GAME #15: No. 2 Cornell vs. No. 15 Princeton
FACEOFF: Friday, May 3, at 8:00 p.m.
SITE: Schoellkopf Field (Ithaca, N.Y.)
2013 Records: Cornell (12-2, 6-0 Ivy); Princeton (8-5, 3-3 Ivy League)
SERIES RECORD: Princeton leads, 38-35-2
LAST MEETING: Cornell won, 17-11 (4/27/13)

LIVE STATS: http://www.sidearmstats.com/cornell/mlax/scoreboard.aspx
LIVE AUDIO: http://www.cornellbigred.com/showcase/
LIVE VIDEO: http://es.pn/mlax-PRIvCORNELL
RADIO: WHCU 870 AM
TELEVISION: None

Game Notes (PDF)

THE MATCHUP — For the No. 2 Big Red men's lacrosse team, the postseason begins this weekend as the program hosts the Ivy League Tournament for the third time in four seasons as the top seed. Cornell will battle Princeton for the second time in a week with faceoff slated for Friday, May 3 at 8 p.m.  The first game will feature Yale vs. Penn at 5 p.m.

SERIES HISTORY VS. PRINCETON —The Cornell and Princeton rivalry began in 1922 with an 11-1 victory for the Tigers. Princeton would dominate the next 24 meetings, winning or tying all but one contest, to help it to a 38-34-2 record in the all-time series. Cornell would win 22-straight games vs. the Tigers from 1968 to 1989, but Princeton is still the only Ivy League team to boast a winning record against the Big Red, as they again dominated the series throughout the 1990s. Cornell has won nine of the last 12 after a victory over Princeton earlier this season in the Big City Classic.

A WIN OVER PRINCETON WOULD –
• propel Cornell into the Ivy League Tournament championship game for the third time in four seasons. 
• improve head coach Ben DeLuca's career record to 36-9 and 3-1 vs. the Tigers.
• make Cornell 13-2 to start a season for the second time in three seasons under DeLuca.
• make the Big Red 7-0 against Ivy League opponents in a season for the second time in three years under DeLuca.
• make the members of the senior class 4-2 vs. Princeton.
• mark the sixth time in program history that the Big Red would sweep consecutive games against the same opponent.
• be the 713th win in program history.

THE HEAD COACH — After spending 10 years as first an assistant, then an associate head coach of the Big Red program, Ben DeLuca was named the Richard M. Moran Head Coach of Cornell Lacrosse prior to the 2011 season. In his first campaign, he led Cornell to a 14-3 record, an undefeated Ivy League season, an Ivy League tournament title and the team's eighth consecutive trip to the NCAA tournament. The 10th head coach in program history, DeLuca played for, or coached under Cornell's last three coaches – Richie Moran, Dave Pietramala, and Jeff Tambroni. DeLuca earned four letters on defense for the Big Red, serving as captain his senior year and went on to be named the team's outstanding senior athlete for his leadership and dedication on and off the field. Now in his third season with Cornell, he holds a 35-9 overall record.

THREE-TIME IVY LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE YEAR – Rob Pannell is the first men's lacrosse player in the history of the Ivy League to be named the conference Player of the Year three times. . He joins Duke's Matt Danowski (2005, 2007, 2008), Colgate's Brandon Corp (2007, 2008, 2009), and Army's Tim Pearson (1999, 2001, 2002) as the only players in NCAA Division I men's lacrosse history to earn three conference Player of the Year honors during their career … Danowski and Pannell are the only two players to win four major conference awards, as both where named conference Rookie of the Year as well. Pearson was named Rookie of the Year and Co-Player of the year in 1999, but did not win a major conference award in 2000.

TICKLE THE (ALL) IVY – In addition to being named the Ivy League Player of the Year, Pannell was a first-team All-Ivy selection. He is joined on the first-team by linemate Steve Mock, midfielder Connor Buczek and defenseman Jason Noble. All four of Cornell's first-team selections were unanimous choices, with Pannell earning an unanimous selection for the third consecutive season. Additionally, seniors Max Van Bourgondien (midfield), Thomas Keith (long-stick midfield) and AJ Fiore (goalie) where named second-team All-Ivy.  The four first-team selections are the most since the 2009 team, while the seven overall honorees are the most since the 2007 squad placed nine on the various All-Ivy teams.

