A Top-10 Road Test Awaits No. 5 Ohio State on Saturday
3/3/2022 9:18:03 AM | Men's Lacrosse
MORE INFO: Game Notes / 2022 Schedule & Results / 2022 Roster / 2022 Stats
IN THE NEWS: Watch: Myers Previews Cornell / Watch: Myers on the Tim May Podcast
| Ohio State vs. Cornell • The Basics | |
| Date: | March 5, 2022 |
| Time: | Noon |
| Venue: | Schoellkopf Field; Ithaca, N.Y. |
| Watch: | ESPN+ |
| Game Notes: | Ohio State / Cornell |
| All-Time Series: | Cornell leads, 3-2 |
| Last Meeting: | Cornell won, 17-16, in Columbus (March 1, 2020) |
| Twitter: | @OhioStateMLAX |
| Instagram: | @OhioStateMLAX |
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Two of the nation’s 10 remaining unbeaten teams clash on Saturday in Ithaca, N.Y. as No. 5-ranked Ohio State and ninth-ranked Cornell square off at noon at Schoellkopf Field.
The game will be streamed on ESPN+ and live stats will be available on the schedule page of OhioStateBuckeyes.com.
Following Along
No. 5 Ohio State at No. 9 Cornell / Saturday, March 5 / Noon / Schoellkopf Field; Ithaca, N.Y.
Watch Live (ESPN+) / Live Stats / Twitter Updates
Briefly on the Buckeyes
- Ohio State moved up three spots in this week’s USILA Coaches Poll to No. 5 on the strength of its 17-12 win over Harvard last Saturday night in Naples, Fla.
- The Buckeyes possesses the nation’s No. 2 scoring offense, averaging 18 goals per game. They’ve score 17 or more goals in all four games this season.
- On the other end of the field, the Buckeyes have the No. 8-ranked scoring defense. They’re allowing 9.00 goals per game and twice in the first four weeks have given up seven or less scores.
- Fifth-year senior Justin Inacio, who is No. 1 nationally in face-off win percentage at .776, has 18 or more faceoff wins in each game this season. He’s also No. 4 in the country in ground balls per game (9.75).
- In goal, first-year starter Caton Johnson has a .521 save percentage and is coming off back to back games with double figure saves (12 vs. North Carolina, 10 vs. Harvard).
- Head coach Nick Myers has Ohio State off to a 4-0 start for the fourth time in the last six years.
A Top-10 Matchup in Ithaca
- Saturday’s game is the only contest in college lacrosse this weekend between a pair of teams ranked in the top 10 of the most recent USILA Coaches Poll.
- The only other matchup nationally between two unbeaten teams is on Long Island as Rutgers takes on Stony Brook.
Catching Up on Cornell
- Cornell moved to 3-0 on the season Tuesday evening with a 15-12 win over Hobart in Ithaca.
- Billy Coyle had four goals and an assist and Hugh Kelleher and CJ Kirst chipped in three goals and an assist each.
- The Big Red began the 2022 season with a 16-8 win over Albany and followed that up last weekend by topping Lehigh, 9-5.
- Cornell is coached by Connor Buczek, who is in his first season guiding the Big Red. He was hired in the spring of 2020 after the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the remainder of the season. Cornell, along with the rest of the Ivy League, did not compete in 2021.
Ohio State/Cornell Series History
- When Ohio State and Cornell meet, it’s always a big game.
- The last time they played – on March 1, 2020 – the Big Red came away with a 17-16 win at Ohio Stadium in what was arguably the most entertaining game in the abbreviated 2020 college lacrosse regular season.
- In 2013 and 2008, the Buckeyes and Big Red met in the NCAA Tournament.
- In fact, Ohio State’s first-ever NCAA Tournament win came on May 10, 2008 when it defeated Cornell, 15-7, in Ithaca.
About the Buckeye Offense
- Ohio State possesses the nation’s No. 2-ranked scoring offense and averages 18.0 goals per game.
- For the first time in the 73-year history of the program, the Buckeyes have scored 17 or more goals in four consecutive games.
- Ohio State is also averaging 49.3 shots per game, it highest in the shot clock era (since 2019).
- That’s neatly 11 shots more per game than the 2019, 2020 and 2021 seasons.
Career Records Watch
- Justin Inacio is just eight faceoff wins away from becoming Ohio State’s all-time leader in that category.
- He currently has 607 since the start of the 2018 season. Jake Withers won 614 (2014-17) while Anthony Kelly sits in third place with 480 (2000-03).
- Inacio’s 607 career faceoff wins are the third-most by any active Division I player.
- Inacio is also 54 ground balls shy of another one of Withers’ record. He scooped up 351 from 2014-17 and Inacio currently has 298.
Milestone and Such
- Jackson Reid is seven goals away from becoming the 13th player in program history with 100 career goals.
- With his 11-point outing last week, Jack Myers moved into the top-15 in career points. He currently sits in 14th place with 141 (76G, 65A).
- Fourteen more points would vault Myers into the top 10. Curtis Smith (2000-03) currently sits No. 10 with 155 points.
- Myers’ 141 career points in the 11th most by any current active Division I player.
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