#19 Bryant takes on #4 Syracuse in NCAA rematch Sunday at 7:30 p.m. on ESPNU

THE PARTICULARS
The Bulldogs advanced into the field of 16 after a 9-8 victory over MAAC Champion Siena College Wednesday night at home in one of two NCAA play-in games and take on second-seeded and fourth-ranked Syracuse University for the second-consecutive season in the NCAA First Round. Sunday's 7:30 p.m. contest can be seen live on ESPNU and WatchESPN and is the final of eight opening-round matchups.

THE SERIES
The Orange topped the Black and Gold, 12-7, in the first meeting of the series almost a year ago in the 2013 NCAA First Round despite the Bulldogs racing out to a 4-0 lead early in the first quarter.

SCOUTING THE ORANGE
Syracuse makes its 34th trip to the NCAA tournaemtnt in 2014 and is 65-22 all-time in the postseason with an 11-4 season record entering Sunday's opening round. The 11-time national champion enters the tournament as the No. 2 for the eighth time and is ranked No. 4 in both the latest USILA Coaches Poll and Warrior/Inside Lacrosse Media Poll. The Orange are paced on the year by the ACC's leader in points per game in junior Kevin Rice, who ranks fourth in the nation in both points per game (5.07) and assists per game (2.87). Dylan Donahue leads Syracuse in scoring with 36 markers and is one of three 30-goal scorers on the Orange roster (Rice, 33; Randy Staats, 32). Syracuse has seen 17 different players get on the board for its top-10 ranked scoring offense (13.27 goals per game), and Sunday's hosts rank third in the nation with 21.53 points per outing. The Orange are less effective on defense, ranked 57th in the country in goals allowed at 11.80. Chris Daddio is above 50 percent from the faceoff X (177-346), averaging 5.87 ground balls per game.
BRYANT vs. THE ACC
Sunday's game marks the fifth meeting between the Bulldogs and a current member of the ACC, and Bryant has faced four different teams within the conference. the Black and Gold are still looking for their first victory over an ACC opponent and is 0-4 all-time, having dropped single games to Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia and Syracuse.

LAST TIME AGAINST THE ORANGE
Now-senior midfielder Colin Dunster scored twice in the opening minute, and the Bulldogs took a 4-0 lead through the opening seven en route to a 5-5 halftime draw last season at the Carrier Dome. Syracuse would outscore the Bulldogs, 4-2, in the third and do all the scoring in the fourth to hold off the Black and Gold for the 12-7 final. Junior faceoff specialist Kevin Massa was sensational at the X, winning 22-of-23 with eight ground balls to finish the year with a trio of NCAA single-season records. Dunster would register three goals on the night, while now-graduated attack Peter McMahon recorded a hat trick of his own. Starting goalie and current sophomore Gunnar Waldt made 10 saves between the pipes. Syracuse saw a hat trick from Dylan Donahue and two goals with two assists from Kevin Rice, while netminder Dominic Lamolinara made eight saves in the NCAA First Round victory.

QUICK HITS
» A Matter of Record: Bryant enters NCAA First Round action with a 67-38 (.638) overall record at the Division I level (six seasons).

» Postseason Success: The Bulldogs are 8-2 in the Division I era in postseason play (includes NEC and NCAA tournament).

» Fieldwork: The Bulldogs are 4-0 against the NCAA tournament field this year, earning regular-season victories over Drexel (12-6), Albany (12-11) and Richmond (9-6) and taking a 9-8 win over Siena in the NCAA play-in Wednesday afternoon.

» Know Your Limits: Backed by one of the nation's best in sophomore netminder Gunnar Waldt, the Bulldogs have limited opponents to single-digit goals in all but two contests this season. The only teams to break through to double figures were top-ranked scoring offense Albany (12-11 Bryant win) and intrastate rival Brown (13-11 loss).

