GAME INFORMATION

#11 Harvard at #6 Cornell
DATE/TIME: Saturday, April 9, 2022 at 3 p.m.
SITE: Schoellkopf Field – Ithaca, N.Y.
RECORDS: Harvard 7-1, 2-0 Ivy League / Cornell 8-1, 2-1 Ivy League
BROADCAST: ESPN+
RADIO: WHCU (870 AM, 97.7 FM) (https://whcuradio.com/)
STATS: CornellBigRed.com
GAME NOTES
 

STORY LINES

• Two of the top 20 scoring defenses in the country square off in a battle for first place in the Ivy League standings when No. 6 Cornell welcomes No. 11 Harvard to Schoellkopf Field on Saturday, April 9 at 3 p.m.
• The contest will be broadcast live on ESPN+, while Barry Leonard will air live on WHCU 97.7 FM/870 AM.
• The Crimson (13th nationally in scoring defense, 9.88 gpg.) enter the game in first place atop the Ivy standings (2-0), with Cornell (20th in scoring defense, 10.44 gpg.) breathing down their neck at 2-1.
• The Big Red is off to a strong 8-1 start and is up to No. 6 in the latest USILA Coaches and Inside Lacrosse Media polls.
• On offense, a pair of Tewaaraton Trophy candidates pace an offense averaging 13.1 goals per contest.
• Senior John Piatelli leads the team in goals (30) and is one goal shy of joining the school's top 10 list for his career with 111.
• Two-time Ivy League Rookie of the Year CJ Kirst paces the team in assists (14) and points (43), while ranking second in goals (29) ground balls (27).
• Inside Lacrosse midseason first-team All-American Gavin Adler has been sensational with the long stick, causing 11 turnovers and winning 30 ground balls.
• Fifth-year seniors Joseph Bartolotto III (15 caused turnovers, 16 ground balls), Dom Doria (eight caused turnovers, 13 ground balls) and graduate student Harrison Bardwell (five caused turnovers, 21 ground balls) are also key parts of a defense surrendering just 10.4 goals per game.
• In goal, Chayse Ierlan ranks 20th nationally in goals against average (10.44 GAA) and has at least 10 saves in of his last eight games.
• Face-off specialist Angelo Petrakis is winning 47 percent in the circle, including a 16-of-29 effort against the nation's top-ranked face-off unit in No. 5 Ohio State, and leads the team with 45 ground balls.
 

LAST TIME OUT

• In a defensive war, the Cornell men's lacrosse team got the final stop and the Big Red escaped with an 8-7 win over Dartmouth at Scully-Fahey Field. 
• Chayse Ierlan's save with seven seconds left allowed the Big Red to run out the clock in a game that could have gone either way. 
• The defense in front of Ierlan, who made eight saves in picking up the win, caused 11 turnovers and stood strong against a Dartmouth team that outshot the Big Red 44-38 and controlled possession thanks to an 11-of-18 afternoon at the faceoff "X". 
• Gavin Adler caused four turnovers and scooped up five ground balls, with Piatelli caused a pair himself on the ride and Joseph Bartolotto III.
• Billy Coyle and John Piatelli each had two goals and an assist, with Coyle netting the game winner with 3:08 remaining. 
• It was one of the few shots that got past Dartmouth's Daniel Hincks. 
• The Big Green goalkeeper made 16 saves, including several spectacular stops that kept the Big Red from extending its lead. 
 

THE SERIES VS. HARVARD

First Meeting: 1895
Overall: Cornell leads, 67-26 
In Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell leads, 42-11
In Overtime: Cornell leads, 1-0
Current Streak: Cornell, 3 games
Last Meeting: Cornell, 19-11 (4/6/2019 in Cambridge, Mass.)
Buczek vs. Harvard: 0-0 (0-0 on the road)
Series vs. Harvard: The Cornell and Harvard rivalry dates back nearly as far as both teams' lacrosse programs, as the two squads first squared off in the 1895 season.
• Entering its 94th meeting, the series is the third most contested in the Ivy League, a mark good for 10th in NCAA DI.
• The Big Red won that first meeting, 2-1, and has dominated ever since, holding a 67-26 overall record against.
• Harvard snapped a 16-game losing streak in 2014, and went on to win three in a row (2014-17) to give the Crimson its longest  streak in the series since winning five straight from 1994 to 1998.
 

