Bulldogs Continue GWLL Play, Travel to Ohio State Friday

April 13, 2006

THE FACE-OFF: Butler (3-7) continues Great Western Lacrosse League play Friday, traveling to Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium in Columbus, Ohio for a 7 p.m. face-off against the Buckeyes of Ohio State (4-4). The Bulldogs are coming off a narrow 9-8 loss to No. 8 Notre Dame in their GWLL opener, while Ohio State is one of four teams with a 1-0 mark in conference play. Live stats and audio of the game can be accessed at www.butlersports.com.

AROUND THE GWLL: Ohio State is 1-0 in the Great Western Lacrosse League, as are Denver, Air Force and Notre Dame. Quinnipiac opened its first year in the conference 0-3, while Butler is 0-1. This weekend, in addition to the Ohio State vs. Butler match-up, Denver and Air Force will host Notre Dame Friday and Sunday, respectively.

The team that finishes in first place in the GWLL earns the league's automatic bid into the NCAA tournament.

LAST TIME OUT: Butler gave visiting Notre Dame, the eighth-ranked team in the country, all it wanted Saturday afternoon at the Butler Bowl in Indianapolis before falling, 9-8, to the Fighting Irish. Matt Karweck's goal with 4:16 to play proved to be the game-winner for Notre Dame. Sophomore Cliff Smith had three goals and an assist for Butler, which also got scores from Adam Wade (two), Ben Sultze (two) and Jeremy Sieverts.

CLIFFHANGER: Sophomore Cliff Smith has picked up right where he left off during his rookie campaign. The team's top returning scorer from a year ago (18 goals, eight assists in 2005) is once again leading the Butler attack. His 17 goals and 21 points are tops for the Bulldogs in 2006. Smith has scored at least one goal in nine of the team's 10 games this season. His 17 goals are tied for fifth in the GWLL.

ROOKIE ON A ROLL: Freshman Jeremy Sieverts has stepped right into the Butler line-up and found the net often. Sieverts' 12 goals and 16 points both rank second on the team. He owns the team-lead with four man-up tallies. That total also paces the GWLL.

DEFENSIVE EFFORT: After allowing an average of 12.8 goals per game in their first five contests of the season (posting a 1-4 record), Butler has clamped down on defense recently, allowing just 7.8 scores per outing over the past five games. That can be attributed to an experienced defensive unit, led by seniors Gary Gambarani and Steve Forsythe and juniors Brendan Flanagan and Carlos Navarro. Gambarani and Forsythe earned postseason All-GWLL honors last season. Forsythe missed the first two games of the year with an injury.

FACE TIME: Senior Phil Brauch has given the Bulldogs a face-off presence that has been lacking in years past. Brauch is winning 52 percent of his face-off attempts so far this season, good for third in the conference. Brauch went 10-of-15 and 15-of-20, respectively, in the Bulldogs' wins over Bellarmine and Robert Morris. Brauch leads the team with 43 ground balls. His average of 4.30 ground balls per game is fourth in the GWLL

A LOOK AT THE BUCKEYES: Ohio State is 4-4 on the year and is 1-0 in the Great Western Lacrosse League. After opening the season 0-4, the Buckeyes have rebounded to win four in a row. The Buckeyes downed Robert Morris, 11-3, Saturday in Moon Township, Pa. Robert Morris is one of two common opponents between Butler and OSU. Both teams defeated Robert Morris, while Ohio State posted a win against Marist, a team Butler lost to earlier this season.

The Buckeyes are second in the GWLL in goals per game (8.88) and rank second in the league in man-up scoring percentage (.259). Ohio State is allowing 9.49 goals a game. Freshman Joel Dalgarno has a team-high 15 goals and 23 points. Senior Andrew Bender is second with 21 points and ranks first with 11 assists. Sophomore Kevin Buchanan is second in goals (14) and has 20 points to rank third. In the cage, freshman John Bolen has started the last three games, posting three wins, and has a 6.77 goals-against average and .633 save percentage. Freshman Nick Carr has won a team-best 51.1 percent of his face-offs.

LAST MEETING (APRIL 9, 2005): Ohio State downed Butler, 13-9, April 9, 2005, in Indianapolis. Kyle Olson had a team-best three goals for Ohio State in the win. Grant Albertson led the Bulldogs with four tallies. A man-up goal gave OSU a 2-1 lead in the first period and the Buckeyes would never trail after that. Butler out-shot its guests, 40-33.

THE SERIES: Butler and the Buckeyes meet for the 14th time as lacrosse opponents Friday. The Bulldogs lead the all-time series against Ohio State, 8-5, but have dropped the last four meetings, including the last two in Columbus. Last year, Ohio State downed Butler, 13-9, in Indianapolis. In 2004, the Buckeyes posted a 12-5 victory in Columbus.

BUTLER COACH Stan Ross: Ross enters his second season on the Butler sidelines after an impressive inaugural campaign that saw a win over No. 16 and Great Western Lacrosse League (GWLL) champion Fairfield and four Bulldogs earn postseason honors. Ross was named the third head coach in Butler lacrosse history June 16, 2004, arriving in Indianapolis after serving as Towson's top assistant and defensive coordinator for six seasons. He carries an 8-14 career record into today's contest.

QUICK SHOTS: Butler had a balanced attack with seven players accounting for the team's eight goals against Robert Morris. Only Mike Hinker found the net twice while Doug Mathias and Pat Hurto chipped with a goal and an assist each. The two goals were the first of Hinker's career...Junior newcomer Adam Wade is third on the team in scoring with eight goals and 13 points...Cliff Smith and Doug Mathias have the only two man-down goals recorded in the GWLL so far this season...Smith is second in the league in shots per game at 7.10...Buckeye assistant coach Nick Myers spent the last two seasons as an assistant coach for Butler.

UP NEXT: The Bulldogs continue their season-ending GWLL slate, welcoming Air Force (April 21) and Denver (April 23) to the Butler Bowl to conclude the regular season. Sunday's game against Denver will be the final home contest for Butler's eight seniors, who will be recognized prior to the opening face-off.