» First Come, First Serve: The Bulldogs are a perfect 13-0 on the year when getting on the board first, but fall to just 3-3 when allowing opponents to get the first score of the game.

PRESSLER IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
Eighth-year head coach Mike Pressler makes his 15th NCAA tournament appearance in 2014 and second since taking over the helm at Bryant University. Before arriving in Smithfield, Pressler brought his Duke program to the dance 10 times, including an appearance in the 2005 national championship, and prior to that led Ohio Wesleyan to three-straight NCAA Division III title games. All-time in NCAA tournament action, Pressler is 18-16 (.529) with a 10-11 mark (.476) at the Division I level (Duke, Bryant).

THREE-PEAT: BULLDOGS DEFEND NEC TITLE
Despite entering the 2014 Northeast Conference Tournament as the #2 seed, the Bulldogs defended their 2012 and 2013 tournament crowns in Philadelphia, topping three-seed Sacred Heart, 12-8, in last Thursday's NEC Semifinal before earning a 10-4 victory over fourth-seeded Hobart on May 3. Top-seeded host Saint Joseph's fell to the Statesmen in the NEC Semis to set up the #2 vs. #4 matchup.

BULLDOGS IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
Bryant made its first appearance in the 2014 national rankings back on March 10 and has been there ever since, climbing as high as No. 12/11 back on March 31. That ranking marked a Division I program best. The Bulldogs enter the week ranked No. 16 in the Warrior/Inside Lacrosse Media Poll and No. 19 in the USILA Coaches Poll.

WHAT'S YOUR NUMBER?
Bryant is 3-1 against nationally ranked opponents so far in 2014. This season, the Bulldogs have earned home wins over then-No. 14/15 Bucknell (12-9) and then-No. 17/18 Drexel (12-6) and also took home a road win over the University at Albany when it was ranked No. 13 in the nation (12-11). The Bulldogs' only loss to a ranked opponent came against regional rival Yale, 9-8, when the Elis were ranked 12th in the country.

MIGHTY MASSA
The top ground ball man in the nation again in 2014, junior faceoff specialist Kevin Massa has once again eclipsed the single-season 200-ground ball mark, entering Sunday's game with 209. Last season, Massa became the first player in NCAA Division I history to surpass 200 grounders in a single campaign, setting a new NCAA record with 231 at year's end. As a team, the Bulldogs are currently ranked sixth in the nation and average 35.11 ground balls per game, with 11 coming from Massa alone. Massa also leads the nation in faceoff winning percentage at 71.4 percent.

YOU SOUND LIKE A BROKEN RECORD
With his 14-save performance against Siena in Wednesday's NCAA play-in, sophomore goalie Gunnar Waldt set a new Bryant record for saves in a season (209). He is just the second Bryant player to top the 200-save mark in a single campaign and broke Jameson Love's record of 204 set in 2012. Senior midfielder Colin Dunster set the program's Division I record for career goals (107) this spring, while he and fellow senior captain Alex Zomerfeld broke the all-time program mark for career appearances (73) in Wednesday's victory.

BULLDOGS GARNER NEC PLAYER, DEFENSIVE PLAYER & ROOKIE OF THE YEAR, ADD 10 ALL-LEAGUE ACCOLADES
Headlined by three major award winners – repeat NEC Player of the Year Kevin Massa, NEC Defensive Player of the Year Gunnar Waldt and NEC Rookie of the Year Tucker James – the Bryant University men's lacrosse team saw nine different players collect all-conference honors, as announced by the league April 30. Six players took home All-NEC First Team honors, as Massa and Waldt were joined by sophomore attack Shane Morrell, senior defenseman Matt MacGrotty and senior midfielders Colin Dunster and Alex Zomerfeld. James added an All-NEC Second Team pick to his Rookie of the Year honor, and the freshman joined redshirt-frosh LSM Cody O'Donnell and freshman defenseman Kyle Mummau as NEC All-Rookie Team selections.

