CU Men's Lacrosse Preview - vs. Rensselaer (4/6)

Ben Moeller

Men's Lacrosse | 4/5/2024 7:00:00 AM

The home stretch is upon the Clarkson University Men's Lacrosse team, as the Golden Knights begin a five-game stretch of Liberty League contests on Saturday, hosting second-ranked Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute at Hantz Field.

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The Series: RPI holds a 34-25 edge in the all-time series, though the two teams have split evenly 6-6 since 2011. The Engineers won 14-11 last season on their own turf, while Clarkson last won in 2022 by the score of 11-8.

Key Stats for Clarkson (6-5, 0-2 Liberty League): The Golden Knights have held opponents to 10 goals or fewer in eight of their 11 games this season, as what looked like it might be a question mark has turned into a strength. Clarkson's three-headed goaltender combo of Brett Bohlmann, Griffin Emerson, and Eric Gellasch has combined for an 8.87 goals against average, .544 save percentage and 117 saves through 11 contests. That defense has also been aided by the increased roles of Jack Garvey and Joe Porto. Garvey has started eight contests and ranks fourth on the team in caused turnovers with eight, while Porto has produced three straight solid contests in which he has caused three turnovers and gained nine groundballs.

Key Stats for RPI (11-0, 3-0 Liberty League): One of only three teams still unbeaten in Division III, the Engineers have risen from outside the top 10 in the preseason polls all the way to second in the country thanks to wins over four nationally-ranked teams, including Liberty League foe RIT. RPI has a solid offense led by Luke Murphy, who ranks third in the conference in both goals per game (3.55) and points per game (5.00). Tyler Ruffini (16-19-35) has also topped 30 points while Sean Smith has recorded 22 goals. Angelo Venuto wins roughly 64% of his faceoff attempts, with many coming clean as illustrated by his 11.27 groundballs per game. Joseph Perry has an 8.17 goals against average with a save rate of 60.6%.

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Players Mentioned

#49 Brett Bohlmann: GK; 6' 6"; Senior

#44 Griffin Emerson: GK; 6' 2"; Sophomore

#16 Jack Garvey: D; 5' 11"; Sophomore

#6 Eric Gellasch: GK; 5' 10"; Junior

#39 Joe Porto: D; 5' 11"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

#49 Brett Bohlmann
: 6' 6"; Senior
: GK

#44 Griffin Emerson
: 6' 2"; Sophomore
: GK

#16 Jack Garvey
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: D

#6 Eric Gellasch
: 5' 10"; Junior
: GK

#39 Joe Porto
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: D