Bulldogs trek west for battle with Canisius Thursday

This is the first-ever meeting between the Bulldogs and Golden Griffins. This is also the first time that Bryant has taken a trip to Western New York to play any of the four Division I programs in the area.

 

After losing their first three games of the season, Canisius has bounced back to win two of their last three, including defeating common opponent Delaware and Ivy foe Yale. This will be the third of four in a row that they will play at home.

 

The Golden Griffins are led offensively by Jourdan Roemer and Jen Reninger. Roemer has scored 14 goals and added 11 assists while Reninger leads the Griffs with 16 goals and has chipped in three assists. In the cage, Rebecca VanLaeken has started all six games, recording a 13.02 GAA and .494 save percentage.

 

The Bulldogs have faced five of the nine programs that offer women's lacrosse in the MAAC and will make it seven by the end of the weekend. In addition to their first-ever meetings with Canisius and Niagara in 2018, Bryant will also play Siena later in the year. The Bulldogs used to face Monmouth and Quinnipiac when they were in the Northeast Conference and have also played Iona and Manhattan.

 

Bryant's offense has earned national rankings after four games this season, placing in the Top 10 in four different categories. Bryant is fifth in the country in free position percentage (.563), while sitting seventh in scoring offense (16.25) and points per game (23.00) and eighth in scoring margin (5.75). Additionally, Jess DeMeo is currently second in the country in goals per game (4.75) and 11th in points per game (5.50). Caitlin Breglia ranks third nationally in free position percentage (.875), fourth in free position goals per game (1.75) and ninth in assists per game (2.50). 

 

Bryant has been able to be one of the best offensive teams in the country based on their ability to hold onto the ball. The Bulldogs rank first in the country in turnovers per game, only giving it away 11.50 times per game. Additionally, Bryant only turns the ball over on 28.7 percent of their possessions, which leads the country by over two percent, according to AnalyticsLacrosse.com.

 

Sophomore Caitlin Breglia recorded 11 points on Saturday afternoon, tying the program record for points in a game. That tied her for second-most nationally for points in a game this season, trailing UMBC's Sara Moeller. The six assists she dished out were also second in the country for most assists in a game by a single player. The Long Beach native's previous career-high was seven points against Mount St. Mary's on April 28, 2017.

 

Junior Jess DeMeo set a new Division I program record and tied the overall program record by scoring eight goals against Harvard on Saturday afternoon. That number is also the second-highest number of goals in a game this season, trailing Sam Apuzzo of Boston College by one. DeMeo's previous career high was seven goals when she tallied that many last March against UMass Lowell.

 

The Bulldogs are 35-14 away from Smithfield under the direction of Jill Batcheller, including a perfect 18-0 in Northeast Conference regular season games on the road. In the 2016 season, Bryant went a perfect 9-0 on the road.

 

The Bulldogs have won 13 of their last 15 games in Smithfield, including a season-opening win against Albany on February 24. The Black and Gold are coming off a perfect 9-0 record at the Bulldog Track and Turf Complex in 2017, in which they defeated teams by a combined margin of 84 goals. That includes five games in which Bryant defeated its opposition by 10 or more goals.

 

With a record of 67-29, sixth-year head coach Jill Batcheller is the winningest coach in Bryant history. Her winning percentage of .705 is 11th nationally among active coaches in the NCAA and third-highest among active coaches in New England.