Air Force Academy

April 5, 2012

Weekly Release #9

The Air Force lacrosse team is back in action this Sunday, April 8, when it hosts Bellarmine in an ECAC match-up. The game is slated to begin at 12:00 p.m. at Falcon Stadium.

GAME INFORMATION
Live Stats/Video: goairforcefalcons.com
Series History: Air Force leads, 4-2
Last Meeting: Last season, the Falcons earned a 12-7 victory over the Knights in Louisville on April 9.

LAST TIME OUT...
Air Force posted its highest scoring output since 1997, defeating Mercer, 20-4, on Saturday afternoon in Falcon Stadium. Twelve different Falcons found the back of the net against the Bears, including junior Conor Hogan and freshmen Nate Hruby and Richie Sapp, who each notched the first goal of their respective careers.

Freshman Keith Dreyer led the Falcons' offense on Saturday, tallying six points (3g, 3a), five of which came in the opening period. Sophomore Mike Crampton added a career-high four goals as all 45 players who dressed for the game saw action.

SCOUTING THE FALCONS...
Air Force enters this weekend with a 5-4 overall record after registering a 20-4 victory over Mercer on Saturday.

Freshman Keith Dreyer leads the Falcons' offense with 38 points on the season, including a team-best 22 assists, while sophomore Mike Crampton is the team's top goal scorer with 22 tallies on the year.

SCOUTING THE KNIGHTS...
Bellarmine currently holds a 3-4 overall record and 0-3 mark in the ECAC and will visit 11th-ranked conference foe Denver on Friday evening. The Knights are coming off a narrow 9-8 loss to 14th-ranked Fairfield.

Colton Clark has registered a team-best 19 points on the season, including a team-leading nine assists. Meanwhile, Michael Ward is the leading goal scorer for the Knights, notching 15 goals. Meanwhile, Dillon Ward has been the leader between the pipes for Bellarmine, tallying 71 saves and a 9.49 goals against average.

AIR FORCE IN THE STATISTICAL RANKINGS...
In the latest national statistical rankings released by the NCAA (through games of April 1), Air Force ranks second in the nation in man-up offense (.619), while ranking in the top 20 in five other categories: assists per game (T8th/7.89), points per game (10th/19.89), shot percentage (10th/.326), scoring offense (T10th/12.0) and scoring margin (12th/+2.78).

In addition, the Falcons have several players who are ranked among the top 35 nationally in various statistical categories. Freshman Keith Dreyer ranks third in the nation in assists per game with 2.44 and 10th nationally in points per game (4.22), while sophomore Mike Crampton ranks tied for 20th in goals per game (2.44). In addition, junior goalkeeper Austin Fox is ranked 31st in goals against average (10.11), tied for 32nd in save percentage (.506) and 33rd in saves per game (8.89).

HOW THEY RATE...
Through games of April 1, Bellarmine ranks 14th in the nation in man-down defense (.708), while ranking 15th in turnovers per game (14.29) and 16th in ground balls per game (31.14). Individually, goalkeeper Dillon Ward ranks 21st in saves per game (10.14), 26th in goals against average (9.5) and 29th in save percentage (.518), while Andrew Bulgarelli ranks 24th in face-off win percentage (.546).

ECAC OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK...
Freshman Keith Dreyer earned his second weekly ECAC honor of the season this week, as he was named the league's offensive player of the week.

Dreyer led the Falcons in scoring in games versus Jacksonville and Mercer, scoring a combined 10 points (7g, 3a). Against the Dolphins, Dreyer tallied a career-high four goals to lead the Falcons to an 11-8 victory, registering two of his scores just six seconds apart in a 5-0 third-period run that sparked Air Force's win. Meanwhile, versus the Bears, Dreyer notched three goals and three assists, scoring five of his points in the opening quarter, as the Falcons rolled to a 20-4 victory.

OFFENSIVE ONSLAUGHT...
Air Force's offense was dominant in its win over Mercer on Saturday, posting 20 goals for the first time since the 1997 season. The Falcons, who scored 15 goals in the first half alone, also posted their highest scoring output against a Division I opponent since defeating Siena, 25-2, in 1995.

SETTING SCORING RECORDS...
Averaging 12.0 goals per contest this season, Air Force's offense is easily the most effective it has been since moving to a full Division I schedule in 1999. Over the past 14 seasons, the previous season-best scoring average has been 9.0 goals per game, achieved in 2009 and 2011.

In addition, the Falcons, who have at least four games remaining on their schedule, have already tallied 108 goals this season, just 18 short of the single-season high of 126 that came in 2006 and 2009.

DREYER'S ASSISTS...
Freshman Keith Dreyer has been an invaluable asset for the Falcons on the offensive end this season, currently leading the team with 38 points on the year. Dreyer also has registered 22 assists in 2012, becoming just the third Falcon over the past 14 seasons to record at least 20 assists in a single season, and the first to do so as a freshman.

Will Meister, a 2007 USAFA graduate, reached the 20-assist mark in his sophomore (23), junior (27) and senior (20) seasons, while 2010 graduate Ridge Flick recorded a team-leading 22 assists in his junior year.

THE FUTURE'S BRIGHT...
This season, the bulk of Air Force's offensive production has come from its underclassmen, who have scored 96 of the Falcons' 108 goals on the year (88.9 percent) and 65 of 71 assists (91.5 percent).

Of the seven Falcons who have registered at least 10 points this season, two are freshmen--Keith Dreyer (38 pts.) and Ryland De Pol (12 pts.)--while four others are sophomores--Mike Crampton (26 pts.), Erik Smith (18 pts.), Tommy McKee (17 pts.) and Kyle Cassady (14 pts.). Just one upperclassman has notched more than five points this year, as junior Pat Harrison currently has 12 points on the season (7g, 5a).

UP NEXT...
The Falcons close out their home slate next weekend, April 14, when they host Fairfield in an ECAC match-up. The game is slated for 12:00 p.m. in Falcon Stadium, and will feature a pre-game presentation to honor Air Force's seven seniors.