GAME #16: No. 8 Cornell vs. No. 5 Maryland
FACEOFF: Sunday, May 12, at 1:00 p.m.
SITE: Byrd Stadium (College Park, Md.)
2013 Records: Cornell (12-3, 6-0 Ivy); Maryland (10-3, 2-1 ACC)
SERIES RECORD: Maryland leads, 13-3-1
LAST MEETING: Maryland won, 8-7 (3/18/00)

LIVE STATS: www.UMTerps.com
LIVE AUDIO: http://www.cornellbigred.com/showcase/
LIVE VIDEO: http://es.pn/mlax-CORNELLvsUMD
RADIO: WHCU 870 AM
TELEVISION: ESPN2

Game Notes (PDF)

THE MATCHUP – After a one-year absence, the eighth-ranked Cornell men's lacrosse team returns to the NCAA tournament for its ninth appearance in the past 10 seasons, taking on sixth-seed Maryland at Byrd Stadium on Sunday, May 12 at 1 p.m. The Terrapins are ranked fifth in the current USILA Coaches' Poll and received an at-large bid out of the ACC. The game can be viewed by a nation-wide audience on ESPN2.

SERIES HISTORY VS. MARYLAND —The Big Red first took on Maryland in 1921, three seasons prior to lacrosse becoming a varsity sport for the Terrapins. Cornell won that first meeting, 2-1, before playing to a 2-2 tie during the 1922 season. The teams would not meet again until 1929, when it was an official game for both teams, and Maryland went on to win four consecutive contests spanning 36 seasons (1929, 1951, 1963, 1965). The Big Red picked an opportune time to end that streak, defeating the Terrapins 12-6 in the very first NCAA national championship game (1971). After losing to the Terrapins in the 1974 semifinals, Cornell defeated Maryland in 1976 to win another national championship. The teams would not play again until 1993, the first of eight straight regular season meetings, all of which were won by the Terrapins to account for their 13-3-1 all-time lead in the series … Maryland does not count the first two meetings in the series as official games.   

CORNELL VS. THE ACC – Cornell is 15-28-1 all-time vs. the current members of the ACC, thanks mostly to a 3-13-1 record against Maryland. The Big Red holds a winning record vs. Duke (4-3) and North Carolina (4-3) but has a losing mark vs. the Terrapins and Virginia (4-9).

A WIN OVER MARYLAND WOULD –
• improve Cornell to 31-21 overall in NCAA tournament games.
• propel the Big Red into the NCAA tournament quarterfinals for the fourth time in five seasons.
• be Cornell's second consecutive victory against an ACC opponent.
• improve head coach Ben DeLuca's career record to 36-10 and 2-1 in NCAA tournament games.
• give the Big Red 13 victories in a season for the second time in three years under DeLuca.
• improve Cornell to 3-1 all time in NCAA games vs. Maryland.
• be the 713th win in program history.

TOP 10 ABSENCE – Of the 10 winningest programs in NCAA Division I men's lacrosse history, only three – Cornell, Maryland and Syracuse – are participating in the 2013 NCAA tournament.

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 35-10 overall record.

COACHING CONNECTIONS – While the Big Red and Maryland have not faced off since the 2000 season, Terrapin head coach John Tillman is not completely unfamiliar with Cornell, having graduated from East Hill in 1991. Prior to UMD, Tillman was the head coach at Harvard  from 2008-10, during which time his teams went 0-3 against the Big Red. Additionally, a member of Tillman's staff, associate head coach Ryan Moran is the great-nephew of former Cornell head coach Richie Moran.

HOW'D WE GET HERE – With its eighth-ranked RPI, the Big Red earned an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament with a 12-3 record overall and mark of 6-0 in the Ivy League. Cornell will make its ninth NCAA tournament appearance in the last 10 seasons. Maryland earned a number six seed as an at-large bid out of the ACC conference. The Terrapins have advanced to the national championship game for the past two seasons, falling short of a national both times.

TOURNAMENT TIDBITS – Cornell's 30 NCAA tournament victories ranks fifth all-time, while its 25 appearances ranks seventh … Only six teams have more national titles than the Big Red … The 2013 season marks Cornell's ninth trip to the NCAA tournament in the past 10 years, making it to the quarterfinal round six times, the semifinals three times and the national championship once during that span.

FOUR SURE — Cornell has had its share of Final Four appearances in NCAA team competition over the years. Of those Big Red teams, the men's lacrosse team has made the most appearances with 12 overall.
• Men's Lacrosse (12) - 1971, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1982, 1987, 1988, 2007, 2009, 2010
• Men's Ice Hockey (8) - 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1980, 2003
• Women's Ice Hockey (3) – 2010, 2011, 2012
• Women's Lacrosse (1) - 2002
• Men's Soccer (1) – 1972

TITLE CONTENDERS – Cornell University has made 12 appearances in various NCAA national championship games … The Big Red has had five teams crowned as national champions.
• Men's Lacrosse (7) – 1971 (W), 1976 (W), 1977 (W), 1978, 1987, 1988, 2009
• Men's Ice Hockey (4) – 1967 (W), 1969, 1970 (W), 1972
• Women's Ice Hockey (1) – 2010
 
CHAMPIONSHIP LINEAGE – Two players on the 2013 roster have fathers that won a national championship with the Big Red – Cody Levine (Jon '76) and Matt Taylor (Joe '80). Jon Levine won a title in 1976, while Joe Taylor won with the 1977 squad … Additionally, Connor Entenmann's father, Ken '85, and Russell Scott's uncle, Sam Happel '82, were both on the national semifinalist team in 1982, while Mike O'Neil's uncle, Geoff Hall '88, played on the national runner up squads in 1987 and 1988.

