Men's Lacrosse 4/17/2009 9:30:00 PM Canisius College Athletics

Men's Lacrosse Plays at Manhattan

The Canisius College men's lacrosse team hits the road for another MAAC contest, squaring off at Manhattan. The Griffs had their three game-winning streak snapped in their last game and are now 2-4 in conference play. Manhattan enters the weekend with a 3-2 MAAC mark.

BARKAS DOES IT ALL
? Junior Matt Barkas seemingly does a little of everything for the Griffs.
? Barkas has anchored the Canisius defense during his junior season, leading the team with 19 caused turnovers and ranking second with 55 ground balls.
? The junior entered the week ranked 17th nationally with 5.50 ground balls per game. In fact, his 5.50 ground balls per game rank fourth in the country by a defender or long-stick midfielder.
? Barkas has also contributed on the offensive side for the Griffs this season. The junior has recorded five points, scoring three goals and adding two assists.
? The five points for Barkas are the most by a Canisius defender since Greg Galutz recorded six points (2g, 4a) during the 1997 season.
? His five points are also tied for sixth nationally by a defender or long-stick midfielder.
? Barkas tallied a career-best two points in the Griffs' last game against Siena, scoring a goal and registering an assist.

HANEY EARNS ROOKIE OF THE WEEK HONORS
? The reigning MAAC Rookie of the Week continued his strong play against Siena.
? Haney scored a career-best four goals on Wednesday, adding to his impressive rookie campaign in 2009.
? The freshman was named the MAAC Rookie of the Week after leading the Griffs to a pair of victories last week. Haney totaled three points, including his first collegiate game-winning goal against Robert Morris, and then added one goal versus Wagner.
? For the season, Haney leads all Canisius newcomers with 14 points and 13 goals. He is also tied for the team lead with four man-up goals and ranks second with his 13 goals.

LoCOCO LENDS A HELPING HAND
? Sophomore Nick LoCoco has continued to find the open man in 2009.
? LoCoco leads the Griffs in scoring with 29 points, thanks to a team-best 22 assists.
? The sophomore is currently ranked fourth nationally in assists, averaging 2.20 helpers per game. He finished third in the country in 2008 with 2.12 assists per game.
? LoCoco was big in leading the Griffs to their first victory of the season against Mount St. Mary's. He recorded a point on seven of the team's nine goals, scoring a goal and adding six assists.
? His six helpers are tied for the most this season by any player in the country.
? Despite being just 26 games into his collegiate career, LoCoco already ranks eighth in school history with 57 career helpers. He is on pace for 140 career assists, which would shatter Randy Mearns' school record of 95 career helpers.

CANISIUS - MANHATTAN SERIES HISTORY
? Canisius has won 10-of-14 games against Manhattan in the all-time series.
? The home team has won the last five regular-season games and eight of the last nine.
? Canisius was the last road team to win in the series, posting a 7-5 victory at Manhattan during the 2003 season.
? The Griffs defeated the Japers twice last season, earning a 10-5 victory during the regular season and an 11-2 win in the MAAC Semifinal.
? The postseason victory for Canisius was the first in the program's history en route to the school's first MAAC Championship.
? Tom Hensel (2g, 5a) and Adam Jones (6g, 1a) led the Griffs with seven points during the 2008 series, while Nick LoCoco chipped in six points (3g, 3a). Chris Courteau stopped 20-of-27 shots on goal in the two victories (.740 save percentage).

ABOUT THE JASPERS
? Manhattan enters the weekend winners of its last two games and is currently tied for fourth in the MAAC standings with a 3-2 conference mark. The Jaspers are 7-6 overall.
? The Jaspers have been led this season by James Synowiez. The junior leads the team with 43 points on 32 goals and 11 assists.
? Joe Variano ranks second on the team with 32 points, scoring 18 goals and adding a team-best 14 assists.
? John Geagan has started all 12 games in goal for the Jaspers, posting a goals against average of 9.57 and a save percentage of .552.
? Angelo Marrano has won 54.7 percent of his faceoffs this season (104-190).

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Players Mentioned

#20 Chris Courteau: GK; 6' 1"; Senior

#32 Tom Hensel: M; 5' 11"; Senior

#18 Matt Barkas: D; 5' 11"; Junior

#23 Adam Jones: M; 5' 9"; Sophomore

#3 Nick LoCoco: A; 5' 9"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

#20 Chris Courteau
: 6' 1"; Senior
: GK

#32 Tom Hensel
: 5' 11"; Senior
: M

#18 Matt Barkas
: 5' 11"; Junior
: D

#23 Adam Jones
: 5' 9"; Sophomore
: M

#3 Nick LoCoco
: 5' 9"; Sophomore
: A