Denison at Ohio Wesleyan

The Ohio Wesleyan men's lacrosse team will host Denison in the championship game of the North Coast Athletic Conference tournament at 1 p.m. on Saturday at Selby Stadium.

Ticket prices for NCAC tournament games are $7 for adults and $3 for children 18 and under.  Students bearing a valid ID from an NCAC institution will be admitted free of charge.  Ticket sales will be cash only.

Ohio Wesleyan (14-3) is the No. 1 seed in the tournament.  The Bishops won the NCAC championship with an 8-0 record.  Ohio Wesleyan has won the NCAC tournament twice, more recently in 2015.  Ohio Wesleyan is ranked No. 20 in this week's United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association poll.

Ohio Wesleyan advanced to the championship game with an 11-10 win over Oberlin on Wednesday.  Sophomore midfielder Henry Ross (Snoqualmie, Wash./Mount Si) scored the tying and winning goals as the Bishops closed the game with a 4-0 run to take the win.  Ross led the Bishops with 4 goals and an assist.  Sophomore attacker Wade Beckstrom (Devon, Pa./Conestoga) added 2 goals and 2 assists.  Senior Nathan George (Gainesville, Va./Battlefield) finished with 14 saves, including 4 during the fourth quarter.

Ross leads the Bishops and ranks third in the NCAC in goals this season with 45, followed by senior attacker Carson Geier (Milford) in fourth place with 43 goals and Beckstrom, who ranks fifth in the league with 42 goals.  Ross is second in the league with 70 points, with Beckstrom ranking third with 69 points and Geier tied for sixth with 57 points.  George ranks third in the conference in goals-against average (10.06) and fourth in saves percentage (.519).  Junior Noah Citek (Long Beach, Calif./St. John Bosco) is third in the NCAC in ground balls per game (7.53) and ninth in face-off percentage (.592), and freshman Simon Hall (Grand Rapids, Mich./Forest Hills Northern) ranks seventh in face-off percentage (.624).

Denison (13-5) is the No. 2 seed in the tournament.  The Big Red finished second in the NCAC with a 7-1 record.  Denison has won the NCAC tournament 9 times.  Denison is ranked No. 19 in this week's United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association poll.

Attacker Tommy Quinson ranks second in the NCAC in goals (47) and third in assists (29), and leads the league in points (76) this season.  Attacker Macky Peck is eighth in goals (38).  Attacker Kevin Berutich leads the NCAC with 32 assists on the year.  Goalkeeper Andrew Albert is second in the conference in goals-against average (9.21).  Grant Larson ranks fifth in the conference in ground balls per game (5.83) and ranks eighth in face-off percentage (.603).

This will be the eighth meeting between Denison and Ohio Wesleyan in the championship game of NCAC tournament.  Denison has won 5 of the previous 7 meetings.

In this year's regular-season meeting, Ohio Wesleyan won by a 15-13 score on April 26 in Granville.  Geier scored 3 times as Ohio Wesleyan opened the second half with a 4-0 run to break an 8-8 tie and take the lead for good.  Ross led the Bishops with 5 goals and 2 assists, while Geier and senior midfielder Joey Wiseman (Powell/Olentangy Liberty) scored 4 goals apiece.  George was credited with 14 saves.

The winner of Saturday's championship game will receive the NCAC's automatic qualifier to the NCAA Division III tournament.