DETROIT (4/30/2019) -- The calendar has turned to May and now its time to lay everything on the line for a trip to the big dance as the University of Detroit Mercy opens the MAAC Championship with a semifinals game against Quinnipiac on Thursday.

Game time is set for 4 p.m. and will be played at Tenney Stadium on the campus of Marist in Poughkeepsie, New York. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+ and will also feature live stats.

Both Detroit Mercy and Quinnipiac finished the regular season at 8-6 overall and 5-2 in the MAAC, but with the red, white and blue falling, 12-9, back in March, the Titans are the #3 seed and the Bobcats are #2. 

The other semifinals has top-seeded Marist hosting defending champion and fourth-seeded Canisius at 7 p.m. 

ALL-TIME SERIES

• The Titans trail the all-time series, 9-2, but in a unique twist, both of the Detroit Mercy wins have been on the road. 

MAAC CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY

• The Titans are 4-6 all-time in the MAAC Championship, winning the title in 2013 and advancing to the championship game in 2011 and 2018.
• Two of their postseason wins have been huge comebacks as the Titans erased a 9-5 deficit in the fourth to beat Monmouth last season in the semifinals, 12-9.
• In the title game against Siena in 2013, Detroit Mercy was down 9-3 in the third before coming back to win the championship, 11-10. 

LIFE AS A #3 SEED

• The No. 3 seed is 11-17 all-time in the MAAC Championship with two titles coming in 2004 (Providence) and 2012 (Canisius). 
• The Titans have been the No. 3 seed three times, reaching the title game in 2011 (beat Marist, lost to Siena) and falling to Marist in 2014 and to Quinnipiac in 2015, those latter two contests played in Poughkeepsie, NY. 

MOST COMPETITIVE MAAC EVER?

• This is the first time in the history of the MAAC Championship that all four teams will enter with a winning record. 

TENNEY STADIUM HORROR

• Detroit Mercy won its first-ever game in Poughkeepsie earlier this year in a 12-11 comeback victory at Marist, but the Titans are just 1-8 all-time at Tenney Stadium, including losing all four times they have played there in the MAAC Championship (2012, 2014, 2015, 2017).
• The Titans are 4-2 in other MAAC Championship games played at Canisius and at Monmouth. 

LOOKING TO TIE SCHOOL RECORD

• The Titans are currently 8-6 and have already guaranteed themselves their third winning season in school history and a winning campaign for the second-straight year.
• Detroit Mercy set a school record with nine wins last season, eclipsing the previous mark of 8-6 in 2015, which was head coach Chris Kolon's first year at the helm and are looking to tie that wins record with one more victory. 

AGAINST THE MAAC

• Detroit Mercy is now 34-29 in regular season league play since joining the MAAC in 2010.
• The Titans set their all-time win mark for conference games in a season last year at 5-1 and tied that win mark with five wins this year.

VANTASTIC

• Senior Matthew Vangalen broke his own school record with 55 points this year after capturing the mark with 51 points on a career-high 31 goals and 20 assists last season. His 55 points are on 19 goals and a career-high and school record 32 assists and he also holds the school career mark with 77 assists. 
• He has registered 17 points in the last four games with four assists at Utah, a pair of goals at Cleveland State, five points (1G, 4A) at Siena and a six-point game against Canisius (2G, 4A). He also tallied six points on five assists and had the game-winning goal at Marist.
• Vangalen posted a hat trick with four goals and five points at nationally-ranked Notre Dame and followed that up with three goals and a helper in the win at Marquette and six points on three goals and a school-record six assists at Bellarmine. 
• His third goal at Bellarmine was the game-winner with 10 seconds left in a 15-14 contest.
• Vangalen is second in school history with 153 points and third at 76 goals. 
• Vangalen - a preseason All-MAAC selection by the coaches and Inside Lacrosse - was a Second Team All-MAAC honoree last year for the second-straight season.

