Falcon Lacrosse Hosts Detroit Mercy, Saturday
3/9/2017 12:00:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse
Full Notes in PDF 
AIR FORCE (3-3) vs. DETROIT MERCY (2-5)
Saturday, March 11, 12:00 p.m. MT
Falcon Stadium, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colo.
Watch Live | Live Tracking | Detroit Mercy Notes
THIS WEEK: Air Force returns to the home turf to defend Falcon Stadium against Detroit Mercy in the fourth meeting between the programs, March 11, at 12:00 p.m. MT. A live stream will be provided by Falcon Vision. Live stats will also be available for the matchup.
TUNE IN: Falcon Vision will be providing a live stream for the game. Live updates will be provided by Stat Tracker via the GoAirForceFalcons.com platform. Fans can access the live stream and stats by going to GoAirForceFalcons.com, and clicking the live tracking link in the schedule dropdown.
UP NEXT: Air Force opens their SoCon slate against Mercer on the road, March 18. The Falcons and Bears will meet centerfield for the seventh time, at Mercer Stadium, at noon ET, in Macon, Ga. Air Force is undefeated against Mercer in the six-game series
LAST WEEKEND: Air Force came up short against undefeated Boston University, 8-6, in the first meeting between the programs, March 4, in Boston, Mass. The Falcons, now 3-3 on the season, were led by junior attacker Nick Hruby, who tallied four goals against the Terriers. Hruby's hat trick marked the second four-goal performance against a top-20 team this season.
FALCON FLY-BY: Former two-time lacrosse team captain and 2002 Academy graduate, Maj. Matthew Dudderar, will be performing a fly-by prior to Saturday's game. Maj. Dudderrar, of Westminster, Maryland, played four years of Air Force lacrosse; he started in all 27 games as a junior and senior. Dudderar registered 39 points from 27 goals and 12 assists over his four-year lacrosse career.
While on active duty, Dudderar has logged over 3,792 flight hours, 975 of which were combat hours. He has flown eight aircraft to include the T-6, T-1, C-21, C-17, RQ-4, T-38 and U-2. He serves as an instructor for four airframes; U-2, RQ-4, C-17 and C-21. Maj. Dudderar currently serves as a U-2 pilot out of Beale AFB, California. Dudderar will be flying the T-38 "Talon" for the fly-by. He will be accompanied by 2007 Academy graduate, Capt. Trevor Cook.
A QUICK LOOK AT AIR FORCE: The Air Force starting attack line, Chris Walsch, Nick Hruby and Andrew Tien, combine for 33 goals and 14 assists this season. Hruby, who leads the Falcons with 14 goals, extended to a 19-game goal-streak dating back to March of last season. The goal-streak is the second longest running streak in the nation behind 2016 Tewaaraton Award winner, Dylan Molloy of Brown. The Coppell, Texas, native's most recent hat trick marked the second four-goal performance against a top-20 team this season.
Walsch, who leads the team with seven assists and is second with 12 goals, is on a 30-game point-streak dating back to March of his freshman year. The Tewaaraton watch list player has tallied two hat tricks this season, and leads all active players in career goals (84), assists (54) and points (138).
At face-off, sophomore midfielder Trent Harper has taken the lead with a .588 win-percentage, a mark that leads all of the SoCon face-off specialists. Harper was credited as the conference Defense Player of the Week, Feb. 28, for his part in a big win over Cleveland State where he registered a .762 face-off win-percentage on the game.
Air Force's top-four defenders combine for 16 caused turnovers; Nicholas Accardi, Sean LaVine, Christian Pung and Brandon Jones, have four caused turnovers apiece. The Falcons have outscored their opponents, 58-54, in six games, while allowing six man-up goals in 15 opportunities. Freshman goalkeeper Paxton Boyer, who helped upend No. 10 Duke by allowing no goals in the final seven minutes of action, has 42 saves against 97 shots on goal by opponents this season. He has a .457 save percentage against 158 shots faced this season.
DETROIT MERCY AT A GLANCE: The Titans, 2-5 this season, will take field under the guidance of head coach Chris Kolon, who is in his ninth season on the sidelines - and third as a head coach - for Detroit Mercy. Coach Kolon is 12-21 since taking the reins of Detroit Mercy; he has yet to beat Air Force.
Detroit Mercy's offense is led by sophomore attackman Matthew Vangalen. Vangalen leads the Titans in goals (12), assists (15) and points (27). He recorded 29 shots on the season with a .414 shooting percentage; highest on the team for anyone with more than 10 shots. Junior midfielder Sean Birney, who is third in the nation in individual man-up goals, is second on the Titan offense with 10 goals and an assist. Detroit Mercy has two face-off specialists that combine for a .506 win percentage. Freshman face-off specialist Alex Jarzembowski leads with a .593 face-off win-percentage, while senior midfielder Ben Gjokaj has a .457 win-percentage.
Senior goalkeeper Jason Weber is the only Titan on the squad to have spent time in the cage. He has a 11.86 goals-against average and registered 76 saves against 262 shots faced for a .478 save percentage. Opponents have outscored Detroit Mercy, 83-63, this season.
WALSCH ON THE TEWAARATON WATCH: Walsch was named to the 2017 Tewaaraton Watch List, Feb. 28. Walsch has led the team in goals and points every year since joining in the 2014-15 season. The Finksburg, Maryland, native leads all active players in career goals, assists and points. He is fourth in the program record books in career goals and points, and third in assists. Walsch has several honors to include 2016 honorable mention USILA/Nike All-American, Southern Conference Offensive Player of the Year, All-SoCon first-team, SoCon Offensive Player of the Month (Mar.'16), three-time SoCon Offensive Player of the Week and the SoCon all-tournament team.
HARPER EARNS WEEKLY SOCON HONOR: Sophomore Trent Harper won the SoCon's Defensive Player of the Week honors, Feb. 28. Harper, a midfielder from Birmingham, Alabama (Spain Park), dominated the center-line over the weekend as the Falcons' face-off man. He went 16-21 (.762) in face-offs against Cleveland State, winning 6-6 in the third period, facilitating Air Force's five goals in that period. He was a key defensive figure in holding CSU's top-two scorers to one shot on the game. Harper went 26-40 (.650) at face-off and scooped up 20 ground balls over the weekend. The weekly conference honor marks Air Force's first of the season.
