HAMPTON, Va. – The Bellarmine men's lacrosse returns to action against Hampton at Armstrong Stadium on Tuesday afternoon at 3 p.m. ET.
 
The Knights dropped a tough 8-7 decision to Canisius in their home opener their last time out on Saturday, Feb. 17. Bellarmine got off five shots in the final minute, but was unable to net the equalizer.
 
"We're looking forward to getting back into competition this week over spring break," said Bellarmine head coach Andy Whitley. "We've had a chance to work on the things we needed to clean up after three games in seven days last week."
 
Before the gut-wrenching loss to Canisius, Bellarmine split another pair of defensive battles earlier in the week. They earned a 13-9 win at St. Bonaventure, their first of the season on Feb. 11, before dropping a 10-6 decision at Ohio State two days later.
 
"The time off has been good to allow our guys to rest and get healthy and focus on player development over our nine-day stretch between games. Hopefully a few notable names will return to the lineup over the next couple of weeks."
 
Among the notable names missing so far this season are senior attackman Christian Della Rocco, the Atlantic Sun's leading goal scorer from 2023, and senior defenseman Max Coopman.

Bellarmine has swept its previous two games against Hampton in convincing fashion, 21-5 in 2020 and 23-3 in 2022. Nine players recorded multiple points in the 2022 matchup, including Kyle Playsted (two goals, two assists) and Christian Della Rocco (two goals, one assist).

Benny O'Rourk is riding a 28-game goal scoring streak, tied for the fourth-longest active streak in the country. The senior captain has tallied 58 goals during the streak and was last held scorless in a 17-8 win on March 19, 2022, at VMI. His 83 career goals match former Knights great Tucker Ciessau for second on the school's all-time list, six behind Playsted's 89.
 
"I know our players are excited to get back on the field this week," Whitley added. "I expect we'll respond with a very energized and disciplined effort versus Hampton as we enter the second phase of our non-conference slate."
 
Following Hampton, that second phase of the non-conference slate will conclude with home games against Marist on March 2 and Marquette on March 9. The Atlantic Sun schedule begins with Utah on March 16 at Frazier Stadium.
 
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