Bulldogs clash with Friars in Ocean State Cup matchup Saturday at 1 p.m.

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University men's lacrosse team hits the road for the first time this season Saturday afternoon, opening up 2016 Ocean State Cup action at Providence College at 1 p.m. at Chapey Field.

The Bulldogs (1-1) will look to bounce back from a comeback that fell just short last time out against Bucknell, 11-10, as the Black and Gold will need more consistency on attack to get past a Providence (1-1) side that has held opponents to single digits in both its opening matchups.

The Friar defense has been paced by strong play from Tate Boyce between the pipes, with the freshman having posted 22 saves and an 8.50 goals against average in the 1-1 start. Jarrod Neumann leads the close defense after earning a trio of preseason accolades, including a Preseason All-America Honorable Mention nod from Inside Lacrosse.

But the Friars have also been getting it done via an offense paced by senior Will Mazzone. En route to earning the first BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week accolade of the season, Mazzone was unstoppable in the team's 12-8 win over Holy Cross, registering eight points off an impressive six goals and two assists Feb. 12. The attack also tallied a pair of scores and a helper in the team's 2016 opener against Boston University despite the 9-5 loss.

Mazzone (24 goals, 11 assists in 2015) paces four top-six scorers from a season ago who have returned for the Friars, and he is joined by a trio of midfielders in senior Michael Perettine (16g, 2a), sophomore Joshua Keller (11g, 2a) and junior Keenan Assaraf (6g, 5a). But PC has also already seen significant contributions from freshman attack Brendan Kearns (5g, 2a) and junior attack Ryan Schaffer (3g, 4a) in the opening two games of the year.

Bryant will counter with a strong starting offensive six that has been led early on by sophomore attack Cam Ziegler (Carlsbad, Calif.) and junior midfielder Ryan Sharpe (Poway, Calif.). With six goals and three assists in two contests, Ziegler paces the Bulldog attack with nine points, while Sharpe and classmate Tucker James (Essex Fells, N.J.) have each chipped in seven.

At the X, Colin McKendry will continue taking faceoff duties for Saturday's hosts, going 14-of-29 (.483) through the season's early goings. He will match up against Bryant sophomore Kenny Massa (Huntington, N.Y.), who struggled to find the same success against Bucknell (11-of-24) that he did in the team's opener against Manhattan (19-of-22). He leads the side with 18 ground balls on the year.

Standing stalwart behind a tough close defense for the Black and Gold will be All-American and senior captain Gunnar Waldt (Freeland, Md.), who has 18 saves and a stingy 6.81 goals against average early on in 2016, posting a .581 save percentage in the 1-1 start.

The Bulldogs enter Saturday's game owning a 5-1 edge in the all-time series, dating back to the 2010 season. Bryant has won each of the last two meetings, but has done so by just a combined three scores.

Saturday's contest can be followed via Gametracker and also can be seen live on friars.com.