February 4, 1999

THE PROVIDENCE/UMASS-LOWELL SERIES... Friday's game will be the 58th meeting between the two schools. Providence leads the all-time series 28-24-5. The two teams first met on Jan. 27, 1982 with Providence defeating UMass-Lowell, 5-3, at Schneider Arena. PC's last win against the River Hawks was a 5-2 victory on Jan. 17, 1999 at the Tsongas Arena. The Friars' last loss to UMass-Lowell was a 5-1 defeat at Schneider Arena on Jan. 24, 1998.

AT TSONGAS ARENA... PC has registered a 1-0 mark against UMass-Lowell at Tsongas. In PC's only game at Tsongas Arena, the Friars earned a 5-2 win against UMass on Jan. 17, 1999.

AT SCHNEIDER ARENA... PC has posted a 14-16 mark against the River Hawks at Schneider Arena. In the Friars' last game against UMass-Lowell at Schneider Arena, the River Hawks defeated the Friars, 5-1, on Jan. 24, 1998. The Friars' last win against UMass-Lowell at Schneider Arena was a 5-3 victory on Nov. 16, 1997.

THIS SEASON VS. UMASS-LOWELL... The Friars have registered a 1-0 record against UMass-Lowell this season. On Jan. 17, PC defeated UMass, 5-2, at Tsongas Arena. Marc Suderman, Jon Cameron, Troy Lake, Doug Sheppard and Mike Omicioli all scored for the Friars. Boyd Ballard recorded 23 stops in the win.

FRIARS DROP TWO GAMES LAST WEEKEND... The Friars posted a 0-2 record last week. On Jan. 29, second-ranked Maine defeated the Friars, 7-4, at Schneider Arena. Jason Ialongo led the Friar offense with two goals and Mike Omicioli added three assists. PC's other goals were scored by Fernando Pisani and freshman Drew Omicioli. Boyd Ballard started the game and made 25 saves in two periods of action. Mark Kane entered the game in the third period and registered 14 stops in 20 minutes of action. The following night, the Friars were defeated by third-ranked New Hampshire, 4-2, at Durham, N.H. Pisani and Jerry Keefe each scored for PC. Ballard recorded 24 stops in net.

TOUGH SCHEDULING... Last Saturday's 4-2 loss to the third-ranked New Hampshire Wildcats marked PC's fourth consecutive game against a ranked team. On Friday, the Friars were defeated by second-ranked Maine, 7-4, at Schneider Arena. On Jan. 22-23, PC split a two game-series against the sixth-ranked Boston College Eagles. PC has posted a 2-6 mark this season against top-10 teams.

FRIAR OFFENSE ON A TEAR... PC's offense has been very productive this season. The Friars enter tonight's game against UMass-Lowell averaging 4.19 goals per game. PC has scored five or more goals in 12 of its 25 games this season.

HEAD COACH PAUL POOLEY... Is the 10th coach in the history of Providence College hockey. Since 1994, Pooley has compiled a 78-82-13 record and brought the Friars to two HOCKEY EAST Finals and one NCAA Tournament appearance. In 1994-95, Pooley became the first head coach to bring a team to the HOCKEY EAST Championship Game in his inaugural season behind the bench. In 1995-96, he guided the Friars to their second HOCKEY EAST title and first since 1985. Pooley also led the team to its eighth appearance in the NCAA Tournament. The 38-year-old head coach came to PC after spending three years as an assistant coach at Lake Superior State (1991-94). He began coaching at his alma mater, Ohio State, where he served as an assistant to Jerry Welsh from 1988-91.

KEEFE RECORDS 40TH POINT OF THE SEASON... Junior center Jerry Keefe recorded three points (one goal, two assists) in two games against Maine and New Hampshire on Jan. 29-30. Keefe tallied one goal in PC's 4-2 loss to New Hampshire on Jan. 30. His goal against UNH was his 40th point of the season. Keefe becomes the first Friar to register 40 points in a season since Russ Guzior recorded 40 points in 1997. His two assists against Maine on Jan. 29 marked the 18th multiple-point game of his career and his 12th this season. Keefe has tallied three or more points in five games this season, including two five-point games. This season, he leads the team in scoring (40 points) and assists (26) and is tied for the team lead in goals (14). In 77 career games, Keefe has registered 77 points (28 goals, 49 assists).

