ELMIRA, N.Y. -- The Elmira College men's lacrosse team continues Empire 8 Conference play with a home contest against the Highlanders of Houghton College on Wednesday, March 29. The bout is slated to begin at 4:00 p.m. at nearby Notre Dame High School. 

LAST TIME OUT: The Empire 8 Conference's fourth-leading offense peppered Elmira on Saturday, March 25, as the Golden Flyers of Nazareth College defeated the Soaring Eagles, 20-2, in the 2017 conference opener. Naz only scored twice in the first quarter, but the Golden Flyers exploded for five goals in a three-minute span to start the second quarter, resulting in a 7-0 lead. Colby Runk '18 ended Elmira's scoreless drought with an unassisted tally at the 11:33 mark of the second quarter, the lone score of the first half for the Purple and Gold, which trailed 10-1 at the break. Wyatt Katsos '17 opened the scoring in the second half with a man-up goal for EC. However, Naz ended the game with the final 10 goals for the lopsided victory. Making his first career start between the pipes against the traditional E8 power was Mike Chaderjian '19. In only his third career game, Chaderjian finished with 20 saves in 53:32 minutes of playing time. Those 20 saves mark the most by a Soaring Eagle in a game in 2017.

BETWEEN THE PIPES: Due to the absence of starting goalie Cameron Prior '17, the conference's leader in saves per game, Chaderjian was called into the first meaningful action of his collegiate career last time out against Nazareth. The sophomore from Westfield, Massachusetts, made 20 total stops against the Golden Flyers, more than double his previous career total from his first two appearances of 2017.

SENIOR LEADER: With a man-up goal against the Golden Flyers, Katsos moved into a two-way tie for the team lead in points (7) and goals (5). In addition, his three man-up goals on the season pace the Soaring Eagles and already tied his total from his junior season.

SCOUTING HOUGHTON: After starting the season winless in their first six games, the Highlanders finally tasted victory last time out against Medaille College. Houghton bested the Mavericks, 17-5, on March 22, with the 17 goals scored marking a season high and the five allowed representing a season low. Four different Highlanders netted a hat trick in the win, led by Cole Chapman's five goals. Kevin Bigham scored four, while Paul Chapman and Nathan Moore finished with three against Medaille. Paul Chapman ranks among the leading scorers in the Empire 8 so far this season. The senior attacker from Kemptville, Ontario, is fourth in goals per game (3.43) and eighth in points per game (3.71). The Highlanders boast a solid draw man in Moore, who has won 65-of-130 faceoffs for a .500 success rate. He also ranks third in the league in ground balls with 7.50 per game.

SERIES HISTORY: Wednesday's contest marks the fifth all-time meeting between Elmira and Houghton, with the Soaring Eagles owning an unblemished 4-0 record in the series. EC won last season's tilt by an 8-6 final score on March 30 at Houghton, New York. In that contest, Katsos netted a career-high three goals to lead the Purple and Gold to victory. 

LOOKING AHEAD: Elmira will take a short break from E8 competition on Saturday, April 1, when it travels to face the Knights of SUNY Geneseo. The non-conference contest is scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m. at Geneseo's College Stadium.