FOUR-TIME FIRST-TEAM ALL-IVY – Rob Pannell is just the third player in Ivy League history to be selected first-team All-Ivy all four seasons, joining former Big Red great Max Seibald '09 and Princeton standout Chad Wiedmaier '12.

IVY KINGS – Since Ivy League play began in 1956, Cornell has won a conference-high 27 titles, including 17 undefeated crowns. The Big Red also has the best Ivy League record of any team in the conference at 242-97-1 (.713).

ALL-TIME IVY LEADER – With his three points at Brown on April 20, Rob Pannell set the all-time Ivy League points record, passing Brown's Darren Lowe (316; 1989-92).

SEEKING IVY ASSIST RECORD – The all-time Cornell career assist leader, Rob Pannell ranks second in Ivy League history,  needing just 16 more assists to pass Brown's Darren Lowe (205; 1989-92).

A BAKER'S DOZEN – For the 13th time in his career, Rob Pannell has earned one of the Ivy League's weekly honors, as he was named the conference's Player of the Week on April 29.  The senior attackman was named Rookie of the Week twice during his freshman season and has gone on to pick up 11 Player of the Week awards, including four times already this season.

HOME IS WHERE THE WINS ARE — Since 2001, the Big Red has gone 76-16 at Schoellkopf Field, including perfect slates in 2011 (8-0), 2009 (6-0), 2007 (7-0) and 2005 (6-0).

TEWAARATON TROPHY NOMINEES – The Tewaaraton Foundation has announced the 2013 Tewaaraton Award nominees and Steve Mock and Rob Pannell have made the cut. The list includes the top 25 players across all three divisions of NCAA lacrosse.

FOURTH QUARTER CONTROL – When the Big Red has a lead heading into the final quarter of play, the team is nearly perfect, going 10-1 so far this season and 29-1 all-time under head coach Ben DeLuca. Cornell had won 27 games in a row when leading at the end of the third quarter before a 13-12 set-back to Syracuse on April 10, 2013.

CAUSING A COMMOTION – Senior Jason Noble has registered the third most career caused turnovers among all active Division I defenders with 109.

JUST WIN, BABY – Senior AJ Fiore has the second most career wins (36) of any active Division I goalie, sitting three victories behind Bucknell's Kyle Feeney (39), but a victory ahead of Pierce Bassett (Johns Hopkins) and John Kemp (Notre Dame), who are tied for third place.

THE 300 – With his five points vs. Siena on March 26, Rob Pannell became the eighth player in the history of NCAA Division I men's lacrosse, and second in the Ivy League, to register 300 career points. He currently ranks third all-time with 327 and needs 16 more points to pass Joe Vasta (Air Force; 1983-86).

LEADING MAN – With his three points against Penn on March 23, Rob Pannell became the Big Red's all-time leading point scorer, surpassing Mike French (296; 1974-76). Earlier in the season, his four assists at Virginia on March 9, 2013 moved him into first place in Cornell history for career assists, overtaking Eamon McEneaney '77 (164).

TOP 10 NATION – The Big Red opened the week ranked in the top 10 nationally in several statistical categories, including scoring offense (second – 14.5), scoring margin (first – 6.0), points per game (third – 21.79), ground balls per game (fifth – 36.71) and caused turnovers per game (second – 10.14).

MOCK FROM PANNELL – So far this season, Rob Pannell has been credited with the assist on 20 of Steve Mock's 44 goals (45 percent). Of the 115 goals Mock has scored while playing with Pannell (14 were scored during Pannell's injury in 2012), 44 have been assisted on by Pannell (38 percent).

THE CENTURY MARK – In the 2013 season opener against Hobart, senior attackman Steve Mock became the 39th player in Cornell history to reach 100 career points. On March 16 against Yale, he became just the seventh Cornell player all-time to accumulate 100 career goals.

