The Canisius College men's lacrosse team unveiled its 2009 schedule on Thursday. The defending MAAC Champions will play three ranked foes this season and will host five games plus the 2009 MAAC Championship Tournament.

"We are excited for the challenges that we will face this season," said Canisius head coach Randy Mearns. "We are looking forward to defending our MAAC Championship and believe that our non-conference schedule will help us prepare for the MAAC season. Our goal every year is to win the conference championship and it is even more exciting with the tournament in Buffalo this year."

The Griffs open the season at Colgate on Feb. 13. The Raiders, who finished the 2008 campaign ranked 10th nationally, edged Canisius last season 12-11 in overtime. Canisius will follow with road trips to Ivy League powers Princeton on Feb. 21 and Cornell on March 10. The Tigers finished the season ranked 20th, while the Big Red placed seventh.

Canisius remains on the road to begin defense of its MAAC Championship on March 14 at Marist. The Griffs welcome conference foe Saint Joseph's to the Demske Sports Complex on March 21 for the team's home opener.

Canisius will also host Mount St. Mary's (April 4), Wagner (April 11) and VMI (April 25) in MAAC play plus Robert Morris (April 7) in non-conference action. The Griffs' contest against VMI will serve as a rematch of the 2008 MAAC Championship, which Canisius won 14-5. The Griffs travel to face conference foes Providence (March 28), Siena (April 15) and Manhattan (April 18) in addition to playing at Hobart on April 22.

The top four teams in the MAAC regular season qualify for the 2009 MAAC Championship, held at the Demske Sports Complex. The semifinals will take place on May 1 with the championship game slated for May 3.

The Griffs won a school-record 10 games during the 2008 season. Canisius advanced to its first NCAA Tournament after winning its first MAAC Championship. The Griffs return 22 letterwinners and six starters from the 2008 team.

Date          Opponent             Location               Time (ET)
 
Wed, Feb 13   Colgate              at Hamilton, N.Y.       4:00 PM
Thu, Feb 21   Princeton            at Princeton, N.J.      1:00 PM
 
Mon, Mar 10   Cornell              at Ithaca, N.Y.         4:00 PM
Fri, Mar 14   Marist *             at Poughkeepsie, N.Y.   1:00 PM
Fri, Mar 21   Saint Joseph's *     Demske Sports Complex   1:00 PM
Fri, Mar 28   Providence *         at Providence, R.I.     1:00 PM
 
Fri, Apr 04   Mount St. Mary's *   Demske Sports Complex  12:00 PM
Mon, Apr 07   Robert Morris        Demske Sports Complex   3:00 PM
Fri, Apr 11   Wagner *             Demske Sports Complex   1:00 PM
Tue, Apr 15   Siena *              at Loudonville, N.Y.    3:00 PM
Fri, Apr 18   Manhattan *          at Riverdale, N.Y.      1:00 PM
Tue, Apr 22   Hobart               at Geneva, N.Y.         7:00 PM
Fri, Apr 25   VMI *                Demske Sports Complex   1:00 PM
 
Thu, May 01   MAAC Semifinals      Demske Sports Complex     TBA
Sat, May 03   MAAC Championship    Demske Sports Complex     TBA

2008-12-18