POLE POWER
Just a redshirt-freshman, longstick midfielder and local product Cody O'Donnell led the nation in longpole scoring this season, firing home 10 goals — eighth most on the Bryant side. O'Donnell added four assists to his season numbers for 14 total points, a number that ranks second in the nation among longpoles behind Villanova senior John LoCascio (18 points). For his career, the NEC All-Rookie Team selection has 15 points, good for eighth among all active longpoles in the Division I ranks.

NEC TOURNAMENT NUMBERS
Sophomore attack Shane Morrell paced the Black and Gold on the 2014 NEC Tournament, finding the back of the net eight times while finishing the weekend with nine points and the game-winning goal Thursday against Sacred Heart. Senior midfielder Colin Dunster tallied the game winner in Saturday's NEC Championship and finished the tournament second on the team with seven points (4g, 3a). Between the pipes, sophomore Gunnar Waldt stood tall, posting a skimpy 6.08 goals against average with 21 saves and a .636 save percentage. Two-time NEC Player of the Year Kevin Massa was impressive from the faceoff X, going 35-of-39 (.897) on the set while adding 29 ground balls. The quartet were all named to the NEC All-Tournament Team for their efforts, while Massa was named the NEC Tournament Most Valuable Player.

MASSA, WALDT NAMED TEWAARATON SEMIFINALISTS
Boasting some of the nation's top statistics at their respective positions, sophomore goalie Gunnar Waldt and junior faceoff specialist Kevin Massa have been named 2014 Tewaaraton Award nominees. This is the first time in program history the Bulldogs have seen multiple players named semifinalists for the national player of the year honor but marks the third-straight season and fourth time overall Bryant has been represented on the prestigious list. The pair are the sole representatives out of both the Northeast Conference and New England, and Waldt is one of just two netminders and one of just four sophomores to make the 28-player cut, while Massa is the only faceoff specialist to be named a Tewaaraton Award nominee.

Waldt earns the nomination on the strength of top-10 numbers in every statistic between the pipes, entering the week ranked fourth in save percentage (.611), fifth in goals against average (7.44) and eighth in saves per game (11.00). The sophmore anchors Bryant's fifth-ranked defense (7.42 goals allowed per game) and third-ranked man-down unit (.779) and has made 209 saves through 19 games. Named a Midseason All-American by both Inside Lacrosse and Lacrosse Magazine, Waldt earned his first All-NEC First Team selection and was tabbed as the league's Defensive Player of the Year.

A Preseason Second Team All-American and now two-time NEC Player of the Year, Massa is the nation's leader in both faceoff winning percentage (.714) and ground balls per game (11.00). The owner of three single-season NCAA records (set in 2013), he posted his second-consecutive 200-ground ball season in 2014 and contributes on offense as well, tallying five points with a quartet of goals.

Eight schools, including Bryant, saw two or more players nominated. Waldt and Massa become the third and fourth Bryant players to be named Tewaaraton Award semifinalists, after Mason Poli did so in each of the last two seasons. Zack Greer was a finalist for the honor back in 2009.

DUNSTER, ZOMERFELD SELECTED IN 2014 MLL DRAFT
Senior midfielders Colin Dunster and Alex Zomerfeld won't be done with lacrosse at the conclusion of the 2014 season, as both were taken in January's Major League Lacrosse (MLL) Collegiate Draft. The 2014 captains becomes the fourth and fifth Bulldogs to be drafted into the MLL ranks, with Dunster selected 30th overall (fourth round) by the Denver Outlaws and Zomerfeld taken 58th (eighth round) by the New York Lizards. This season, Dunster ranks second on the team with 44 points, coming on the strength of a team-leading 33 tallies, while Zomerfeld is Bryant's leading distributor, boasting 38 points and 24 assists.

OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN
Senior midfielders Colin Dunster, Alex Zomerfeld and JK Poirier along with senior defenseman Matt MacGrotty were elected by their teammates as Bulldog captains in 2014.