PISANI CLOSES IN ON 100 POINTS... Junior Fernando Pisani tallied four points (two goals, two assists) in two games against some of the top competition in the country on Jan. 29-30. Pisani recorded one goal and one assist in a 7-4 loss to second-ranked Maine on Jan. 29 and one goal and one assist in a 4-2 loss to third-ranked New Hampshire on Jan. 30. Pisani's assist on the Friars' second goal in the 4-2 loss to UNH was his 99th career point. The junior right wing is one point shy of becoming the 43rd player in the history of PC hockey to record 100 or more points. He will become the first player to reach 100 points in his junior season since All-American Chad Quenneville accomplished the feat in 1995. The two-point effort against UNH on Jan. 30 was his 24th career multiple-point game and his 10th multiple-point game this season. He has recorded three or more points in a game 11 times in his career and has registered four or more points in a game three times in his career. A 1996 eighth-round draft pick of the Edmonton Oilers, Pisani has recorded 99 points (39 goals, 60 assists) in 96 career games. In 25 games this season, he is third on the team in scoring with 11 goals and 24 assists.

MIKE OMICIOLI CONTINUES TO CLIMB PC SCORING CHART... Senior center Mike Omicioli, who notched three assists in PC's 7-4 loss to Maine on Jan. 29 and one assist in PC's 4-2 loss to New Hampshire on Jan. 30, is tied for 24th all-time in scoring at Providence College with 124 points (44 goals, 80 assists) in 122 games. Omicioli also ranks 18th all-time in assists with 80. This season, he is tied for first on the team in goals (14) and is second in scoring (36 points). Omicioli's three-assist effort against Maine was the 31st multiple-point game of his career and his 12th this season. It also marked the 14th time in his career that he recorded three or more points in a game, the eighth time he registered three or more assists in a game and the 18th time he recorded two or more assists in a contest. Omicioli has recorded six multiple-goal games in his career.

OFFENSIVE DEFENSEMAN... Junior defenseman Jason Ialongo tallied two power-play goals in PC's 7-4 loss to Maine on Jan. 29. It marked his third multiple-point game this season. Ialongo is tied for the team lead in power-play goals with five. In 24 games this season, the Cranston, R.I. native has registered a career high 20 points (eight goals, 12 assists).

DREW OMICIOLI HELPS ON OFFENSE... Freshman Drew Omicioli tallied one goal in PC's 7-4 loss to Maine on Jan. 29. On Jan. 22, he netted the game-winning goal and added one assist in PC's 3-0 win against BC on Jan. 22. Omicioli is tied for the team lead in game-winning goals with three. Omicioli leads all Friar freshmen in scoring with 12 points (five goals, seven assists) in 22 games.

BALLARD IN NET... Sophomore goaltender Boyd Ballard made 24 stops in PC's 4-2 loss to third-ranked New Hampshire on Jan. 30. Ballard recorded a season-high 36 saves while earning his first shutout of the season and becoming the first goalie to hold the Eagles scoreless in 1998-99 in PC's 3-0 shutout at sixth-ranked Boston College on Jan. 22. Ballard made a number of key saves in the game, including one on Mike Mottau's short-handed shot in the second period which was featured as CNN's "Play of the Day." The shutout at BC was the second of Ballard's collegiate career. For his efforts in the shutout against BC, Ballard earned HOCKEY EAST Defensive Player of the Week honors. Last season, Ballard earned HOCKEY EAST All-Rookie Team honors. In 17 games this season, Ballard has posted a 9-7 mark, a 3.55 goals against average and an .883 save percentage.

MacNEVIN PRODUCES ON OFFENSE... Junior defenseman Josh MacNevin is fourth on the team in scoring with 22 points (three goals, 19 assists) in 23 games. In PC's 3-2 win against Brown on Jan. 12 in the Mayor's Cup, MacNevin assisted on all three Friar goals. His three assist-effort against Brown marked the third time in his career he recorded three assists in a game. He tallied one goal and one assist in PC's 8-1 win against UMass-Amherst on Jan. 15. The two-point effort was the 11th multiple-point game of his career and his sixth this season. A 1996 fourth-round draft pick of the New Jersey Devils, MacNevin has 55 points (13 goals, 42 assists) in 86 career games.