Friars Remain Undefeated in Conference Play

The Providence College Men's Lacrosse Team beat Canisius College last Saturday, March 28 to improve 3-0 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. Holding the same undefeated conference record as the team started out with last year, it may appear to some that this could be a repeat of the 2008 season. However, Head Coach Chris Burdick refuses to think so.

With a younger and less seasoned squad than last year, Coach Burdick and his squad are starting fresh, but at the same time enjoying similar luck as last season's team.

"This year is completely different," said Burdick. "We are very young so we still do not know exactly who we are, there are still a lot of unknowns."

The Fria's decisive 5-4 victory over Canisius marked their fourth-straight win. Although this is certainly something to be proud of, Coach Burdick is still not completely satisfied and confident. He is careful to not let their so-far perfect conference record get in the way of all the work they still have cut out for them this season.

"I think that we still haven't played a full game of lacrosse," said Burdick. "There are a lot of things we still need to work on. All of the teams we have beat in the MAAC are winless. We still have not beaten a team that has won a game yet."

Canisius started things off hot, scoring the first goal to take a 1-0 lead with 11:46 remaining in the first quarter. However, the Friars would not let the Golden Griffins lead for long. Senior Bobby Labadini answered back with an unassisted goal for the Friars. With only three seconds remaining in the first quarter, junior Colin Tigh found senior Danny Ryan who put it in the back of the net to give the Friars a 2-1 advantage heading into the second quarter.

Preseason MAAC Player of the Year and All-American, Adam Jones, found his rhythm in the second quarter, posting two goals in the first seven minutes to put Canisius ahead, 3-2. However, those would be the only goals that Jones would score for the day. Sophomore Bertan Unal did a phenomenal job covering Jones, holding him to just two goals and one assist.

"Bertan did a good job of tying Adams up," said Burdick.

This would be the last time that the Golden Griffins would lead in the game. Freshman Jake Nolan notched another goal for Providence off an assist from Ryan to tie the game at three with 2:46 left in the half.

The third quarter turned out to be a back-and-forth battle for both teams, with each team committing six turnovers. Although junior Jackson Fallon was able to score an unassisted goal with 8:46 remaining in the third, neither team was able to successfully put the ball in the goal for the remainder of the quarter.

Entering the final 15 minutes of play with a 4-3 lead, the Friars received an important unassisted goal by freshman Chris Mahoney, which gave the Friars a two-goal advantage. Canisius gave the Friars a little scare with only six minutes to play in the game. A man-up goal from Canisius put the Golden Griffins back within one at 5-4 with only 6:02 remaining in the contest. Although Canisius had one more opportunity to score, grad student Colin Reposa successfully forced a critical turnover. Providence regained possession to earn the win as the clock ran out.

Playing a remarkable game for the Friars, senior goaltender Robert Bryan recorded 16 saves for the day, allowing only four goals past him. This .800 save percentage marks his personal best. Bryan, who was named MAAC Defensive Player of the Week, was able to make seven saves in the first quarter and made three crucial saves in the final quarter. His flawless performance was the main reason Providence was able to secure the win.

"I can't believe we won," said Burdick. "I haven't seen goalies do that before. We got beat in every stat except saves."

The team will continue its MAAC campaign with a home-game against Saint Joseph's on Saturday, April 4. The contest against St. Joe's will be a determining factor of strength within the conference, as the Hawks have also yet to lose a MAAC game.

"St. Joe's is going to be a much different opponent than what we have seen so far," said Burdick. "We need to get whatever kinks out that we have so we can put a better brand of lacrosse out there."