Big Green Set for Home Opener Saturday; Gametime Now at 2 p.m.

By: Justin Lafleur

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GAME 3
Dartmouth (2-0, 0-0 Ivy League) vs. Siena (2-1, 0-0 MAAC)
Date: Saturday, March 4, 2023 – 2 p.m.
Location: Hanover, N.H. – Scully-Fahey Field
All-Time Series: Dartmouth, 2-0
Watch Live | Live Stats
 
Saturday’s Game
Following two road wins to begin the season, the Dartmouth men’s lacrosse team is set for its home opener on Saturday, with the opening faceoff now set for 2 p.m. due to snow in the forecast Friday into Saturday. The game will be streamed on ESPN+. The Big Green enter the weekend as one of just seven undefeated teams in the nation, vying for a 3-0 start for just the second time since 2006.
 
The other unbeaten teams nationally are Virginia, Notre Dame, Cornell, UMBC, Robert Morris and Saint Joseph’s. The Big Green are coming off a dominant 17-6 win at Holy Cross, taking a 12-0 halftime lead and leading 17-4 in the final minute of play before the Crusaders tacked on two man-up goals in the final minute. The 11-goal margin marked the first time Dartmouth has won by double figures (and largest margin of victory) since a 16-2 win over Hartford on Mar. 9, 2004. It was Dartmouth’s largest win on the road since a 19-6 win at Adelphia on Mar. 16, 1994.
 
The Big Green dominated possession on Saturday, holding a 63-24 edge in shots, due in large part to senior Mitchell Myers finishing 17-for-21 for the game, which included starting 10-for-10. Holy Cross also turned the ball over 31 times, with the Big Green causing 13 of them and impressing on the ride. The Crusaders were just 20-of-30 facing off. Dartmouth held a 12-0 halftime lead, but it could have been more if it wasn’t for Crusaders’ goaltender Dawson Friers, who made 16 first-half saves.
 
Sophomore Colin McGill led the offense with six points via three goals and three assists. He now has 12 points through two games; his 6.0 points per contest are good for fourth nationally. Ironically, the top four in points per game are all from the Ivy League. Myers’ 72.3 winning percentage on faceoffs is tops in the league and sixth in the country. Sophomore Quinn Moore saw his first action of the season Saturday and in his first-career start, exploded for a career-high five goals (he had one in his career entering the game). Sophomore Brandon Ventarola added three goals and one assist for his first-career hat trick.
 
Freshman defenseman Max LaTorre led Dartmouth with three caused turnovers, while adding two groundballs and an assist to win Ivy League Rookie of the Week. He became the Big Green’s second straight Rookie of the Week, following goaltender Sam Cooper after the Merrimack victory.
 
Dartmouth will be facing Siena out of the MAAC for a second straight season and third time in program history. Saturday marks the only nonleague home game for the Big Green, who hit the road on Thursday for Hobart.
 
With a Win…
– Dartmouth would improve to 3-0 for just the second time since 2006 (with the other being the COVID-19 shortened 2020 season).
– The Big Green would improve to 3-0 all-time against Siena.
– The Big Green would win their seventh nonleague game in their last nine tries dating back to last season, and 10th in their last 14 tries dating back to 2020.
 
Scouting Siena
Siena stands 2-1, owning wins over NJIT (12-11) and UMass Lowell (16-12) along with a loss at Providence (18-11). Ryan McCarthy leads the Saints with 11 points (eight goals, three assists) while Christian Watts owns 10 (eight goals, two assists). Seven different players own multiple assists for an offense that’s averaging 13.0 goals per game. Brian Mack leads Siena with five caused turnovers. Dylan Pope owns a team-leading 24 groundballs while winning 65.7 percent of his faceoffs (46-of-70). Christopher Yanchoris has played every minute in goal, tallying a 13.67 goals against average and 41.4 save percentage.
 
Last season, the Saints finished 6-9 and 3-3 in the MAAC, falling to top-seeded St. Bonaventure in the conference tournament.
 