NATIONAL CAREER ASSISTS LEADER – Rob Pannell is the national leader in career assists with 190. That is 76 more assists than Lehigh's David DiMara, who sits in second place with 117.

GAINING ON GOALS LIST – Rob Pannell is currently in third place in Cornell history with 137 career goals and needs just four more to surpass Ryan Hurly (2007-10) in second place … Steve Mock currently sits in fifth place with 129 career goals and needs seven more to match Sean Greenhalgh (2002-05) with 136.

CLOSE CALLS — Since the beginning of the 2003 season, Cornell is 30-12 in games that have been decided by a single goal, a mark that was lowered when the Big Red fell to No. 8 Syracuse, 13-12, on April 10, 2013, in Ithaca, N.Y. Of the 12 losses, five have come against a team ranked either No. 1 or No. 2 in the nation.

RANKED OPPONENTS – Princeton will be the eighth nationally ranked opponent that Cornell will play  so far this season. The Big Red is 5-2 vs. those opponents with both losses coming by a single goal (9-8 vs. Bucknell; 13-12 vs. Syracuse).

PLAYER OF THE WEEK BRIGADE – Cornell had seven Ivy League Player of the Week selections this season, more than twice as many awarded to any other team. Rob Pannell (Feb. 25, March 11, April 22, April 29) has earned the award four times, including being this week's selection, while Steve Mock (March 18, April 8) earned the honor twice. Jason Noble (March 4) earned the award one time.

NOBLE'S GOT SENIOR CLASS – Jason Noble has been named one of 10 finalists for the 2013 Senior CLASS Award in men's lacrosse. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – community, classroom, character and competition. Nationwide fan voting begins immediately to help select the winner. Fans are encouraged to vote on the Senior CLASS Award website or on the Senior CLASS Award Facebook fan page through May 13. Fan votes will be combined with media and Division I head coaches' votes to determine the winner.

BALANCED OFFENSE – So far this season, Cornell has gotten 168 points from its attack (55 percent) and 137 points from its midfield and defense. 

WIN NO. 700 – Cornell's 12-6 victory over Syracuse on April 10, 2012 was the 700th win in program history. The Big Red is now 712-444-27 all-time, and its 712 victories rank seventh among the winningest programs in collegiate lacrosse.

GOOD OFF THE GROUND – The Big Red entered the week ranked fifth in the nation with 36.7 ground balls per contest, thanks in large part to Doug Tesoriero (18th – 6.29 gbpg.) and Thomas Keith (34th – 5.07 gbpg.).

HUMAN VACUUM – Jason Noble has been the Big Red's most consistent ground ball guy, registering at least one ground ball in all but one game during his career. He currently has the longest streak on the team at 51 games.

SINGLE-DIGIT DEFENSE – Since his time as the defensive coordinator of the Big Red began during the 2002 season as an assistant coach, now-head coach Ben DeLuca has led a defensive unit that has held opponents to single-digits in 121-of-179 games (.676).

NINE IS FINE – Offensively, Cornell has scored at least nine goals in 41 of the 44 games (93 percent) under head coach Ben DeLuca, with 35 games in double figures. The Big Red has surrendered nine or fewer goals 27 times during that same span.

RULE FOLLOWERS – In the 77 games played since the start of the 2009 season, the Big Red has been flagged for more penalties than its opponents on just 23 occasions.

NEUTRAL ZONE – Cornell is 3-4 in neutral site games under head coach Ben DeLuca with the team's most recent victory coming in a 17-11 triumph against Princeton on April 27, 2013 at MetLife Stadium (E. Rutherford, N.J.).

EMPIRE STATE OF MIND – Cornell has traditionally been very successful against collegiate teams from New York state, posting an all-time record of 275-158-7 (.633). Head coach Ben DeLuca has posted a record of 14-2 (.875) vs. teams from the Empire State … The Big Red has faced six teams from New York in 2013 and is 5-1 in those games … Cornell had a 12-game winning streak against teams from the Empire State snapped in its 13-12 loss to Syracuse on April 10, 2013.

