WHEN: Saturday, March 17 | 2:00 p.m.
WHERE: Vert Stadium | High Point, N.C.
RECORDS: High Point (0-6, 0-0), Bellarmine (2-4, 0-0)
SERIES RECORD: Bellarmine leads 3-2
LAST MEETING: Bellarmine won 7-5 on April 8, 2017
VIDEO: Big South Network
LIVE STATS: HighPointPanthers.Com
GAME NOTES: HighPointPanthers.Com
 
HIGH POINT, N.C. – After a two-week break from games, the High Point University men's lacrosse team begins Southern Conference play against Bellarmine on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. in Vert Stadium.
 
The Panthers last played on March 3 when they traveled to Robert Morris and fell 16-11. Similarly, the Knights haven't played since March 4 when they defeated Marquette 7-6 in double overtime.
 
Quick Hitters
• Freshman Asher Nolting ranks in the top-50 nationally in points per game (23rd), assists per game (36th) and 44th in goals per game (44th). Among freshmen nationally he ranks second in points (4.00/game), sixth in assists (1.67/game) and sixth in goals (2.33/game).
 
• Nolting leads the Southern Conference in points and assists per game while ranking fifth in goals per outing.
 
• Ahead of Nolting, senior Connor Robinson ranks 25th in the nation and third in the league with 2.67 goals per contest.
 
•  For his career, Robinson's 54 goals rank fourth in HPU's record books and he's the third Panther to eclipse 15 goals in three separate seasons.
 
• Freshman Clayton Krol has multiple caused turnovers in each of the past two games and paces the team with seven on the season. Senior Terrell Sands is second with five and has moved to fifth in program history with 33 caused turnovers during his time in the Purple & White.
 
• Sophomore Davis Sampere has climbed to 13th in the nation averaging 6.83 ground balls per game. As a freshman, the Raleigh native set a season-high with six ground balls, but has tied or eclipsed that mark in four straight games and in five of the team's six games.
 
• Nolting's 14 goals are the fifth-most by a freshman in HPU history one behind Robinson's mark from 2015. Also, his 10 assists are tied for the second-most as a freshman.
 
• A season after ranking 65th in the nation averaging 23.29 ground balls per game, High Point is up to 14th in the country picking up 30.50 ground balls per game.
 
• Forty-nine of the Panthers' 82 points have been credited to underclassmen. Meanwhile, nine of the team's 17 points scored at Robert Morris were recorded by freshmen.
 
• The duo of junior Tim Troutner Jr. and senior Zach Tuell are combining for 11.67 saves per game, which puts High Point at 16th nationally.
 
• High Point is 21-17 all-time when playing in Vert Stadium with setbacks to No. 2 Maryland and No. 9 Virginia earlier this season. The Panthers are 8-5 in conference games played in the Triad.
 
• Saturday's matchup features the Southern Conference's top two point scorers with Nolting leading the way (4.00/game) and Bellarmine's Brian Wall sitting in second place posting 3.40 points per contest.
 
Streaking Towards Program Records
• Asher Nolting has scored at least three points in six consecutive games. That's the longest streak since Matt Thistle scored three points in seven straight games from the end of the 2014 season into the 2015 campaign. Thistle's seven-game streak is the longest in HPU history.
 
• Connor Robinson and Nolting have both tallied hat tricks in three straight games, which ties the longest stretch the duo of Dan Lomas and Thistle ever put together.
 
• On his own, Robinson has tallied a hat trick in four straight games and now has six for his career. His four-game stretch ties Loma and Thistle for the longest streak in High Point's program history.
 
Minding the Net, Plus a Little More
• Tim Troutner Jr. is fifth among active players nationally with 11.53 saves per game in his career.
 
• The Annapolis, Maryland native is third in HPU's history in caused turnovers (37) and ranks seventh with 94 ground balls. Meanwhile, the athletic keeper has taken nine shots with two on goal in his career.
 
All-Time Series with Bellarmine
The Panthers are 2-3 all-time against the Knights with the home team winning every meeting.
 
All-Time Mark Against the SoCon
High Point is 15-10 all-time in conference play between the Atlantic Sun and Southern Conference. In league home games, HPU has posted an 8-5 mark.
 
Last Time They Met
HPU jumped out to a 2-1 lead before the Knights went on a 3-0 run to regain control before the break. The Panthers battled back to even at 5-5 early in the fourth before Bellarmine closed the game with back-to-back goals to earn the 7-5 win. Peyton Garrett led the offense with two goals while Troutner made 11 saves in the cage.
 
Next Up
Next up, the Purple & White hit the road to Richmond, Va. on Saturday, March 24 at 1:00 p.m. to take on the Spiders.
 
#GoHPU