THE BIG LOGAN

• Logan Shamblin showed no signs of a sophomore slump in the season opener as he tied his then-career high with 15 saves in the 9-8 victory over Jacksonville.
• He had another monster game with a career-high 21 saves and five ground balls at Siena in a postseason-clinching win. He was named the MAAC Defensive Player of the Week as the Saints posted 56 shots and he stood tall with a .677 save percentage. 
• He stopped a then career-high 17 shots in the come-from-behind win at Marist and that was after posting 15 saves against Monmouth and another then career-best 16 saves at Quinnipiac. He also had a season-high seven ground balls and a career-best three caused turnovers against Monmouth and was tabbed the MAAC's Defensive Player of the Week.
• He has now allowed 10 goals or less in 20 of his 29 games, including 14 contests with less than 10 goals. He has also recorded double-digit saves in 21 career games. 
• He was a member of the MAAC All-Freshman Team last year as he started all 15 games and picked up nine wins, including going 5-0 in the MAAC regular season and ended the year 14th in the nation in save percentage (.544), 18th in saves per game (10.8) and 20th in goals-against average (9.13).

TOP GOAL SCORER RESIDES IN THE MOTOR CITY

• Junior Seth Mendell continues to be one of the best goal scorers in the country as he posted his seventh hat trick of the season and 10th of his career with four goals at Siena. 
• The four goals saw him earn MAAC Offensive Player of the Week laurels for the second time this season. 
• On the year, he tops the team with 39 points and 33 goals, both career-highs. His 33 total goals leads the MAAC as does his seven man-up goals, which is tied for seventh in the nation.
• He also leads the MAAC and is 42nd in the country with 2.54 goals per game and is fifth in the league with 3.00 points per game. 
• He had a streak of five-straight hat tricks at one point during the year with three goals at Bellarmine, four goals and two assists at Air Force, six markers at St. Bonaventure and three goals at Quinnipiac and at Marist. 
• In his career, he now has 92 points on 70 goals and 22 assists in 45 games, fourth in goals and sixth in points in school history. 

LEAVE IT TO THE LSM

• Sophomore Paul Manuszak had a fine rookie campaign and has not suffered a sophomore slump at all.
• He is tied for the team lead with 16 caused turnovers - tied for ninth in the MAAC - and is second with 64 ground balls to go with four goals and three assists, all career highs. 
• He is also second on the team and fifth in the MAAC with 4.57 ground balls per game. 
• He was a beast again with ground balls picking up a career-best 10 at Siena, the most by a Titan other than a faceoff midfielder since Jordan Houtby had 10 against Michigan in 2012. 
• Manuszak had a caused turnover, assist and six GB's against Canisius and tied his career high with three caused turnovers and picked up seven ground balls against Manhattan. 
• He had a big debut in the season-opening victory over Jacksonville as had a career-best three caused turnovers and six ground balls.
• In the win at Marquette, he registered a caused turnover and six more GB's and picked up five more ground balls at Bellarmine. 

AKINS LEADS THE D

• Junior defender Alex Akins - a preseason All-MAAC selection by the coaches and Inside Lacrosse - has earned All-MAAC honors in his first two years, including First Team in 2018. 
• Akins had a career day with a career-best four caused turnovers and picking up five ground balls against Canisius. 
• He had two caused turnovers at Quinnipiac and recorded three caused turnovers and picked up six ground balls at St. Bonaventure. 
• A team captain, he was fifth on the squad with 11 caused turnovers and seventh picking up a career-high 23 ground balls in 2018. 
• He was a key cog on the Titan defense that produced  8.56 caused turnovers per game to not only lead the MAAC, but also rank eighth in the country, as well as ranking second in the conference and 19th in the nation in scoring defense at 9.38 goals per game.
• On the year, he is tied for first with 16 caused turnovers - tied for ninth in the MAAC - to go with 26 ground balls and in his career, he has 39 caused turnovers - eighth in school history - and 64 ground balls. 

NOTHING BUT JARZ

• Junior Alex Jarzembowski already has his name on top of the Titan record book in every faceoff category for a game, season and career.
• He had another huge game going 18-of-24 with six GB's in the win at Siena. 
• He was 27-of-33 with a program-best 15 ground balls in the victory at Bellarmine, where he won the game's last 13 faceoffs and also scored a goal. 
• The 27 faceoffs are tied for the third most in the nation alongside Marist's Peyton Smith (27 vs. Hartford) and behind only Hobart's Matthew Pedicine's 32 at Siena and Mercer's Ashton Wood's 29-of-33 game at Furman. 
• At Marquette, he was 19-of-30 with five ground balls and a goal and put together a 19-of-22 effort with 13 GB's and a score at St. Bonaventure. 
• He has now won double-digit faceoffs in 26 career games. 