All-Time Against The Saints
Dartmouth leads the all-time series against Holy Cross, 31-2. The Big Green won the first 28 meetings, with the Crusaders winning two of the last five. The teams last played in 2014, a 17-12 Dartmouth win in Hanover. The year prior, the Big Green lost at Holy Cross by an 11-10 final. The only other Crusaders’ victory in the series came in 2010, winning 13-8 at Dartmouth.
 
LaTorre Named Rookie of the Week After Holy Cross Win
After goaltender Sam Cooper won Ivy League Rookie of the Week following the Merrimack win, defenseman Max LaTorre received the honor after a dominant performance at Holy Cross. LaTorre was an integral part of the Big Green defense, which shut-out the Crusaders in the first half, on the way to a 17-6 win — the program’s largest margin of victory since 2004 and largest margin of victory on the road since 1994. The Far Hills, N.J. native finished with two groundballs, a game-high three caused turnovers and his first-career point (an assist). The Big Green were leading 12-0 at the half and 17-4 in the final minute of play. LaTorre helped lead a defense that allowed just seven first-half shots (only three on goal), with only 24 total shots for the game (only 13 of which were on goal). Holy Cross turned the ball over 31 times for the game and didn’t score for the first 36:17 of the contest. LaTorre’s assist came on Colin McGill’s goal as the first quarter expired.
 
Individual, Team Recognition After Merrimack Win
Dartmouth beat Merrimack, 11-10, in its season opener on Feb. 18. The win came over a previously 3-0 team, as Merrimack, Syracuse and Navy were the only 3-0 teams in the nation entering the day (with all ironically falling on Saturday).
 
The victory got some local and national attention, with three individuals earning weekly honors.
– Freshman goaltender Sam Cooper was named Ivy League Rookie of the Week after making 10 saves, including four in the fourth quarter.
– Sophomore Colin McGill was named Dartmouth Athletics’ Male Athlete of the Week following his four-goal, two-assist performance.
– Senior Tommy Rogan was named to the USILA/Dynamic National Team of the Week as one of just 10 players in all of Division I recognized. He finished with two goals and three assists, and had a hand in all four of Dartmouth’s fourth-quarter goals to play a critical role in the victory.
– The Big Green were also listed on Quint Kessenich’s top 20 among the teams “pollsters have their eyes on.”
 
Road Warriors
Dartmouth will be road warriors in 2023, with eight of its 12 games coming away from home. Five of the Big Green’s six nonleague contests will be on the road, with the exception of a Saturday, Mar. 4 matchup vs. Siena. Opening faceoff is set for 2 p.m. at Scully-Fahey Field.
 
Lombardo Joins Staff
In July, Dartmouth men’s lacrosse head coach Brendan Callahan announced the addition of Evan Lombardo to his staff as a volunteer assistant coach.
 
Lombardo comes to Hanover after a two-year stint as a graduate assistant with the University of Lynchburg men’s lacrosse team. Lombardo worked primarily with attackmen, focusing on skill development while supporting scheme and culture as well as the Man-Up team.  During his time on the coaching staff, he coached six All-Americans and 12 All-Conference selections. He helped the Hornets to two conference championships and an appearance in the NCAA Elite 8 in 2021. Lombardo was a member of the coaching staff that was named the 2021 USILA Regional Coaching Staff of the Year and the 2022 Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) Coaching Staff of the Year.
 
As a player for Lynchburg, Lombardo was a two-time USILA All-American (2017, 2018) and a USILA Scholar All-American (2019). He finished his career with 210 goals, the second most in program history, fourth most in ODAC history, and 25th most in NCAA DIII history.
 
Lombardo graduated from Lynchburg in 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education before graduating with a master’s degree in education leadership this past May.
 
Follow Along
Saturday’s game can be seen on ESPN+ with Matt Corsetti on the call.
 
What’s Ahead
Following Saturday’s game, the Big Green hit the road for a midweek matchup at Hobart. Gametime in Geneva, N.Y. is set for 3 p.m.