Wildcats Guaranteed Two Televised Games in 2012

VILLANOVA, Pa. - The No. 10 Villanova men's lacrosse team will be featured on national television this season when the Wildcats host ninth-ranked Notre Dame on Saturday, April 21st at 5:30 p.m. on ESPNU. The appearance marks the first regular-season national television appearance for the Wildcats in program history.

Villanova will also be featured locally on Time Warner Cable Sports (TWCS) and New York City's regional sports network, SportsNet New York (SNY) on Sunday, March 25th when the Wildcats travel to Syracuse, N.Y. to face the Orange. Game time is scheduled for 2 p.m. on the Syracuse University campus.

Additionally, ESPN has also agreed to carry the entire inaugural BIG EAST Men's Lacrosse Championship, which will take place from Thursday, May 3 to Saturday, May 5, hosted by Villanova University. ESPNU will air Thursday's first semifinal and Saturday's tournament championship game live. Thursday's second semifinal will be carried live on ESPN3 and shown via tape-delay on ESPNU.

In all, ESPN - using ESPN, ESPNU, and ESPN3 - will telecast 49 collegiate games, 39 in the regular season. Two of the games will be women's games, and six conference championships will be aired. Coverage begins with Johns Hopkins hosting Towson on Friday, Feb. 17, at 12:00 p.m. on ESPNU.

This season, the telecasts will include a deep roster of experienced and knowledgeable lacrosse analysts: Ryan Boyle (four-time All-American at Princeton), Paul Carcaterra (All-American at Syracuse and a member of 1995 National Championship team), Mark Dixon (former Johns Hopkins midfielder), Ryan Flanagan (All-American defenseman at UNC), Quint Kessenich (Four-time All-American at Johns Hopkins), Jamie Munro (All-American at Brown and former Denver head coach), and Matt Ward (former Virginia attackman and 2006 Tewaaraton winner). Play-by-play announcers include ESPNU's Anish Shroff, Joe Beninati (Bowdoin College goalie), Mike Corey, Ben Holden, and Eamon McAnaney (Notre Dame defenseman).

The Wildcats open their 2012 season on Saturday, Feb. 18th when they travel to Bethlehem, Pa. to face the Lehigh Mountain Hawks. Game time is scheduled for Noon at Ulrich Sports Complex on the Lehigh University campus.