Lacrosse readies for first meeting at Drexel on Saturday

MILWAUKEE – The Marquette University men's lacrosse team faces Drexel for the first time on Saturday, Feb. 29 in Philadelphia at Vidas Field.

Opening face-off is set for noon Central time (1 p.m. local) and live statistics will be provided courtesy of DrexelDragons.com. A free live video broadcast will air on Dragons TV and updates will be provided via @MarquetteMLAX on Twitter.

GAME DETAILS
Marquette (3-1) at Drexel (1-2)
Vidas Field (Philadelphia)
Saturday, Feb. 29 at noon CT
TICKETS

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

MARQUETTE (3-1): The Golden Eagles set a new program record with 18 goals in an 18-6 win over Detroit Mercy on Feb. 22 in Pontiac, Michigan. Senior Ryan Fazio, who earned BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll mention for the first time in his career on Monday, posted a game-high five points on three goals and a pair of assists. Classmate Peter Henkhaus also notched a hat trick, as did freshman Chris Kirschner, who now leads MU with 10 goals and 11 points. MU started four freshmen against the Titans, including all three attackmen as Devon Cowan and Jake Stegman joined Kirschner up front. In addition to posting a season-high 47 shots, MU also limited UDM to just six goals and just 12 shots on frame. MU opening its season with 11-10 wins over Cleveland State and Bellarmine before an 11-9 loss to Jacksonville on Feb. 15.

DREXEL (1-2): Thirteen different Dragons scored on Tuesday as Drexel picked up its first victory of the season in a 24-12 drubbing of Robert Morris. The 24 goals set a Colonial Athletic Association record for most goals in a game and is the most a Drexel team has scored in a single contest since 1975. Reid Bowering led the way against RMU with five first half goals, while Collin Mailman, Ryan Genord and Aidan Coll each had hat tricks. The Dragons posted 57 shots in the win and picked up nearly 50 ground balls (49). Matt Varian, who leads the squad with 16 points, posted six assists in Tuesday's win. Mailman, Bowering and Genord each have a team-high nine goals this season. Drexel lost a pair of narrow one-goal decisions to talented High Point and Albany squads to begin the year on Feb. 15 and 22, respectively. They led with under eight minutes remaining in each contest.

KEY STORYLINES:

Saturday's game marks the 110th contest in the history of Marquette men's lacrosse, which played its first games in the spring of 2013. MU is 55-54 all-time in its eighth season of competition.
MU and Drexel are meeting for the first time.
Drexel is only the second CAA opponent ever faced by the Golden Eagles (MU is 2-0 against Hofstra).
MU posted a program-record 18 goals against Detroit Mercy in its last game on Feb. 22.
Drexel set a CAA record with 24 goals in its last game against Robert Morris on Feb. 25.
MU's 47 shots at UDM are a season high and tied for the No. 3 mark all-time at MU.
10 players scored for MU at UDM, including all six starting offensive players.
MU limited Detroit Mercy to just six goals and 12 shots on goal, the fourth-lowest opponent total in program history.
MU must replace 57.6 percent of its scoring (87-of-151) from 2019.
Marquette returns just four starters from last year's team and lost three 20-goal scorers, three starting close defensemen and the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year at LSM

SERIES HISTORY: First Meeting

ALL-FRESHMAN ATTACK UNIT LIFTS MU OFFENSE

Marquette rolled out a starting attack unit of three freshmen at Detroit Mercy on Feb. 22 and proceeded to set a new program record with 18 goals. Chris Kirschner, who played as a reserve midfielder the first three games, posted his second-straight hat trick and added his first goal of the year. Kirschner was joined up front by Jake Stegman, who scored the first two goals of his collegiate career, and Devon Cowan, who scored once.
Marquette has been reliant on a large contingent of freshman early this season. Cowan and Mason Woodward have started all four games, while Kirschner, Stegman, Max Kruszeski and Jack Cleary have impressed in extended time. Noah Verlinde made his NCAA debut on defense in the fourth quarter at UDM, as did Aidan O'Donnell at LSM.
MU boasts the only starting attack in NCAA Division I comprised solely of freshmen.

KIRSCHNER LEADS MU IN SCORING

Freshman Chris Kirschner became the first player in program history to open his career with at least two goals in his first four collegiate games. He posted a pair of goals in each of his first two contests and registered hat tricks in his third and fourth games.
Kirschner joined classmate Devan Cowan as a multiple goal scorer in his NCAA debut at Cleveland State and scored the overtime winner just 25 seconds into extra time on an empty net against a 10-man ride.
He and Cowan are just the third and fourth freshmen to ever score twice in their Marquette freshman debuts (Anthony Orsini (2018) and Connor Bernal (2013)).
He's tied with Orsini for MU's active career lead in game winners (2 – just eight players in program history have scored three in a career). He did it in each of his first two college games.
He was honored as the BIG EAST Freshman of the Week on Feb. 17 for the first time in his career thanks to his hat trick against JU.

MARQUETTE TO APPEAR TWICE ON NATIONAL TV IN APRIL

Marquette will appear twice on national TV in the month of April, beginning with the Tuesday, April 7 home game against Notre Dame at 3:30 p.m. Central time. That contest will air live on CBS Sports Network, while the Friday, April 24 BIG EAST finale at Denver will appear on FS1 at 8:30 p.m. CT.
MU will also make an appearance on the BIG EAST Digital Network against St. John's on April 4 in Queens, New York.