BULLDOGS OPEN 2011 SEASON SATURDAY AFTERNOON ON THE ROAD AT ST. JOSEPH’S (1 P.M.)

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University men's lacrosse team will open the 2011 season Saturday afternoon and will face off against a new opponent to the program's Division I repertoire, as the Bulldogs travel to Philadelphia to take on St. Joseph's University at 1 p.m.

The game represents the home opener for the Hawks, who are in search of their first win of the 2011 campaign after falling to Lehigh, 16-7, on Feb. 12 in Bethlehem, Pa. But the Bulldogs have the same goal in mind for their own season opener, particularly since Saturday's game marks the beginning of the program's first season with full NCAA eligibility.

"That is something we are all aware of without being stated," said Bryant head coach Mike Pressler, who enters his fifth season at the helm in 2011. "At the end of the line, whenever our last game is, the opportunity to play for a conference championship and to qualify for the NCAA tournament as an at-large bid is certainly a carrot to which our guys are working, but it's not about our body of work yet. It's about our opener Saturday on the road in Philly vs. a team that we've never competed against in St. Joe's."

St. Joseph's is the only first-time opponent the Bulldogs will play in 2011, and Pressler and his team are looking forward to taking on some fresh faces as the preseason draws to a close.

"We are excited for our first of two trips down to Philadelphia this season and to see have we react to a team we haven't played before," said Pressler. "We appreciate the opportunity Pat Cullinan and his program have given us to come down here and be competition for them in their home opener."

Sophomore Kyle Williams leads the Hawks on the young season, having scored four of SJU's seven goals off nine shots in last Saturday's loss. Griffin Ferrigan made six saves in his 2011 debut before giving way to Chris Moffa, who allowed a goal and recorded a save in six minutes of action.

Faceoff man Will Abbott went just 2-for-20 from the X in the season opener, but the Bulldogs will offer up a new face to oppose him Saturday, sending out graduate student transfer Trever Sipperly (Greenwich, N.Y.) to fill the shoes of the nation's 2010 top faceoff specialist in the now-graduated Andrew Hennessey. Sipperly shouldn't have much trouble handling the pressure, though. After all, he took his old team, the University of Notre Dame, all the way to the 2010 NCAA Championship with his play from the faceoff X.

Sipperly is one of a multitude of new faces for the Bulldogs this season, and he will be joined on the field by returning veterans such as preseason all-americans Max Weisenberg (Long Beach, N.Y.) and Jameson Love (Darien, Conn.), top scorers Travis Harrington (Vestal, N.Y.) and Gary Crowley (Scituate, Mass.), stalwart defensemen Joe Rauchut (Philadelphia, Pa.) and Tim Clinton (Darien, Conn.), and last year's rookie standouts Peter McMahon (Wilton, Conn.), JK Poirier (Coatesville, Pa.) and Mason Poli (Downingtown, Pa.), just to name a few.

"As of Monday, we finished the three-week preseason segment of our 2011 season, and from a coaching staff point of view we are very pleased with our players' efforts and overall quality of practice, in spite of the wintery conditions in Smithfield, R.I.," said Pressler. "For the 48 players dressed in uniform, they've all practiced at a consistently high level, and I credit the senior leadership of this bunch for making that happen."

Weisenberg, a 2010 All-Northeast Conference First Team selection, returns to the midfield after leading the Bulldogs with 29 goals and 41 points last season and is one of three 20-goal scorers and six double-digit goal scorers returning from a year ago.

Rauchut, a four-year senior starter, headlines a back line that will use second-year defenseman Poli to fill in for graduated All-American Matt Murnane, flanked by the experience of such players as Clinton and Ryan Mahoney (Wading River, N.Y.). They will stand guard in front of one of the nation's top goalies in Love, who looks to build upon his already impressive 2010 numbers.

"We are very eager to play against a different color jersey," said Pressler. "With 16 games on our schedule and a fall scrimmage, all our dates were accounted for. So with no scrimmages under our belt in 2011, I truly feel our guys are hungry to play."

Saturday's game kicks off from Finnesey Field at 1 p.m.