Bulldogs hit the road for a matchup with Siena, Tuesday at 3 p.m.

The Bulldogs (4-3) and Saints (1-4) played each other for the first time in the NCAA play-in game in Smithfield in 2014, a contest in which the hosts won, 9-8. Starting attack Tucker James (Essex Fells, N.J.) and Shane Morrell (Glen Mills, Pa.) each tallied two scores and one assist in that mathcup, and senior goalie Gunnar Waldt (Freeland, Md.) made 14 saves in the win.

 

"Siena is perennially one of the best teams in the MAAC," said Bryant head Coach Mike Pressler. "They are very disciplined, well coached and similar to the team we just played in Drexel on Saturday."

 

The Bulldogs were looking to carry momentum into Saturday's matchup with Drexel after knocking off No. 8/7 Harvard just four days prior, but suffered a 14-5 setback to the Dragons at home. James, Morrell and Cam Ziegler (Carlsbad, Calif.) were held scoreless, while senior mid Collins Gantz (Denver, Colo.) also failed to register a point. Waldt made 11 saves in the loss, matching his season average that ranks first in the Northeast Conference and 18th nationally.

 

"Anytime the starting attack generates one point, it really puts the team in a hole," said Pressler. "We have to do a better job of moving our feet on offense and getting the ball out of our stick quicker. When we have opportunities on offense, we need to hit the goal with our shots, and it all goes back to staying true to our fundamentals."

 

What really plagued the Black and Gold on Saturday were 20 turnovers, 12 being uncaused, which allowed Drexel and its Canadian style offense to have extra possessions. Bryant will need to limit those mistakes against the Saints (1-4) who cause 6.8 turnovers per game to rank fifth in the MAAC.

 

"Our inability to take care of the ball on offense was completely on us," said Pressler. "It was a lack of discipline and tempo, resulting in us throwing the ball away, which we need to correct on Tuesday."

 

The Saints (1-4) are a young team whose top three point scorers are sophomores, and two of the top six point getters are freshmen. Chris Robertson has tallied 11 points on six assists and five goals while midfielders Tim Cousin and Brian Prunty are tied for the team lead with six goals, adding three and two helpers, respectively. Rookie attacks Keenan Cook and (4g, 3a) and Mike Reilly (3g, 4a) along with junior Jordan Barlow (5g, 2a) have registered seven points. The Saints are also a rested group, last playing nine days ago at St. John's in a 10-9 loss.

 

"They have had nine days to prepare for us and we will expect things we haven't seen from them and things they have not yet done before," said Pressler.

 

Conversely, the Saints are much more experienced on the defensive end, led by junior Joe Arcarese, who leads the team and sits fourth in the MAAC with 1.6 caused turnovers per game. Siena also has a veteran between the pipes in senior Tommy Cordts, who has started all five games and is making 9.20 saves per outing. Cordts made 11 stops in the 2014 play-in meeting against the Black and Gold.

 

"We're going to be challenged against a veteran group and a goalie we saw a couple years ago," said Pressler. "You factor in us playing at their place this time, it will be as difficult a road challenge as we'll face all year."

 

The big matchup of the day will be at the X, as the Saints have been solid on the faceoff. Junior Tyler Pantalone is converting 50 percent of his opportunities to sit second in the MAAC, also leading the team with 19 ground balls. Sophomore Kenny Massa (Huntington, N.Y.) went 11-for-22 at the X against Drexel and he's wining 53 percent of his faceoff opportunities to rank third in the NEC. Massa is corralling 6.43 ground balls per game to sit 12th in the country.

 

"For us at the faceoff it's all about Kenny and coach Casey Broderson," said Pressler. "They are attached at the hip and really do a great job with one another in preparing for the opponent. We need to get off to a quicker start then we have been, and we need Kenny to play well to be successful."

 

Tuesday's contest will be the first away game in over a week, a week that was filled with two top-10 opponents and a familiar Drexel side.

 

"The whole thing with this game was to break up spring break," said Pressler. "A home stretch like we just had with an away game during a week in which all of our student body is on break is a positive for us and what we wanted."

 

Tuesday's battle in Loudonville can be seen live on StretchInternet.com and followed along via livestats on SienaSaints.com.