Men's Lacrosse Game Notes vs No. 12/12 Harvard

PROVIDENCE SET TO FACE HARVARD… The Providence College men's lacrosse team will travel to No. 12/12 Harvard on Saturday, Feb. 14. Opening faceoff is set for 2:00 p.m. on Jordan Field in Cambridge, Mass.

LIVE STATS AND STREAM… The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+. Links to the broadcast, in addition to live stats, can be found on Friars.com by navigating to the men's lacrosse schedule.

SERIES BREAKDOWN... Saturday's game between Providence and Harvard will mark the eighth meeting between the two programs all-time. Harvard leads the series 7-0.

MOST RECENT MEETING... The two teams last met during the 2025 season in Providence, R.I. Harvard defeated Providence, 12-10. Richie Joseph recorded six points on four goals and two assists. Sam Brazell also scored multiple goals for the Friars (two).

FRIARS DEFEAT BRYANT... Providence defeated Bryant in its home opener, 16-11, on Feb. 6 in Providence, R.I. Rhett Chambers let the Friars' offense with a career-high nine points on four goals and a career-best five assists. Long-stick midfielder Ian Olenik recorded career-bests in caused turnovers (six) and ground balls (five). Cam Sterritt added a career-high 16 saves and posted a .593 save percentage.

FRIARS RECEIVE VOTES IN NATIONAL POLLS... The Providence College men's lacrosse team received votes in both the Inside Lacrosse KANE Media Poll (Feb. 9) and the USILA Coaches Poll (Feb. 10).

RHETT CHAMBERS, IAN OLENIK AND CAM STERRITT EARN BIG EAST WEEKLY HONORS... Rhett Chambers, Ian Olenik and Cam Sterritt each earned BIG EAST Weekly Honors on Feb. 9. Chambers was named Offensive Player of the Week and Olenik earned Specialist of the Week. Sterritt was featured on the Honor Roll. The awards span the first two weeks of the 2026 season. Providence defeated Holy Cross 15-10 (Jan. 31) and Bryant 16-11 (Feb. 6) during that time.

RHETT CHAMBERS NAMED USA LACROSSE PLAYER OF THE WEEK... Following his nine-point performance against Bryant - with a career-high nine points on four goals and career-best five assists - Rhett Chambers was named USA Lacrosse Player of the Week via USA Lacrosse Magazine on Feb. 10. Chambers also was named the Inside Lacrosse AXIA Time Player of the Week on Feb. 10 after winning a closely contested fan vote.

OCEAN STATE CUP... The Friars defeated Bryant, 16-11, on Feb. 6 in their first game in the annual Ocean State Cup. Providence will host Brown on Saturday, Feb. 21 at 12:00 p.m. Brown will host Bryant on Saturday, Feb. 28 at 12:00 p.m. Providence was last crowned Ocean State Cup Champion during the 2020 season. That season, Providence defeated Bryant, 16-9, and Brown, 13-12, in overtime.

FRIARS DEFEAT HOLY CROSS... Providence defeated Holy Cross, 15-10, in its season opener on Jan. 31 in Worcester, Mass. Rhett Chambers led the Friar offense with a career-high six points with a career-best four goals to go along with two assists. Matt Lazzaro added career-highs in points (five), goals (three) and assists (two). Jay Wilkerson also scored a career-best four goals. Cam Sterritt made his collegiate debut for the Friars in goal and recorded 10 saves and a save percentage of .600. Chris Esposito won 15-22 face-off opportunities and picked up five groundballs in his Friar debut.

100-GOAL MILESTONE... Richie Joseph enters Saturday's game with 96 career goals. He needs four to eclipse the 100-goal milestone in his career. Should he achieve the feat, he will become the seventh player in program history to do so.

RICHIE JOSEPH MOVING UP ALL-TIME CAREER SCORING AND GOALS LIST... Senior Richie Joseph is currently 17th on the Friars' all-time scoring list and seventh on the all-time career goals list. Heading into Saturday's game, Joseph owns 129 career points on 96 goals and 33 assists.

FRIARS' HIGH-OCTANE OFFENSE... Through two games, the Friars rank first among BIG EAST schools and 11th in NCAA Division I in scoring offense (15.50). Rhett Chambers leads the team in points (15), goals (eight) and assists (seven). The rest of the Friars' attack has been balanced to start the season. Matt Lazzaro is second on the team in points (nine), tied for second in goals (six) and has added three assists. Richie Joseph has tallied seven points for the Friars and is tied for second in goals (six). Sam Brazell and Jay Wilkerson have each scored four goals and Brazell has added two assists.

