POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (March 19, 2015) - The Vassar College men's lacrosse team will return to the comforts of the Prentiss Sports Complex to face No. 18 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute on March 21, 2015 at 3:00 pm.

Game Details
Opponent: #18 RPI (5-2, 0-0 Liberty League)
Links: (RPI Men's Lacrosse Homepage) (Roster)(Stats)(Schedule)
Site: Poughkeepsie, NY
Facility: Weinberg Field
Date: March 21, 2015
Time: 3:00 pm
Coverage: (Live Stats) (Live Video)

Last Time Out
Vassar scored seven straight goals in the third quarter, while sophomore Chris Billups (Watchung, NJ/Oratory Preparatory) and junior Noah Parson (Cary, NC/Panther Creek) combined for seven goals and three assists to help the Brewers knock off Adams State University 14-12 on March 17.

A Look at the Engineers (5-2, 0-0 Liberty League)
RPI comes into Saturday's game as the 18^th ranked team in the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association Poll, riding a four-game win streak dating back to March 4. After opening the season 1-2, the Engineers have rattled off wins against Wesleyan, Oneonta, Connecticut College and Ursinus to stand at 5-2 on the season. Coming off an 11-5 season in 2014 and first round exit in the Liberty League Tournament, RPI is well on its way to repeating upon its success a season ago.

The Engineers are led offensively by sophomore Breanainn McNeally and junior Patrick Finn, who have combined for 46 points through the team's first seven games. McNeally has twice been named the Liberty League Offensive Performer of the Week this season, and leads RPI in goals scored with 18. Finn has a team-best 24 points on 13 goals and 11 assists.

Sophomore David Gibbs has started all seven games in the cage for the Engineers, holding a .630 save percentage and 7.6 GAA. Gibbs has twice been named the Liberty League Defensive Performer of the Week. Sophomore Ben Piersiak has taken over 90% of the team's faceoffs this season, winning 77-151 for a .510 faceoff percentage.

Against RPI All-Time
The Brewers will be looking for their first-ever win over the Engineers on Saturday. RPI earned a commanding 17-3 victory over the Brewers when the team's met last season on March 22 in Troy, NY.

Look Out for Snow
There is a chance of snow in the Poughkeepsie area this weekend, so stay tuned to vassarathletics.com for updates or cancellations for this weekend's game.

Point Man
Sophomore Brandon DeStasio (West Hempstead, NY/Chaminade) has been one of the team's most effective offensive producers this season, leading the team in assists (8) with at least one in every game so far for VC. The midfielder ranks fifth in the conference in assists per game (1.6) and has already doubled his assist total from last year (3) in just five games.

Faceoff Forte
Vassar's 21 faceoff wins against Adams State are the most in school history since at least 2002, topping the team's previous game-high of 19 against Kean University on February 27, 2013.

Senior Scott Brekne (Stony Brook, NY/Ward Melville) has been outstanding on faceoffs for the Brewers this season, winning 26 of 36 restarts for a whopping .722 faceoff pct. Brekne is quickly approaching 300 career faceoff wins, coming into Saturday's game with 291 in the burgundy and gray.

Good Behavior
After starting the year with 18 penalties in the team's first three games, the Brewers were more cautious with infractions the past week, averaging just 2.5 per game against Colorado College and Adams State. Vassar has reaped the rewards on the defensive end, allowing just one man-up goal the past two games compared to six allowed through the squad's first three matchups.

Parson Making Moves
Junior Noah Parson is now tied for seventh all-time at Vassar in both career points (86) and goals (59) after his three-goal, two-assist performance against ASU.

Parson is also inching toward the school record in man-up goals, coming into Saturday's matchup with 11 in his career. He now sits just two extra-man goals behind Jack Gross ('12), who finished his Brewer career with a program-record 13 man-up goals.

Rocky Mountain Moriarty
Sophomore Liam Moriarty (New Fairfield, CT/New Fairfield) had a big week for the Brewers during their spring break trip to Colorado, finishing with three goals and an assist against both Colorado College and Adams State. He was on fire to start the game against the Grizzlies, scoring VC's first three goals while assisting on another to help pace VC to a 14-12 victory.

Don't Call it A Comeback
Vassar's 9-8 comeback victory over Western Connecticut on March 12 was one of the biggest in school history, and the largest come from behind win for the Brewers since at least 2002. After going down 7-1 in the first half, VC rallied to outscore the Colonials 8-1 in the second half to erase the six-goal deficit. Vassar's previous best comeback in the modern era was a 9-7 triumph over Curry College on March 15, 2003 when VC came back to win after being behind four.

D Stepping Up
After allowing seven goals in the first half against Western Connecticut, the Vassar defensive unit clamped down allowing only one goal and six total shots in the third and fourth quarters. The Brewers forced the Colonials to commit nearly twice as many turnovers in the second half, led by a game-high four caused turnovers from sophomore Brandon Klein (Merrick, NY/John F. Kennedy).

Up Next
Vassar will play another home game next week when the team hosts Mt. St. Mary on Wednesday, March 25. Faceoff at Weinberg Field is slated for 6:00 pm.