Game Notes
LiveStats
The #15/15 Fairfield University men's lacrosse team travels to Chapel Hill, N.C. to take on #9/12 University of North Carolina at 1 p.m. on Saturday. The Stags are 2-0 on the year, following a 10-9 win over Navy at home on Tuesday, while the Tar Heels are 1-1 after falling to then #13 UMass on February 16.
Fairfield and Carolina are meeting for the sixth time and the first since 2007, with the Tar Heels winning each of the first five meetings. The 2007 game, played at Fairfield, resulted in a 12-8 Carolina win. The team's last met in Chapel Hill in 2006, with an 18-9 decision as the result. The first meeting of the series came in the 2000 season opener a game the Stags dropped 12-11. The two teams opened the following season against each other, again in Chapel Hill, with a 12-7 Carolina victory. The first home game in the series for the Stags came in 2002 with a 15-8 defeat.
Sam Snow netted a Jordan Greenfield pass with four seconds to play in regulation to give the Stags a 10-9 win over Navy at Alumni Field on Tuesday afternoon. It was Snow's fourth goal of the fourth quarter as he broke the games seventh tie for the game-winner. Jack Murphy was again stellar in net for Fairfield as he made a season-best 14 saves, with four in the final stanza. Fairfield committed just 13 turnovers in the contest and caused 12 of the Midshipmen's 18 turnovers.
Fairfield continues to find success in tight games under fifth-year head coach Andy Copelan. Both games this season have been decided by two or fewer goals to bring Copelan's Fairfield record in such games to 26-11. The Stags have won eight consecutive one-goal games and nine of the last 10, including a perfect 6-0 mark in such games last spring. Copelan is 13-7 in one-goal games during his career at Fairfield.
The two-goal, two-assist effort was the second four point game of the season for Greenfield, who was named the NEILA Player of the Week just prior to face-off on Tuesday. The junior is leading the Stags with eight points, six goals, entering play on Saturday. Snow is the team leader with five goals.
Jack Murphy has played all 120 minutes for the Stags in goal this season and has been impressive. He has made 25 saves, stopping 63 percent of the shots he has faced. Murphy stopped 14 shots against Navy, after making 11 saves in his Division I debut at Bryant to earn ECAC Defensive Player of the Week honors on Monday.. He begins play on Saturday with a 7.50 GAA and leading the team with 13 ground balls.
The Stags defense continues to impress, allowing just 7.50 goals per game thus far, after finishing 2012 ranked 16th nationally in scoring defense. The Stags held Bryant and Navy to just 2-8 in man-up situations, slightly ahead of last year's 71 percent kill ratio, which was 17th nationally. Greg Perraut has extended his streak to 34 consecutive games on defense, every game that the Stags have played since his arrival on campus for the 2011 season. Also in the mix is Toby Armour who has caused seven turnovers in his first two games as a Stag.
UNC enters Saturday's game at 1-1 having dropped a 12-11 neutral site decision UMass in Kennesaw, Ga. last week, after opening the year with a 16-8 home win over Air Force. Carolina is averaging 13.5 goals per game, while allowing just 10, and has won 59 percent (32-54) of the face-offs this season. Leading the offense is Marcus Holman with 11 points as he has tallied four goals and handed-out a team-high seven assists. Jimmy Bitter has touched net a program-high seven times in two games, including the game-winner versus Air Force, a man-up and a man-down goal. R.G. Keegan is 26-42 at the face-off X this season and has a team-high 17 ground balls. UNC has an 82-69 ground ball advantage thus far in 2013. Kieran Burke has minded the net for all 120 minutes, making 23 saves for a .535 save percentage. Carolina has committed just 22 turnovers this season and force 16 of its opponents 28 miscues.
