ITHACA, N.Y. – The Empire 8 Tournament returns to Higgins Stadium on Wednesday, May 3, when the Nazareth College invades South Hill for a 4:00 p.m. contest in one of two Empire 8 Semifinals. The Bombers and Golden Flyers square-off in a No. 2 vs. No. 3 matchup, while top-seeded Stevens Institute of Technology faces fourth-seed Hartwick College in the other semifinal down in Hoboken, N.J. The winners will face each other at the home field of the highest remaining seed on Saturday, May 6.
 
No. 2 Ithaca College (13-3, 7-1 Empire 8) vs. No. 3 Nazareth College (9-8, 6-2 Empire 8)
Wednesday, May 3, 2017 | 4:00 P.M. | Higgins Stadium – Ithaca, N.Y.
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Game Program (PDF)
LINK
 
Last Time Out - Ithaca
The Ithaca men's lacrosse secured home-field advantage for today's Empire 8 Tournament Semifinal with an 18-8 victory over Hartwick College in the regular-season finale this past Saturday. The Bombers raced out to an 8-1 lead through the opening quarter, while they took a 13-2 lead to halftime. IC coasted to the victory, upping its record to 7-1 in Empire 8 competition, which secured the second seed in the conference tournament.
 
Last Time Out - Nazareth
Nazareth picked up its biggest win of the season in their last game, sealing its place among the Empire 8 Tournament field with an 11-7 home victory over No. 18 Stevens. The Golden Flyers defense was extremely stingy during the opening half, allowing two goals against a potent Ducks' offense in taking a 5-2 lead to halftime. Nazareth maintained the margin during the final 30-minutes, outscoring Stevens 6-to-5 after the break. The victory snapped a seven-game win streak for the Ducks.
 
Januszkiewicz Heating Up
Senior attacker John Januszkiewicz has continued to play a big role in the Bombers' surge down the stretch and seems to be hitting his stride heading into the postseason. He recorded seven points in two games this past week, which included hat tricks against both Elmira and Hartwick. The impressive point totals came in relatively little actual game time, as IC rolled up massive early leads in each contest, allowing Coach Long to delve into his deep and talented group of reserves. Januszkiewicz is up to 27 points on 24 goals and three assists this season.
 
Regular-Season vs. Nazareth
The Bombers won the regular-season contest against the Golden Flyers, taking a 13-8 decision in Rochester, N.Y., on April 8th. The game was extremely close through 30-minutes, as the teams went into the half tied at 3-3. IC took control of the game during the third quarter, outscoring Nazareth 6-to-1 in the frame. Januszkiewicz and sophomore Will Witter each tallied hat tricks, while junior Greg Drillock turned in a four-point effort with three goals and an assist.
 
Empire 8 Success
Ithaca has enjoyed fantastic success in the Empire 8 Tournament over recent seasons. IC has taken home the conference title in two of the last three seasons, winning in 2014 and 2016. However, it was the Golden Flyers who kept IC from a three-peat over that stretch, winning a tight 9-8 contest in the E8 Championship Game in 2015.
 
Nazareth Series History
The Golden Flyers have been a thorn in the side of the Bombers over the years. IC is 11-23 all-time against Nazareth; however, the series has been even over recent years with Naz holding a slim 7-6 edge dating back to 2008.
 
Burdick Sparks the Attack
The Nazareth attack has flowed through senior midfielder Hunter Burdick this season. He leads the Golden Flyers with 51 points, ranking third on the team with 26 goals, while far-and-away pacing the squad with 25 assists. It has been a breakout year for the talented senior, who's previous career high for points in a season was 24, which he tallied in each of the previous two seasons.
 
Well-Balanced Attack
The Nazareth offense is well-rounded, with several different options that can pose problems for opposing defenses. Although the team boasts a single 30-goal scorer in Jack Crowley (30), four other players have hit the 20-goal mark this season, while Anthony Basile is sitting on 19 heading into Wednesday. Burdick (26), Paul Walter (29), Joe Eiskant (22) and Jacob Gray (20) all have shown ability to put up big scoring numbers this season. In total, 30 different players have found the back of the net for Nazareth this season.
 
Faceoff Battle
Ithaca will have its hands full on Wednesday with Nazareth faceoff specialist Seth DeLisle. He has won 272-of-373 draws on the year, which is good for a 72.9-percent success rate on the year. On the year, Nazareth has posted the third-best team percentage in NCAA Division III this season, posting a 70.5-percent mark.
 
Man-Up Struggles
While the Golden Flyers have excelled at the 'X' this season, they have struggled to capitalize with the man-up advantage. Nazareth ranked last in the Empire 8 and 216th in the country with just a 15.3-percent success rate on its 71 man-up chances this season. Naz has scored 13 goals with the man-advantage this year.
 
Looking Ahead
The winner of tomorrow's matchup will face the winner of the other Empire 8 Semifinal on Saturday, May 6. Start time is scheduled for 12:00 p.m., but may be subject to change depending on host site.