener, has reemerged as MU's top option following a BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week performance with 12 saves at No. 14 Georgetown on March 23.
- Every MU goalie played in the season opener, but sophomore John Hulsman started and played 37 minutes in net. Hulsman, who finished 2018 fourth in NCAA Division I in save percentage at Bellarmine, made six saves and allowed five goals.
- Junior Chris Rolfing made his first career start against Cleveland State and recorded nine first half saves. He also started at Robert Morris.