Wheeling, W. Va. – Throughout their non-conference schedule, the Wheeling University Men's Lacrosse team (2-2, 0-0) have been challenging themselves with some of the best teams in the region. On Saturday, the Cardinals return home for the first time in two weeks when they play host to American International College (AIC) with opening face-off at noon. It will be the final non-conference game for the Cardinals before they start their Great Midwest Athletic Conference (GMAC) schedule on March 13th.
Last time out, the team hit the road to face Frostburg State of The Eastern Caroline Conference (ECC). After recording the first goal of the game at the 12:47 mark of the first quarter, the Cardinals were faced with a powerful Frostburg State offense. The Bobcats would answer with nine straight goals before Wheeling broke the run at the 12:48 mark of the next quarter. Wheeling would go into halftime trailing 17-5 and while they were efficient, putting 70% of their shots on net, they were looking to generate more offense. They would continue that efficiency in the second half, putting 58.3% of their shots on net, but the Frostburg State offense just kept scoring. The Cardinals would hold Frostburg State to a game-low three goals, but it wasn't enough as they fell 29-9 to take their second loss of the season.
For the fourth game in a row, the Cardinals had multiple multi-goal scorers, with three different Cardinals scoring two goals. The most efficient of these was Brenner Chase, who took just two shots on the day, but put both of them in the back of the net. He currently sits second on the team with 10 goals through four games and is on pace to break his career-high of 17 goals, which he set last season. Along with being the team's second leading scorer, Chase is also the most efficient shooter for the Cardinals this year. He leads all eligible shooters for the Cardinals with a .625 shooting percentage and an .875 shots on goal percentage for the season. Chase has stepped up his offensive game this season and looks to continue that success as the team wraps up its preseason non-conference schedule.
The other two multi-goal scorers on the day were Mike Andersson and Brody Fawver, who each also added two goals of their own on the day. For Andersson, it broke a string of three straight games where the senior finished with three or more goals in a game. He is tied for second in the GMAC in goals per game (3.00) and fifth in total goals (9) through the team's first four games of the season. Fawver also ended with two goals on the day and, while not scoring as much as he did in earlier seasons, he is taking on his new role as a primary midfielder. He has been coming off the bench for the Cardinals and providing a spark, sitting third on the team with seven goals and third with eight points. Both have been strong pieces to the Cardinal's offensive success this season and look to continue that success into conference play.
Saturday's game will mark just the second home game for the Cardinals this season as they play through their early season road schedule. Five of their first seven games of the 2024 season are on the road but, as the calendar turns to March the script flips. After opening GMAC Play on the road against both Lake Erie College and Walsh, the Cardinals will play six of their final seven games, including five GMAC matchups at Bishop Schmitt Field. The Cardinals picked up a win in their lone home game of the season so far and look to continue to defend Bishop Schmitt Field. Saturday's game will serve as one more non-conference tune-up for the team as they begin the road to the 2024 GMAC playoffs following the spring break.
The Matchup
The Cardinals and Yellow Jackets are meeting for the first time in program history on Saturday at Bishop Schmitt Field. AIC opened their season back on February 17th, and picked up a win over St. Thomas Aquinas to get out to a 1-0 start on the season. In 2023, the Yellow Jackets went 2-13 overall and 0-10 in NE10 play. The Cardinals look to open up the all-time series with a win as they look to build momentum heading into their GMAC schedule.
The Details
The opening face-off for Saturday's game is scheduled for noon at Bishop Schmitt Field. You can watch the game live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.