A WIN OVER HARVARD WOULD

• Give Cornell an 9-1 record.
• Up its record in Ivy play to 3-1.
• Extend Cornell's lead in the all-time series to 68-26, including four straight wins.
• Make Cornell 5-0 at home this season and extend its win streak to seven games at Schoellkopf Field.
• Be the 779th win in program history (778-488-27, .612).
 

SCOUTING HARVARD

• Harvard is 7-1 on the season and in the lone team in the Ancient Eight with a perfect conference mark at 2-0 with wins over Brown and Dartmouth.
• The Crimson's signature non-conference wins include a 14-9 victory at Michigan and a 13-10 home win over Boston University when both teams were ranked in the top 15.
• Harvard is outscoring opponents by 3.9 goals per game and ranks 13th nationally in scoring defense (9.88 gpg.).
• Sam King (19-14-33) and Austin Madronic (20-9-29) lead an offense averaging 13.8 goals per game.
• The Crimson has struggled at the face-off "x" this season, winning 42 percent of the restarts with Steven Cuccurullo winning a total of 68.
• Inside Lacrosse midseason All-American Greg Campisi has a team-leading 11 caused turnovers in front of Kyle Mullin (7-1, .531 save percentage, 10.6 saves per game).
• Third-year head coach Gerry Byrne sports a 9-3 record on the Crimson sidelines.
 

THE RICHARD M. MORAN HEAD COACH

• Connor Buczek '15 (8-1) is in his first season (second year) at the helm of the Cornell men's lacrosse program.
• He was elevated to the Richard M. Moran Head Coach of Men's Lacrosse in the spring of 2020 after five seasons on staff in the capacities of volunteer assistant coach for two years and assistant coach for three.
• His first year in the head coaching role saw the 2021 season get canceled due to COVID-19 and have to navigate his team through the challenges of having the season eliminated due to the pandemic.
• He has served as the offensive coordinator since 2018, and his duties have also included working with the goalies.
• He has helped turn the Big Red offense into one of the most potent units in the country, as Cornell has finished each of its last two seasons ranked among the top-five nationally in shooting percentage, assists per game, shots per game, and goals per game.
• Buczek was a decorated student-athlete during his playing days at Cornell, being named a three-time All-American and unanimous first team All-Ivy selection, among various other awards.
 

MISCELLANEOUS NOTES

• Senior John Piatelli enters the weekend with 111 goals and 153 points — he needs one goal to join the top 10 and 15 more points to hit the top 10 in that category.
• With 305 saves, senior Chayse Ierlan needs 40 more saves to reach the school's top 10 chart.
• Junior Michael Long has 43 career points, just seven shy of 50.
• Dating back to 2020, Cornell is 13-1 over its past 14 games, including an impressive 9-1 away from home.
• Cornell is 2-0 when it wins faceoffs and has won 13 consecutive games when it holds the edge at the circle.
• The Big Red has won 21 consecutive games when holding opponents under 10 goals with its last loss coming in a 7-6 defeat at Princeton to close out the 2016 campaign.
 

MEET THE CAPTAINS

• Joseph Bartolotto III '22, John Piatelli '22, and Chayse Ierlan '22 will serve as the Big Red's captains for the 2022 campaign.
• This marks the second time Bartolotto and Piatelli have been elected captains, having also done so in 2021, while it's Ierlan's first time steering the ship.
 

THIS IS OUR HOUSE

• Cornell has enjoyed a true home field advantage since beginning play on Schoellkopf Field in 1972, going 246-85 for a .742 winning percentage, with 12 undefeated seasons.
• Cornell has been even more impressive since 2000, going 106-30 overall (.782) with perfect slates in 2015 (6-0), 2011 (8-0), 2009 (6-0), 2007 (7-0) and 2005 (6-0).
 

UP NEXT

• The Big Red will have a short turnaround as it travels to Syracuse on Monday, April 11 at 7 p.m. at the Carrier Dome.
• The game will be televised on the ACC Network.
• Syracuse leads the all-time series 66-40-1, though the Big Red has won three of the last five matchups, including a 10-9 triumph at the Carrier Dome in the first round of the 2018 NCAA Tournament.