FROM THE FACE-OFF 'X'... Jack Cooper and Chris Esposito have split time as the Friars' primary face-off men this season. Cooper went 13-25 on face-offs versus Bryant. He has recorded a .500 face-off percentage this season (16-32) with seven ground balls. Esposito won 15-22 face-off opportunities at Holy Cross. The transfer has won 17-28 faceoffs overall for a .604 win percentage and has picked up five ground balls.

CAM STERRITT BETWEEN THE PIPES... Sophomore goaltender Cam Sterritt made his collegiate debut for the Friars this season. Sterritt has started in two games and has compiled 31 saves with a .596 save percentage and a 10.57 goals against average. The sophomore ranks second in the BIG EAST in saves per game (15.50) and third in save percentage (.596).

DEFENSIVE LEADERS... Dean Metzger, Ian Olenik and Cam Mesh have anchored the Friars' defensively this season. Long-stick midfielder Olenik leads the team in caused turnovers (seven) and ground balls (eight) and leads the BIG EAST in caused turnovers per game (3.50). Metzger has caused two turnovers and picked up four ground balls. Mesh has tallied three caused turnovers and five groundballs.

TWO FRIARS EARN PRESEASON ALL-BIG EAST HONORS… Attackers Richie Joseph and Rhett Chambers were named to the 2026 Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. Joseph, who earned Preseason All-BIG EAST recognition for the second-straight year, also was named Preseason Offensive Player of the Year. Joseph was one of nine unanimous selections on the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. Last season, Joseph earned First-Team All-BIG EAST and BIG EAST All-Tournament Team honors.

RICHIE JOSEPH BECOMES SECOND FRIAR ALL-TIME TO BE NAMED PRESEASON BIG EAST OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR... A Friar has earned Preseason BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year honors for the second-consecutive season. Richie Joseph earned the honor heading into the 2026 campaign, while Ryan Bell was recognized last season (2025). They are the only two players Providence College men's lacrosse history to earn Preseason BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year, since the league began sponsoring men's lacrosse in 2010.

HOW THE FRIARS FARED IN 2025... Providence College posted a 7-8 overall record in 2025, including a 3-2 mark in the BIG EAST. The Friars earned the No. 3 seed in the BIG EAST Tournament and fell to No. 2 Villanova, 14-13, in the semifinals. The Friars compiled a 4-2 record at home on Chapey Field at Anderson Stadium and were 3-5 on the road. One of the season highlights was a 10-6 victory over No. 16 Denver in Denver, Colo. The victory helped Providence clinch a spot in the BIG EAST Tournament with one game remaining on the schedule. It also marked the Friars' first win over Denver all-time, snapping a 15-game winless streak to the Pioneers. Providence faced six nationally-ranked opponents during the 2025 season and compiled a 1-5 record.

MEET THE STAFF... Providence enters its fourth season under Head Coach Bobby Benson. He is the first coach in program history to guide the Friars to a BIG EAST berth in three-straight seasons (2023, 2024, 2025). Prior to Providence, Benson spent two seasons at Maryland as the offensive coordinator during the Terps' run to the NCAA title in 2022. Maryland registered a 33-1 record during Benson's tenure, earned two Big Ten Championships and made back-to-back appearances in the NCAA Championship game. Casey Brodersen, who spent 12 seasons as the Associate Head Coach at Bryant, was hired by Bobby Benson to serve as Associate Head Coach at Providence in 2023. He helped the Bulldogs to six NEC titles and five NCAA Tournament appearances. Carroll Kennedy joined the Friars as an Assistant Coach in 2023. Kennedy worked alongside Benson at Maryland during the 2022 season and was previously named USILA Assistant Coach of the Year while at Limestone University in 2015. Shawn Ewert joined the staff for the 2024 season as an Assistant Coach. Before joining the Providence staff, Ewert spent the previous two seasons at Florida Southern, where he served as assistant coach and offensive coordinator. During his tenure, he helped guide Florida Southern to a 25-11 record.

KEY RETURNERS… The Friars are bringing back three out of their top five point scorers from last season. Richie Joseph returns for his senior season after finishing second on the team in goals (37) and assists (11), and third in points (48). Joseph was named to the All-BIG EAST First Team and the BIG EAST All-Tournament Team. Junior Rhett Chambers will look to build on his successful 2025 campaign. He finished fourth on the team in points (26), goals (18), and assists (eight), all of which marked career bests. Chambers was recognized with NEILA Division I All-New England Second Team honors. Jay Wilkerson will return for his sophomore year after finishing his rookie campaign fifth on the team in scoring with 15 points on 12 goals and three assists.