50-50 – With 48 goals and 44 assists, respectively, Steve Mock and Rob Pannell are looking to become the first pair of Cornell teammates to register 50 goals and 50 assists in the same season since Mike French scored 65 goals and Eamon McEneaney tallied 61 assists in 1976.

GOT 99 GROUND BALLS, ALL HE NEEDS IS ONE – Doug Tesoriero needs one more ground ball to become just the eighth player in Big Red history to collect at least 100 ground balls in a season. He will be the first since John Glynn picked up 105 in 2009.

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 a major conference award in each season they played, as both were 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) were 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 13 more assists to pass Brown's Darren Lowe (205; 1989-92).

OVERTIME NOTES – With its overtime game vs. Princeton on May 3, 2013, Cornell has played at least one overtime game in each of the past seven 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 6-4 record in overtime games.

HITTING THEIR SPOTS – The Big Red has put at least 20 shots on goal in each of its last eight games, and 12-of-15 contests this season. Meanwhile, the Cornell defense has allowed opponents to put 20 shots on goal just four times.

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.

CAUSING A COMMOTION – Senior Jason Noble has registered the third-most career caused turnovers among all active Division I defenders with 111.

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). He is tied with Pierce Bassett (Johns Hopkins) and sits one victory ahead of Nick Amato (Maryland) and John Kemp (Notre Dame), who are tied for fourth 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 332 and needs 11 more points to match Joe Vasta (Air Force; 1983-86).

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), man-down defense (eighth – .741), scoring margin (first – 5.53), points per game (third – 21.87), ground balls per game (fifth – 37.0) and caused turnovers per game (third – 10.0).

MOCK FROM PANNELL – So far this season, Rob Pannell has been credited with the assist on 22 of Steve Mock's 48 goals (47 percent). Of the 118 goals Mock has scored while playing with Pannell (14 were scored during Pannell's injury in 2012), 46 have been assisted on by Pannell (39 percent).

NATIONAL CAREER ASSISTS LEADER – Rob Pannell is the national leader in career assists with 193. That is 79 more assists than Lehigh's David DiMara, who sits in second place with 114.

GAINING ON GOALS LIST – Rob Pannell is currently in third place in Cornell history with 139 career goals and needs just two more to surpass Ryan Hurly (2007-10) in second place … Steve Mock currently sits in fifth place with 132 career goals and needs four more to match Sean Greenhalgh (2002-05) with 136.

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).

CLOSE CALLS — Since the beginning of the 2003 season, Cornell is 30-13 in games that have been decided by a single goal, a mark that was lowered when the Big Red fell to No. 16 Princeton, 14-13 in overtime during the 2013 Ivy League tournament. Of the 13 losses, 11 have come against ranked opponents, including eight against squads ranked in the top-10, five of which were ranked either No. 1 or No. 2 in the nation.

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.

RANKED OPPONENTS – Maryland will be the ninth nationally ranked opponent that Cornell will play  so far this season. The Big Red is 5-3 vs. those opponents with all three losses coming by a single goal (9-8 vs. Bucknell; 13-12 vs. Syracuse; 14-13 (OT) vs. Princeton).

BALANCED OFFENSE – So far this season, Cornell has gotten 180 points from its attack (55 percent) and 148 points from its midfield and defense. 

GOOD OFF THE GROUND – The Big Red entered the week ranked fifth in the nation with 37.0 ground balls per contest, thanks in large part to Doug Tesoriero (18th – 6.6 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 52 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-180 games (.6762).

NINE IS FINE – Offensively, Cornell has scored at least nine goals in 42 of the 45 games (93 percent) under head coach Ben DeLuca, with 36 games in double figures. The Big Red has surrendered nine or fewer goals 27 times during that same span.

RULE FOLLOWERS – In the 78 games played since the start of the 2009 season, the Big Red has been flagged for more penalties than its opponents on just 24 occasions.

ELITE COMPANY – Over the span of the past five seasons (2009-13), Cornell has racked up the fourth-most wins (60) of any Division I men's lacrosse program and has posted the fourth-best winning percentage (.750) overall.

NEXT UP – With a victory over Maryland, the Big Red would return to Byrd Stadium next weekend and take on the winner of the Ohio State/Towson matchup in the NCAA quarterfinal game on Saturday, May 18. The game would faceoff at either 12:30 p.m. or 3 p.m.