NON-CONFERENCE WINS — Cornell owns a 47-12 record in its last 59 regular-season non-conference games (80 percent), dating back to the Big Red's 16-14 victory over Syracuse in the Carrier Dome on April 12, 2005.

DISMISSING DARTMOUTH – Cornell's 21-goal output against Dartmouth on March 30 was the Big Red's highest scoring outing in four seasons, as it defeated Penn, 21-10, on March 28, 2009.

THE NATURAL – Sophomore Matt Donovan registered a natural hat trick against Canisius on March 5, scoring three times in the span of 1:49 in the fourth quarter. It was the Big Red's first natural hat trick since Scott Austin posted three consecutive goals in a span of 4:39 in the fourth quarter of an 18-7 victory against Yale on March 20, 2010. Of Donovan's three goals, one was a man-down, one was a man-up and one was at even strength … Just over one month later, senior Max Van Bourgondien posted a natural hat trick at Harvard in a span of 1:46 in the fourth quarter to give Cornell the 14-12 victory.

A NOBLE EFFORT – After holding the reigning Tewaaraton Trophy winner to just one meaningless assist and only three shots, none of which were one goal, in Cornell's 19-3 victory against Colgate, Jason Noble was named the Ivy League Co-Player of the Week. He is the first defensemen to win the award since Brown's Peter Fallon on April 26, 2010.

ELITE COMPANY – Over the span of the past five seasons (2008-12), Cornell has racked up the fifth-most wins  of any Division I men's lacrosse program and has posted the fifth-best winning percentage overall.

WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS … AND THE RUNNERS UP – Cornell had three players participate in the Federation of International Lacrosse U19 World Championships, held last summer in Turku, Finland. Connor Buczek and the United States took home the gold medal, while Dan Lintner and Brennan Donville both won silver with Team Canada.

OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN – For the third straight season, Rob Pannell will serve as captain of the Big Red men's lacrosse team. He is joined by fellow seniors Steve Mock, Jason Noble and Tom Trasolini.

HARD HAT – Joe Paoletta was selected to carry the Hard Hat for the 2013 season. The tradition of the Hard Hat began in the fall of 1999. Midway through the fall season, a player is selected to carry the Hard Hat for the year. The recipient is someone that the coaches feel demonstrates a blue-collar approach to the game of lacrosse; he is driven and selfless, not the most talented player on the field but consistently the hardest worker. He puts the team first and embodies how the coaches want Cornell players to act and respond on or off the field.

OVERTIME NOTES – With its overtime game vs. Virginia on March 10, 2012, Cornell has played at least one overtime game in each of the past six seasons, dating back to a 12-11 overtime triumph over Albany in the 2007 NCAA quarterfinals. During that span, the Big Red has posted a 6-3 record in overtime games.
 
CHAMPIONSHIP LINEAGE – Two players on the 2012 Cornell roster have fathers that have won a national championship with the Big Red – Cody Levine (Jon '76) and Matt Taylor (Joe '80). Jon Levine was on the 1976 team, while Joe Taylor was on the 1977 squad … Additionally, Connor Entenmann's father, Ken, was on Cornell's national semifinalist team in 1982, while Mike O'Neil's uncle, Geoff Hall, played on the Big Red's national runner up squads in 1987 and 1988.

GEOGRAPHY LESSON – The 42 players on the 2013 Big Red roster hail from 12 different states –California, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, and three Canadian provinces – Alberta, British Columbia and Ontario.

GEOGRAPHY LESSON, PART TWO – Since 1950, the Big Red has had players from 33 different states – Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia and Wisconsin.

NEXT UP – With a victory over Princeton, the Big Red would go on to play the winner of the Yale/Penn semifinal game in the Ivy League Tournament championship at Schoellkopf Field on Sunday, May 5 at 11 a.m. If Cornell falls to the Tigers, the Big Red will have to wait to learn its NCAA tournament fate.