Men's Lacrosse Hosts Rival Nazareth In E8 Title Game

Empire 8 Semifinal: St. John Fisher 30, Hartwick 6

Fifth-year senior Timmy Salit racked up 10 points to surpass 200 for his career in the No. 1-seeded St. John Fisher men's lacrosse team's 30-6 victory over No. 4-seeded Hartwick in the Empire 8 Conference Semifinals on Thursday night at Growney Stadium. 

On a mission for their sixth E8 title in a row, the Cardinals (14-4) will host No. 2-seeded Nazareth in the conference title game at noon on Saturday. The Golden Flyers took down No. 3-seeded SUNY Geneseo 14-12 to punch their ticket to the E8 final on Thursday evening. 

Salit, one of four players in program history to reach 200 points, tied the program's second-best marks for single-game points (10) and assists (8) in the drubbing of Hartwick. 

Senior Brady Mason wasn't too far behind with a career-high nine points on six goals and three assists. It was his second six-goal effort of the season.

Game Notes

• Salit (204 career points) now stands alone in fourth on Fisher's all-time points list. 
• Mason (193 career points) moved up to sixth on Fisher's all-time points list. 
• The Cardinals have won 45 straight games against Empire 8 teams. 
• The Cardinals have won 11 consecutive Empire 8 postseason games. 
• Head coach Dave Dobbins needs just two more victories to reach 100 for his career. 
• Fisher has beaten Hartwick in the E8 semifinals in each of the last four seasons. The Cardinals are 6-0 all-time against the Hawks in the postseason. 
• Bryce Riffel won 19 of 20 faceoffs, while Scott Reeves went 14 of 14. Riffel had 17 ground balls, tied for the fifth most in a game in Fisher history. 
• The Cardinals finished with a 54-13 advantage in ground balls. 

What's At Stake On Saturday

• For the fifth straight year and sixth time overall, East Avenue rivals St. John Fisher and Nazareth will meet in the E8 title game at noon on Saturday at Growney Stadium.
• The Cardinals would claim their sixth consecutive E8 title and earn the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament with a victory.
• The Cardinals are 4-1 in title games and 5-2 overall in postseason contests against Nazareth.
• Fisher has won 13 consecutive games against the Golden Flyers.

Fisher Streaks

• The Cardinals have won 45 straight games against Empire 8 teams. 
• The Cardinals have won 11 consecutive Empire 8 postseason games. 
• The Cardinals have finished .500 or better in each of Dave Dobbins’ eight seasons as head coach. This season marks the Cardinals’ sixth with more than 10 wins under Dobbins, who took over the program before the 2018 season.

Milestones Reached and Milestones Ahead 

• Dobbins needs just two more victories to reach 100 for his career. 
• The Cardinals need three more wins to match the 2019 team for the most single-season wins in program history. 
• The Cardinals’ 13 regular-season wins this year marked the second most by a team in school history (the 2019 team won 14 games in the regular season). 
• The Cardinals have scored 30 or more goals in three games this season, including a program record 32 against SUNY Poly on April 12. 
• Fifth-year senior Timmy Salit (114 career assists) recently passed Ian Evans (105 assists from 2019-22) for third on the program’s all-time assists list. Salit ranks fourth all-time in total points (204). 
• Salit needs just seven more assists to set the program single-season assists record. 
• Senior Brady Mason ranks seventh in program history in goals (127) and sixth in points (193). Mason leads the team with 48 goals and 72 total points this season. 
• Mason's 72 points are tied for the seventh most on Fisher's single-season points list. His 48 goals are tied for the sixth most by a Fisher player in a season. 
• Senior defender Jack Cornell has picked up 183 career ground balls, the eighth most in Fisher history. 
• Senior Ethan Kesselring and fifth-year senior Jordan Leuze surpassed 100 career points this season. 
• Junior goalkeeper Tyler Manning made 19 saves in a win over Colorado College on March 8, tied for the third most in a single game in program history.
• Junior Bryce Riffel currently has the third-best faceoff win percentage in prorgram history (.670). 

Other Numbers To Know

• Sophomore Robbie Salit has tallied all of his goals (19), assists (7) and points (26) this season against conference foes. 
• Manning ranks 11th in Division III in goals against average (7.85) and 33rd in save percentage (57.5%). 
• Riffel has one of the best faceoff winning percentages in Division III (68.3%, 13th)
• The Cardinals have the fifth-highest clearing percentage in Division III (91.0%). 
• Fisher ranks 8th in the country in scoring offense (17.67 goals per game) and 17th in scoring defense (8.11 goals allowed per game). 
• The Cardinals have the fifth-highest scoring margin in Division III (9.56). 
• The Cardinals have outscored their opponents 318-146 overall. 

About Nazareth

• Nazareth defeated No. 3 SUNY Geneseo 14-12 in the semifinal round of the Empire 8 tournament on Thursday. Matthew Farrington led the Golden Flyers in points with five on two goals and three assists. Owen Riley and William O'Neill led Nazareth in scoring with three goals each.
• Quinn McKercher leads Nazareth in goals (43), assists (29) and points (72). 
• Jakob Denkenberger ranks seventh in the country in face-off winning percentage (70.7%) and 16th in ground balls per game (9.22). 

Last Meeting: St. John Fisher 14, Nazareth 11 (4/19/2025)

Nazareth jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the opening eight minutes, but Fisher punched back with five unanswered goals, including three in the final three minutes of the opening quarter and two in the second quarter. 

Mason buried a goal on a feed from senior Braeden McNeill early in the second quarter to tie the game at four. Leuze gave the Cardinals their first lead of the contest about six minutes later.

After Nazareth scored two unanswered goals to regain the lead, senior Kesselring scored late in the second quarter to send the teams into halftime knotted up at six. 

Leuze scored his second goal of the game about a minute into the third quarter to break the tie, and the Cardinals stayed in front the rest of the way. Mason and sophomore Robbie Salit also scored as part of a 3-0 Fisher run to start the third. 

Mason led Fisher with seven points on four goals and three assists. 

E8 Men's Lacrosse Championship Tournament Central

Final 2025 Empire 8 Men’s Lacrosse Championship Seeds
No. 1 – St. John Fisher University (9-0 E8, 13-4 Overall)
No. 2 – Nazareth University (8-1 E8, 12-5 Overall)
No. 3 – SUNY Geneseo (7-2 E8, 10-6 Overall)
No. 4 – Hartwick College (6-3 E8, 8-6 Overall) 
No. 5 – SUNY Brockport (5-4 E8, 8-8 Overall)
No. 6 – Alfred University (4-5 E8, 6-8 Overall)

2025 Empire 8 Men’s Lacrosse Championship Schedule
Tuesday, April 29 – First Round
No. 4 Hartwick College defeated No. 5 SUNY Brockport, 12-11 – BOX SCORE
No. 3 SUNY Geneseo defeated No. 6 Alfred University, 16-7 – BOX SCORE

Thursday, May 1 - Semifinals
No. 2 Nazareth University defeated No. 3 SUNY Geneseo, 14-12 – BOX SCORE
No. 1 St. John Fisher University defeated No. 4 Hartwick College, 30-6 – BOX SCORE 

Saturday, May 3 - Championship
No. 2 Nazareth University vs. No. 1 St. John Fisher University – 12 p.m. – VIDEO/LIVE STATS

Admission
$6.00 - Adults
$4.00 - Students and seniors with ID
Free - Children under 12