Utah Lacrosse Ready To Take On Loyola

University+of+Utahs+Mens+Lacrosse+Team+huddled+up+in+an+NCAA+Mens+Lacrosse+game+vs.+Vermont+at+Rice-Eccles+Stadium+in+Salt+Lake+City%2C+UT+on+Friday+February+01%2C+2019.%28Photo+by+Curtis+Lin+%7C+Daily+Utah+Chronicle%29

University of Utah’s Men’s Lacrosse Team huddled up in an NCAA Men’s Lacrosse game vs. Vermont at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, UT on Friday February 01, 2019.(Photo by Curtis Lin | Daily Utah Chronicle)

By Sean Overton, Sports Editor

 

Utah Lacrosse currently sits at 1-2 after suffering a nail-biting loss at Air Force on Feb. 20. The team is set to travel to Baltimore to face No. 11 Loyola on Feb. 27. So far, Utah has lost to No. 5 Denver and Air Force but has beaten Bellarmine. Loyola currently sits at 1-1 this season after beating No. 20 Richmond 8-7 in overtime and losing to Virginia 12-15.

Kevin Lindley leads Loyola with seven points this season, all of them coming from goals. As for Utah, Tyler Bradbury leads the team with 14 points, split between seven goals and seven assists.

Lindley has an amazing 53.8% ( 7-13) of his shots finding the back of the net. Comparatively, Bradbury’s shot percentage is 35% (7-20). Utah only has one player shooting a better percentage than Lindley, Cole Brams who has shot one of one.

Despite making only 35% of his shots, Bradbury has managed to get 70% of his shots on goal, slightly better than Lindley’s 69.2%.

Bradbury is also Utah’s leader in assists with seven, compared to Loyola’s Aidan Olmstead with four. This really puts in perspective how amazing Bradbury’s season has been so far. He has totaled at least four points in every game this season. His three assists against Air Force was also the first time that a Ute has had three assists in a single game since Aaron Fjelsted on Apr. 13 2019 at Hartford.

Despite Bradbury’s amazing year so far, the team will need some players to step up in order to secure a win over Loyola. One of the players who have stepped up this season has been Jordan Hyde. Hyde has scored six goals on 14 shots and added an assist in last week’s game at Air Force.

Another player who has stepped up this season has been Branden Wilson. Wilson has scored three goals on six shots and recorded three assists. Wilson has managed to get five of his six shots on goal this season, placing him at third on the team.

Utah’s offense has been very reliant on only a few players so far this season, which makes it hard to involve all players on the offensive end. The team currently relies on Bradbury heavily to lead the team on offense, and the matchup against Loyola will be no different.

If Bradbury is unable to get a strong start, the team might find themselves struggling on the offensive end. With that being said, if he can start off as strong as in the previous games, expect this offense to find their flow early.

The game is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. MST in Baltimore, Maryland on Feb. 27. Loyola currently sits at No. 11 in the rankings, making this Utah’s second matchup against a top 25 ranked opponent this season after dropping the season opener to No. 5 Denver. The game will be Utah’s first televised game, being broadcast on ESPN+.

 

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@SeanOverton3