No. 3 YALE vs. No. 2 PRINCETON
Ivy League Tournament
Friday, May 3 – 6 p.m.
Schoellkopf Field
Ithaca, N.Y.
ESPNU Video | Live Stats | Championship Central | Game Notes
 
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – It isn't often that the Yale men's lacrosse team finds itself playing the same opponent twice in a row. That's the scenario facing the Bulldogs as they head to Ithaca, N.Y., for the Ivy League Tournament. Yale, seeded third, meets No. 2 Princeton on Friday at 6 p.m. The two teams played last Saturday at Reese Stadium with the Tigers posting a 15-8 win.
 
Top-seeded Cornell plays No. 4 Penn in the second semifinal on Friday at 8:30 p.m. The two winners advance to Sunday's 1 p.m. championship game. ESPNU will televise all three games of the tournament with Chris Cotter, Paul Carcaterra and Quint Kessenich on the call.
 
The winner of the tournament earns the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
 
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:
 
• Yale (11-3, 4-2 Ivy) is ranked No. 12 in the USILA Coaches poll and No. 13 in the Inside Lacrosse media poll.
 
• The Bulldogs are the only team to have qualified for all 13 Ivy Tournaments.
 
• Yale had its seven-game winning streak snapped last Saturday in the loss to Princeton. It was the Bulldogs' longest streak since early in the 2018 NCAA championship season.
 
• Yale has now won 10 or more games in seven of the last eight full seasons. Since 2010, the Bulldogs have won at least 10 games in 11 of 13 full seasons.
 
• Yale is the top scoring team in the nation at 15.93 goals per game.
 
• The Bulldogs are third nationally in ground balls (36.93) and fourth in winning percentage (.786).
 
• Yale leads the Ivy League and is 17th nationally in faceoff winning percentage (.560).
 
• Matt Brandau became the Ivy League's all-time leader in career points last week against Princeton. His second goal of the afternoon late in the third quarter was the 355th point of his career, surpassing Cornell's Rob Pannell. It also was the 197th goal of Brandau's career, tying him with Brown's Dylan Molloy for the most in Ivy history. Brandau's 159 career assists are the seventh most in league history.
 
• Brandau's 356 career points are the fifth most in Division I NCAA history, and his 197 career goals tie him with Brown's Molloy for the seventh most in NCAA history.
 
• Brandau's 97 points this season tie him with Jon Reese (1990) for the third most in a season in school history. Ben Reeves is the record holder with 115 points in 2018. Brandau's 54 assists are the second most in a season at Yale, trailing only Jason O'Neill, who had 73 in 1990.
 
• Brandau, the Ivy League Player of the Year and a Tewaaraton Award nominee, is the national leader in points per game (6.93) and assists per game (3.86).
 
• Machado Rodriguez, who has missed the last three games due to injury, is the national leader in faceoff winning percentage (.640). His current .640 winning percentage would be the fourth best in a season in school history.
 
• Sophomore David Anderson has 35 goals on the season, which is second on the team, after not scoring last spring in his first year.
 
• Junior Johnny Keib has scored 21 goals this season after combining for 14 in his first two seasons.
 
• Junior Carson Kuhl also has well-surpassed his career high in goals with 28 this season. He has scored five goals in the last two games.
 
• First team All-Ivy defender Patrick Pisano is second in the Ivy League in caused turnovers (1.50 per game). Jack Stuzin is seventh (1.31 per game).
 
• Goalie Jared Paquette is third in school history with 587 career saves.
 
• Yale and Princeton are playing for the sixth time in the last three seasons and the third straight year in the postseason. The Tigers have won four of the five, including a victory in the championship game of last year's Ivy League Tournament and a win in the quarterfinals of the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
 
SCOUTING PRINCETON
 
The Tigers (9-4, 4-2 Ivy) have won five of their last six games, including last Saturday's victory over Yale. Princeton defenseman Colin Mulshine and short stick defensive midfielder Marquez White both were first team All-Ivy selections. Defenseman Michael Bath, goalie Michael Gianforcaro, faceoff specialist Andrew McMeekin, attackman Coulter Mackesy and midfielder Chad Palumbo were named to the second team. Mackesy, who scored five goals in last Saturday's game, leads Princeton in goals (34) and assists (18) and is tied with Jesse Hubbard for the most goals by a Princeton player ever through his junior season (117). Mackesy is also a Tewaaraton Award final 25 Nominee. Gianforcaro, who has started all 13 games in goal, leads the league with a 10.00 goals-against average. He made 16 saves in last Saturday's game.
 
IVY TOURNAMENT HISTORY
Yale is seeking its sixth Ivy League Tournament title. The Bulldogs won in 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2017. Yale has advanced to the championship game in each of the last seven tournaments. Last year in New York, the Bulldogs lost to Princeton 19-10 in the title game. Yale's all-time record in the tournament is 14-7.