Senior Dean Metzger will anchor the Providence defense. Metzger started all 15 games for the Friars last season and recorded seven caused turnovers and 20 ground balls. Senior Ian Olenik will provide defensive support at midfield as a long stick midfielder. Olenik registered a team-best 16 caused turnovers and added 25 ground balls last season.

WELCOME TO FRIARTOWN… The Friars welcomed 12 freshmen to the men's lacrosse program in the fall of 2025. The incoming freshmen include Cooper Anderson (Minneapolis, Minn.), Jack Bonello (Great Falls, Va.), Sam Clark (Glen Ellyn, Ill.), Aiden Eriksen (Tampa, Fla.), Brady Garcia (Baldwinsville, N.Y.), Luke Jaeger (Southlake, Texas), Cannon Ridinger (Charlotte, N.C.), Nate Smith (Avon Lake, Ohio), Ben Stone (Greenwood Village, Colo.), Cam Wheelans (Oshawa, Ont.), Robby White (Whitby, Ont.) and Trent Yelton (Liberty Township, Ohio).

Additionally, three transfers joined the Friars roster in the fall of 2025. The transfers include junior Chris Esposito (Gloucester, Mass.) from Stony Brook, junior Matt Lazzaro (Franklin, Mass.) from Penn State and junior Cam Mesh (Spencerport, N.Y.) from SUNY Brockport.

FRIARS PICKED TO FINISH FIFTH IN BIG EAST PRESEASON POLL... Providence was picked to finish fifth in the 2026 BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll (11 points). Georgetown was picked to win the league, having collected five first-place votes and 25 points overall. Villanova (21 points) was second and Denver (16 points) was selected third. Marquette was selected fourth (12 points). Rounding out the conference standings was St. John's (five points).

SCOUTING HARVARD… Saturday marks Harvard's first game of the 2026 season. The Crimson closed out the 2025 campaign with a 10-5 overall record and a 4-2 mark in Ivy League play. Harvard made an appearance in the 2025 NCAA Tournament. The Crimson averaged 13.87 goals on 42.8 shots per game and generated 11.67 caused turnovers per game. Harvard was picked to finish third in the 2026 Ivy League Men's Lacrosse Preseason Poll and is currently ranked No. 12 in both the KANE Inside Lacrosse Media Poll and the USILA Coaches Poll.

CRIMSON TO WATCH… Harvard returned three of its top four scorers from last season. Junior attack Jack Speidell finished second for the Crimson in points (59) and goals (46) and added 13 assists. Senior attack Teddy Malone registered 49 points on 31 goals and 18 assists and senior midfielder Logan Ip tallied 38 points on 23 goals and 15 assists. Ip was named to the USA Lacrosse Preseason All-America Second Team, while Speidell was named to the Third Team.

The Crimson also return senior defender Charlie Muller for the 2026 season after he recorded 21 caused turnovers and 32 ground balls in 2025. Sophomore goalie Graham Stevens returned for Harvard after starting all 15 games between the pipes in 2025. He registered a .486 save percentage and a 12.08 goals against average.

WHAT'S NEXT... Providence College will return to Providence, R.I. to face Brown on Saturday, Feb. 21. The game is scheduled to begin at 12:00 p.m. and will be broadcast on Friars Live.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Cooper Anderson

Ryan Bell

Jack Bonello

Sam Brazell

Rhett Chambers

Sam Clark

Jack Cooper

Aiden Eriksen

Chris Esposito

Brady Garcia

Luke Jaeger

Richie Joseph

Matt Lazzaro

Cam Mesh

Dean Metzger

Ian Olenik

Cannon Ridinger

Nate Smith

Cam Sterritt

Ben Stone

Cam Wheelans

Robby White

Jay Wilkerson

Trent Yelton

Completed Event: Men's Lacrosse at Holy Cross on January 31, 2026 , Win , 15, to, 10

Completed Event: Men's Lacrosse versus Bryant on February 6, 2026 , Win , 16, to, 11

Upcoming Event: Men's Lacrosse at #12/#12 Harvard on February 14, 2026 at 2:00 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Men's Lacrosse versus Brown on February 21, 2026 at 12:00 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Men's Lacrosse versus Fairfield on February 28, 2026 at 12:00 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Men's Lacrosse versus Merrimack on March 2, 2026 at 6:00 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Men's Lacrosse at Loyola (Md.) on March 7, 2026 at 12:00 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Men's Lacrosse versus Duke on March 14, 2026 at 1:00 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Men's Lacrosse versus Quinnipiac on March 18, 2026 at 6:00 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Men's Lacrosse versus Air Force on March 21, 2026 at 12:00 p.m.

Providence College Athletics