NJIT Men's Lacrosse returns to the road this weekend to take on the Keydets of Virginia Military Institute in Lexington, Va. VMI leads the all-time series 0-3.

LAST TIME OUT
The Highlanders played their first home game of the season on February 16, falling to the University of Delaware Blue Hens, 12-4, at Rutgers-Newark's Alumni Field. Sophomore Collin Fogerty replicated his performance from the team's previous game at Lafayette by scoring half of the Highlanders' four total goals. It was the first time the Mantua native recorded multi-goal games in back-to-back contests. Fellow sophomore Alexzander Hunt kept the Highlanders in the game for as long as possible by stopping an NJIT single-game record 22 shots in only the fifth start of his career. Senior Kevin Falteisek led the team with four ground balls and a career-high five caused turnovers.

TEAM LEADERS
Ryan Darrow (6 goals, 8 points), Aaron Forster (2 assists; tied with Darrow, Cole Robillard and Ryan Kaden), John Tachon (13 ground balls), Tyler Stevenson (31-54 FOs; .574), and Kevin Falteisek (9 caused turnovers) are pacing the Highlanders so far this season.

(CLOSE TO) HOME SWEET HOME
NJIT's home game vs Delaware at RU-N's Alumni Field will be the beginning of the first home schedule that will have the Highlanders playing exclusively in Newark. The Highlanders have played the majority of their home games for the last four years at Drew University and are expected to begin play on NJIT's new on-campus field in 2020 when they become members of the Northeast Conference.

HIGHEST OF HIGHLANDERS
Aaron Forster continues to sit atop the record books for the young Highlander program. After his last game, Forster extended his marks for most career goals (83), assists (37), and points (120) in NJIT history.

THE MORE, THE MERRIER
Ryan Darrow and Cole Robillard's pair of multi-goal games in the opener at No. 13 Lehigh - the first time since April 21, 2018 that two players scored at least two goals in the same game - was topped against Lafayette. Forster and Darrow each scoring three times was the first time NJIT teammates netted at least three goals in the same game since April 15,  2017, when Forster (4 goals) and Ryan Callaghan (3) combined for seven of the Highlanders' 17 goals in a victory at Hampton.

EASY HUNTING
Alexzander Hunt has set career highs in saves twice in the team's three games. Hunt made 19 saves in the season opener at Lehigh and broke the NJIT single-game record with 22 stops last week vs. Delaware. The second-year goalkeeper's previous high was 15 saves at UMass Lowell on April 28 of last year.

CAPTAINS FOR 2019
Fifth-year head coach Travis Johnson has announced the four student-athletes who were voted captains by their teammates for 2019. Selected to lead the Highlanders are: senior midfielder Ryan Darrow, senior attacker Aaron Forster, junior attacker Ryan Kaden, and junior defender John Tachon. "Our team has chosen four outstanding young men that are stellar student-athletes, great leaders, high character men and phenomenal people. They lead by example and elevate the people around them. We are excited that they will lead us in the 2019 season," Johnson said about the quartet.

STRENGTH IN NUMBERS
The Highlanders have continued to grow in their program in their five seasons of existence. After bringing in their largest squad ever in 2018 (38 members), the Highlanders has increased their numbers this year to 43 after bringing 11 newcomers into the fold.

QUALITY COMPETITION
NJIT'S 15-game schedule includes matchups with four teams that have been ranked in either the Inside Lacrosse or USILA polls this season: Lehigh (13th IL /13th USILA); UMass (18th/NR); Georgetown (19th/18th); and Army West Point (13th/15th on Feb. 17).

IN 2018...
- Forster paced NJIT in goals (30), assists (13), total points (43), man-up goals (6), shots (109), and shots on goal (58)
- Tachon scooped up the most ground balls (94) and caused the most turnovers (18).
- Adam Gonzalez won 43.5% of his faceoffs (91-209) to lead the Highlanders.

SCOUTING VMI
VMI won its first game of the year, defeating Manhattan at home, 11-10. The Keydets were paced by Ryan Perouty (4 goals), Michael Santos (2 assists), Kyle Walsh (5 ground balls and 5 caused turnovers), and AJ Krstulovic (10-17 faceoffs).