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The Sacred Heart Pioneers are the 54th team in our 2020 men’s college lacrosse schedule preview series and the eighth team from the NEC. Sacred Heart finished 9-6 overall in 2019 and 4-2 in NEC play. The Pioneers lost to Hobart in the NEC semifinals.
Here’s their entire 2020 schedule:
Sacred Heart’s 2020 Schedule
| Date | Road Team | Home Team | Special Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Road Team | Home Team | Special Notes |
| 1/25 | Sacred Heart | NJIT | Scrimmage |
| 2/1 | Dartmouth | Sacred Heart | Scrimmage |
| 2/9 | Hartford | Sacred Heart | |
| 2/15 | Sacred Heart | Bucknell | First ever meeting |
| 2/18 | Sacred Heart | Brown | First meeting since 2004 |
| 2/29 | Sacred Heart | UMBC | First ever meeting |
| 3/3 | Sacred Heart | Stony Brook | At St. Anthony's HS (in South Huntingdon, NY) |
| 3/7 | Providence | Sacred Heart | |
| 3/14 | Mount St. Mary's | Sacred Heart | NEC |
| 3/21 | Sacred Heart | LIU | NEC, First meeting since 1998 |
| 3/28 | Sacred Heart | Hobart | NEC |
| 4/4 | Bryant | Sacred Heart | NEC |
| 4/11 | Sacred Heart | Saint Joseph's | NEC |
| 4/18 | Wagner | Sacred Heart | NEC |
| 4/25 | Sacred Heart | Merrimack | NEC, First meeting since 1996 |
Who’s In?
- Bucknell Bison (2/15)
- Brown Bears (2/18)
- UMBC Retrievers (2/29)
- LIU Sharks (3/21)
- Merrimack Warriors (4/25)
Who’s Out?
- Georgetown Hoyas (13-10 L)
- Furman Paladins (18-11 W)
- Boston University Terriers (16-11 L)
- Fairfield Stags (12-11 L)
- Robert Morris Colonials (18-16 W)
- Binghamton Bearcats (17-9 W)
Sacred Heart’s Opponents 2019 Average Win Percentage & RPI
| Avg. overall win pct. | Avg. nonconference win pct. | Avg. conference win pct. | Avg. overall RPI | Avg. nonconference RPI | Avg. conference RPI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg. overall win pct. | Avg. nonconference win pct. | Avg. conference win pct. | Avg. overall RPI | Avg. nonconference RPI | Avg. conference RPI |
| .479 | .430 | .521 | 46.64 | 43.83 | 50 |
Circle These Dates
- 2/9 vs. Hartford: Meeting number 22 between the two Connecticut schools will start Sacred Heart’s season in Fairfield. They’ve met nearly every year since 1998 (the lone exception coming in 2004), and this will be the earliest they’ll play this game. Hartford has the slight 11-10 edge over the Pioneers all-time, but Sacred Heart broke the Hawks’ three-game winning streak last year with a 16-12 victory thanks to a big second half.
- 2/29 at UMBC: Sacred Heart takes on two first-time opponents in 2020, both on the road. The Retrievers got hot late last season and were able to win the America East Championship and knocked off Marist in the play-in game of the NCAA Tournament. UMBC has some talented players on both sides of the ball.
- 3/3 vs. Stony Brook (at St. Anthony’s High School): Essentially an away game for Sacred Heart as St. Anthony’s is 10 minutes away from Stony Brook’s campus. The Pioneers scored with 36 seconds left in regulation to force overtime where Max Tuttle scored with six ticks to go for the game-winner. Jack Walsh recorded three assists for Stony Brook in the loss, but transferred to Sacred Heart during the summer.
- 3/28 at Hobart: Hobart barely came away with two wins last season against the Pioneers, winning by a goal in each meeting. None was worse than in the NEC semifinals which saw Sacred Heart go on a six-goal run to cut a 14-7 lead to 14-13 with 1:51 to play. But the Pioneers were unable to get one more possession and could not force overtime. Colton King made 13 saves in 42:33, relieving Brooks Dutton after he gave up seven goals in 17:27.
- 4/11 at Saint Joseph’s: Sacred Heart breezed past St. Joe’s last year thanks to a nine-goal run in the second and third quarters. They won by 15 against a young Hawk team. But a lot of that St. Joe’s team returns in 2020 while players such as Tuttle, Joe Saggese, and Joseph Cipoletti have graduated.