The Ohio Wesleyan University men's lacrosse team will face St. John Fisher in a second-round game of the NCAA Division III tournament at 3 p.m. on Saturday at the Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester, N.Y., it was announced by the NCAA.

In Saturday's other second-round game, RIT will host the winner of Wednesday's first-round game between Ohio Northern and Aurora at noon.

Ohio Wesleyan (15-3) won the North Coast Athletic Conference championship with an 8-0 record, then won the NCAC tournament with an 11-10 win over Oberlin in the semifinals and a 13-10 win over 19th-ranked Denison in the championship game.  Ohio Wesleyan was ranked No. 18 in the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association poll dated May 5.  Ohio Wesleyan is making its first NCAA Division III playoff appearance since 2018 and the Bishops' 30th overall NCAA Division III playoff appearance.  The Bishops have advanced to the NCAA Division III national championship game 4 times.  Ohio Wesleyan advanced to the quarterfinals in its last Division III appearance in 2018.

Sophomore attacker Henry Ross (Snoqualmie, Wash./Mount Si) leads the Bishops with 48 goals and 75 points on the season.  Sophomore attacker Wade Beckstrom (Devon, Pa./Conestoga) follows with 44 goals and a team-high 28 assists, and senior attacker Carson Geier (Milford) has 44 goals and 14 assists.  Senior goalkeeper Nathan George (Gainesville, Va./Battlefield) was named the NCAC tournament's Most Valuable Player.  He was joined on the all-tournament team by junior midfielder Noah Citek (Long Beach, Calif./St. John Bosco), senior midfielder Brady Hunt (Maineville/Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy), Ross, and senior defenseman Wes Silver (Newton, Mass./Newton North).

St. John Fisher (15-4) won the Empire 8 tournament with a 30-6 win over Hartwick and a 21-10 win over Nazareth last week.  The Cardinals compiled a 9-0 record in the Empire 8 this season.  St. John Fisher is making its fifth consecutive and sixth overall NCAA Division III playoff appearance.  Last year, the Cardinals received a first-round bye and advanced to the NCAA Division III quarterfinals.

Senior attacker Brady Mason leads the Cardinals with 54 goals and 24 assists on the season.  Mason was named the Empire 8 tournament's Most Valuable Player.  Fifth-year attacker Timmy Salit follows with 19 goals and 46 assists, and senior attacker Braeden McNeill has 23 goals and 23 assists.  Junior goalkeeper Tyler Manning has compiled a 7.93 goals-against average this season.  

Ohio Wesleyan and St. John Fisher have met once in men's lacrosse, that coming during the 2012 season, when Ohio Wesleyan won a 10-5 decision at Ohio Wesleyan's Selby Stadium.

RIT (18-1) won the Liberty League tournament with wins of 17-6 over Ithaca and 11-10 over St. Lawrence.  The Tigers had a 7-0 record in the Liberty League this season.  RIT was ranked No. 3 in the USILA Division III poll dated May 5.  The Tigers are making their 14th consecutive NCAA Division III playoff appearance and their 26th overall NCAA Division III playoff appearance.  RIT won NCAA Division III national championships in 2021 and 2022.  Last year, the Tigers advanced to the NCAA Division III national championship game, falling to Tufts by an 18-14 score.  Ohio Wesleyan and RIT have met twice in the NCAA Division III playoffs, more recently in 1995, when the Bishops won a 16-15 decision in a first-round game at Selby Stadium.

Senior attacker Clifford Gaston leads the Tigers with 57 goals and 16 assists on the season.  Senior attacker Nate Senez has collected 27 goals and 42 assists, and graduate student Ian Dinga has 24 goals and 24 assists.  Graduate student Seth Grottenthaler was named the Liberty League tournament's Most Outstanding Player.  Junior goalkeeper Alex Zborowski has a goals-against average of 7.97 this season.

Aurora (14-5) won the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference tournament with wins over Edgewood (22-7), Lake Forest (12-9), and Concordis (Wis.) (14-9).  The Spartans went 11-0 in the NACC this season.  Aurora is making its second consecutive and eighth overall NCAA Division III tournament appearance.  Last year, Aurora lost to Illinois Wesleyan, 18-14, in an NCAA Division III first-round game.  Ohio Wesleyan and Aurora have met twice in the NCAA Division III playoffs, more recently in 2018, when Ohio Wesleyan won by a 13-5 margin in a first-round game at Selby Stadium.

Ohio Northern (15-4) won the Ohio Athletic Conference tournament with wins over John Carroll (7-2) and Baldwin Wallace (10-9).  The Polar Bears went 8-1 in the OAC this season.  Ohio Northern is making its first-ever NCAA Division III playoff appearance.  The Bishops and Polar Bears met on Feb. 25 at Selby Stadium, with Ohio Wesleyan taking a 14-7 decision.

The winner of Sunday's third-round game will advance to a national quarterfinal contest, scheduled to be played on the campus of one of the competing institutions on Saturday, May 17.

NCAA championship bracket (interactive)
NCAA championship bracket (printable)