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HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point University men's lacrosse team hits the road to take on Jacksonville University in Jacksonville, Fla. at 2 p.m. on Saturday on ESPN3.
 
The Panthers (5-5, 1-1) are coming off consecutive home wins over Air Force and Furman. On the other hand, the Dolphins (4-4, 1-1) have lost their last two games by a combined score of 35-13 and will be looking to rebound against HPU.
 
Last Time Out:
The Purple & White had everything going their way on March 28 in a 10-3 win over Furman at Vert Stadium. Freshman Zach Tuell and the defense had a record-setting day while junior Dan Lomas became the first Panther to reach 100 career goals.
 
Tuell stopped 16 of the Paladin's 18 shots on goal to post a .889 save percentage, the best single-game mark in HPU history. Senior Pat Farrell and junior Zack Price each caused four turnovers to help the Panthers hold Furman to three goals, the fewest allowed in High Point's three seasons.
 
Lomas scored the 100th goal of his career seconds before halftime, then added two more after the break to lead the squad with three goals. Sophomore Michael LeClair racked up four points (2g, 2a) while redshirt-junior Brad James chipped in with his seventh goal of the year.
 
Junior Jamie Piluso, the SoCon Offensive Player of the Week, controlled the face-off circle going 11-of-14 (.768) along with tallying six ground balls and a goal.
 
A trio of freshmen stepped up in the win. Jason Ashwood had his first career multi-goal game with two scores and also racked up four ground balls. T Moyer dished out two assists for the first time while Peyton Garrett notched his first career goal.
 
The Opponent:
The Dolphins opened the season 4-2 but have since dropped consecutive games to Richmond and Air Force. Jacksonville took a 1-0 lead before the Falcons responded with a 15-2 run and cruised to an 18-5 win on March 28 at Air Force. Eight different players tallied a point for JU with no one registering multiple points.
 
Junior Tom Moore is the leading scorer in the Southern Conference averaging 4.38 points per contest (15g, 20a). Moore's brother, redshirt-senior Rob Moore, is the team's second leading scorer with 18 points (7g, 11a). Meanwhile, sophomore Chase McIntyre is tied for the team lead with 15 goals and has tallied one assist.
 
The battle in the face-off circle will feature the SoCon's top two face-off specialists. Sophomore Sam Rosengarden sits atop the league with a .596 face-off percentage (87-of-146). HPU's Jamie Piluso is right on Rosengarden's heels with a .593 face-off percentage (146-of-246).
 
Defensively, junior Bass Barfield has started all eight games in goal for the Dolphins and is sixth in the conference in save percentage (.475) and goals against average (12.98). Senior Austin Curtis is the team's top defender and has caused 10 turnovers and collected 28 ground balls in 2015.
 
Killing penalties will be crucial for both teams, as HPU and JU are the top two squads in the conference in man-up scoring percentage. 
 
Panther Notes:
• The Panthers and Dolphins have played one-goal games in both of their two meetings. JU won the first game 9-8 (3/2/13) before HPU won 8-7 (3/1/14). Junior Dan Lomas has led the Panthers in scoring in both games against JU with three goals in 2013 and four points (2g, 2a) last season.
 
• Juniors Dan Lomas and junior Matt Thistle along with sophomore Michael LeClair combined to score 125 points last season. That makes them the nation's fourth highest scoring returning trio. All three are among top-five scorers in the SoCon. LeClair is second with 3.70 ppg while Thistle is third (3.62 ppg) and Lomas is fifth at 3.00 per game.
 
• Freshman Zach Tuell won Defensive Player of the Week with 16 saves and a .889 save percentage against Furman. Meanwhile, junior Jamie Piluso won 11-of-14 (.786) face-offs and scored a goal to win the offensive honor.
 
• Junior Dan Lomas notched three goals in the win over Furman to reach 102 goals in his career. He is the first player in HPU history to score 100 goals.
 
• The Panthers have had 25 different players tally a point this season. In comparison, only 22 Panthers were credited with a point in 2014. High Point has had 10 different players score a goal during its two-game winning streak.
 
• Senior Pat Farrell and junior Zack Price have combined to cause 36 turnovers this season. Farrell has 19 and Price has 17.
 
• Freshman Zach Tuell has started the last two games in goal and has helped HPU earn back-to-back victories. The Gainesville, Va. native has 25 saves and a .694 save percentage this year.
 
Next Up:
The Purple & White will be back in Vert Stadium on April 11 at noon for another SoCon showdown with Richmond.
 
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