ALEX THE GREAT 

• Junior Alex Jarzembowski - a preseason All-MAAC selection by the coaches and Inside Lacrosse - is currently second in the MAAC and 23rd in the nation in faceoff percentage winning 59.4 percent (192-of-324). He also leads the team with a career-best 78 ground balls and is second in the league and 28th in the nation with 5.57 ground balls per game.
• He is currently the school-record holder in season winning percentage (59.3 %) and wins (192) as well as career winning percentage (56.0 %) and faceoff wins (429). 
• He started the 2019 season off with a big performance in the win over Jacksonville, winning 15-of-21 faceoffs with five ground balls and scoring his first two collegiate goals.
• Coming into the contest, he had attempted just one shot in his first two seasons. 
• For that effort, he was tabbed the MAAC Offensive Player of the Week on Feb. 4. 
• He has added to his arsenal with six goals with five coming by way of directly winning the faceoff and firing at the goalie. 
• Jarzembowski was named to the All-MAAC Second Team in 2018 as he set a then-school record winning 163-of-313 (.521). 

DIAPER DANDY

• Freshman Cam Kostus was not shy in his collegiate debut firing a team-high 11 shots and finishing with a goal, assist and three ground balls in the win over Jacksonville. 
• At Notre Dame, he scored one goal on three shots and recorded his first collegiate hat trick with three goals in the road win at Marquette and his second with three goals at Utah. 
• In a key game at Siena, he came up with two goals, an assist and two ground balls and that was after notching two late goals - including the eventual game-winner - against Monmouth and registered the game-tying goal in the comeback win at Marist. 
• On the year, he is fourth on the team with 23 points and tied for third with 19 goals and is tied for first in the MAAC and seventh in the nation with seven man-up scores. 

ERSKINE SHINES

• Sophomore Brett Erskine - who missed games at Quinnipiac and against Monmouth with an undisclosed injury -  has looked like he is back to full health in the last few games with three goals and two assists at Siena, a goal and an assist against Canisius and two goals versus Manhattan. 
• He is now third on the team with 31 points and second with 21 goals and 10 assists. 
• Earlier this season, he recorded a career-high five goals and six points in the win at Bellarmine and four goals and five points in the triumph at Marquette. 
• A couple of his goals on the season have been highlight reel acrobatic dives to the net. 
• For his effort against Marquette, he was named the MAAC Offensive Player of the Week for the first time in his career. 
• He earned MAAC All-Rookie Team status last season as he was second on the team in points (35), goals (22) and assists (13).

LUBIN AT THE SSM

• Senior Brent Lubin has had a career senior campaign posting five points on two goals and three assists along with four caused turnovers and 29 ground balls. 
• He had a career-high two caused turnovers against Canisius and recorded four ground balls at St. Bonaventure and at Siena. 
• On offense, he registered a goal and an assist at Marist, with his goal coming in a fourth-quarter 4-0 run that saw the Titans win the game, 12-11.
• Lubin was recently named the Larry Bleach award winner at Detroit Mercy, presented to a student-athlete who sets the strength and conditioning standards for other student-athletes to follow. 

WHAT A GAME FOR MCCLAIN

• Redshirt junior Sam McClain had a big week on defense for the Titans in the win at Marquette as he helped shut down All-BIG EAST First Team selection John Wagner, holding the Golden Eagles attackman two just two assists and no goals on his 10 shots.
• McClain was credited with a caused turnover and two ground balls in the contest. 
• At St. Bonaventure, he tallied three more caused turnovers and had a takeaway and a team-high four ground balls at Quinnipiac and two caused turnovers against Canisius. 
• On the season, he has 13 caused turnovers - third on the team - and 27 ground balls.
• He also scored his first collegiate goal going coast-to-coast at Cleveland State. 

MAN-UP VS. MAN-DOWN

• Detroit Mercy comes into the game second in the MAAC and 20th in the nation in man-up offense at 40.4 percent (21-52), while Quinnipiac is last in the conference and 71st in the nation at just 20.4 percent (11-54). 
• Defensively, the Titans rank fourth in the MAAC and 43rd in the country on the man-down unit at 36.1 percent (22-61), while the Bobcats are sixth in the league and 53rd in the nation killing off penalties at 36.4 percent (20-55). 
• One would think that you will see the power play units on the field a lot as both teams are the most penalized in the MAAC with the Titans totaling 65 flags and the Bobcats 61, seventh and eighth in the league, respectively.