St. John's University Athletics
St. John's University
Mercer
St. John’s Returns Home to Face Mercer on Saturday
3/14/2025 10:06:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse
The Johnnies will square off with the Bears for the first time in program history
QUEENS, N.Y. – Following two games on the road against Bryant and Rutgers, the St. John's lacrosse team will return home to face Mercer on Saturday. Faceoff from Cox Family Field at Belson Stadium is set for 11:30 a.m.
The first-ever meeting between the two programs will be streamed on FloSports with Johnny Gadamowitz on the call, and live stats will be available on RedStormSports.com.
Despite the first hat trick of the season from senior midfielder Bobby Seel, the Johnnies (2-6) dropped their last outing on Tuesday against the Scarlet Knights in New Jersey, 21-11. The game was tied at 4-4 in the second quarter, but a 9-0 Rutgers run propelled the home squad to a victory in the 31st matchup between the two schools.
Seel's three points extended his team-best point streak to 24 games, dating back to the 2023 season. The Garden City, N.Y., product has found the back of the net in seven of the Red Storm's eight games this season and is third on the team with 17 points.
Jayson Cardenas continued the hot start to his freshman campaign with three more points against Rutgers. Cardenas has 10 goals and four helpers on the season, while fellow rookie Mitch Campbell added a score and an assist on Tuesday to give him 15 points. Combined with Ryan Ormond's 16 points, the three dynamic freshmen have combined for 45 points through eight games.
Senior Brian Kelly has found the back of the net in 11 consecutive games and leads the Red Storm with 29 points and 18 goals. The second-year captain is sixth in the BIG EAST with 1.4 assists per game and seventh in the conference with 2.3 goals per contest. Kelly has 166 career points, fourth most in school history.
Adrian Nowak also hit twine against Rutgers, giving him 11 scores this season. Despite not tallying an assist in the last two contests, Nowak still leads the Johnnies with 14 helpers and is 34th nationally and third in the BIG EAST with 1.8 assists per game.
The St. John's attack of Nowak, Kelly, Ormond and Campbell have combined for 85 points through eight games this season and have accounted for 50 of the 87 goals the team has scored.
The St. John's ride has excelled all season, allowing teams to clear at a 79.5 percent rate, 13th best in the nation. The Johnnies also rank 13th nationally in man-down defense, killing off 78.3 percent of penalties through eight games.
On the defensive end, Patrick Scarborough continues to stuff the stat sheet, recording double-digit saves in each of his last four games. In just six starts this season, the Dickinson transfer has stopped at least 50 percent of shots on four occasions. Scarborough leads the BIG EAST with 12.5 saves per game.
Sophomore LSM Dylan Lee and freshman defenseman Quinn Falasca are both top three in the BIG EAST in caused turnovers per game. Falasca had two forced giveaways against Fairfield last Tuesday and three more last Saturday against Bryant, giving him a team-best 15 on the season. He also leads the Johnnies with 28 groundballs. His 3.5 loose balls per game are the fifth most in the conference and the best among non-specialists (FOGOs, Goalkeepers).
At the faceoff X, Ethan Wiegand had the most productive outing of his rookie campaign against Rutgers, winning eight-of-13 draws and scooping three groundballs.
Marist took down Hampton in its season opener but comes to Queens having dropped its last six games. After putting up 23 goals in its first game of 2025, the Bears have hit the 10-score mark just once since and are averaging 8.9 goals per contest. Last time out, Mercer fell to LeMoyne in Syracuse, N.Y., 10-7, last Saturday.
Dillon Bush leads the Bears in scoring, totaling 16 points on 16 goals. Will Zystara and Michael Fredreick each have 11 points, the only other players who have reached double figures this season. 18 Mercer players have at least one point through seven games.
Christopher Cappelmann has been a bright spot for the Bears, winning 49-of-98 faceoffs and scooping a team-high 20 ground balls. Rand Paddack has earned the decision in all seven games in 2025, giving up 14.6 goals per game and stopping 48 percent of the shots he faces.
Defensively, Thomas Venzie leads the squad with seven caused turnovers, while Quinn Kelly has six to go along with 12 groundballs.
As a team, Mercer wins 54 percent of its faceoffs and clears the ball at a 77.9 percent rate.
Following Saturday's matinee in Queens, the Johnnies will head to Ridgefield, Conn., for a neutral site game against Hobart. Faceoff from Ridgefield High School is set for 12 p.m.
