NORTHFIELD, Vt. – Norwich University advanced to the semifinal game in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Men's Lacrosse Tournament with a convincing win over Anna Maria last Friday. The second-seeded Cadets will retain home field advantage, where they remain unbeaten, as they host third-seeded Rivier University on Wednesday at 7 p.m. Norwich played to an 8-3 overall record and a 5-2 mark in conference play while Rivier comes into the game following a 2021 campaign which saw the team post a 4-4 record overall while going 3-4 in the conference.
SERIES HISTORY
This will be the 13th meeting between the two programs dating back to 2011 when the Cadets ungraciously opened the series with an 18-0 win. The Cadets have been nearly flawless in the all-time matchup winning 11-of-12 previous contests. The teams have played just once in the postseason with the Cadets claiming a 19-11 win in the 2016 GNAC quarterfinals.
LAST MEETING
Norwich swept the season series with a pair of wins against the Raiders in 2021. The Cadets notched a 19-8 win at home in the first game before doubling up the Raiders 12-6 on the road in the second contest. Norwich's senior Jack Anzalone (5G, 4A) and junior Parker Campbell (4G, 5A) each netted nine points in the two games. Senior Payden Masaraccchia led all scorers with six goals. Rivier received six goals and an assist from senior Dylan McSparren and two goals and a pair of assists from freshman Michael Ference. Freshman Connor Eck posted three goals throughout the series.
SCOUTING THE RIVIER
Rivier advanced to the second round of the tournament by edging past seventh seed Emmanuel College, 11-8. For the 2021 season, the Raiders' offense produced 11.63 goals per game while surrendering 10.37 goals per contest defensively. Rivier boasts an efficient offense leading the conference in shot percentage and ranking second in clear percentage. Ference was the top-rated freshman scorer in the GNAC and led the team with 25 goals while adding 15 assists. Eck ranked right behind Ference with 24 goals to make a young dynamic duo for the Raiders. McSparren supplemented the offense with 18 goals and 12 assists. Freshman Adam Hailey has been a great addition to the defensive unit registering 17 caused turnovers. Freshman Sawyer Gagnon seems to have acceded to the lead goalie position for the Raiders starting the last four games. He has recorded an 11.96 goals-against average while posting a 56.5 save percentage.
SCOUTING THE CADETS
Norwich came out of the gates sluggish against Anna Maria in its quarterfinal game before the offense synched up in the second half scoring 12-straight goals in the win. The Cadets have distributed scoring with seven players tallying double-digit goals. Masaracchia leads the team in goals with 35 and ranks second in the GNAC. Anzalone, Parker, and senior Russell Gilligan each have at least 20 goals to his name. The Cadets thrive in man-up situations leading the GNAC in man-up goals with Gilligan ranking 8th in the country with 8 man-up goals. Freshman Thomas Muraski has been a revelation at the face-off X winning a GNAC-best 163 attempts and also ranks 21st in the nation with 9.36 groundballs per game. The Cadets are strong defensively giving up just 8.65 goals per contest, the lowest mark in the GNAC. Senior Sean Wallace and freshman Mason McMahon are the top defensive pairing in the league combined for 44 caused turnovers while Kandra leads the GNAC with a 7.99 goals-against average in net.
LIVE COVERAGE
Due to safety precautions this season, no spectators will be allowed at the athletic facilities, however, the game will be live-streamed on the Norwich Broadcast Network featuring the voice of Norwich athletics, Tanner Acebo.
UP NEXT
Should Norwich win Wednesday's matchup, the Cadets would either travel to Lasell to play the number one-seeded Lasers or host fourth-seeded Johnson and Wales (RI) on Saturday, May 8.
