The Rutgers men’s lacrosse team is having an outstanding season. The Scarlet Knights are nationally ranked and have a guaranteed bye in the upcoming Big 10 Tournament.

The team is ranked seventh in the nation and is poised to make a postseason run. But the players say that they know not to take anything for granted.

“Enjoy the time we get together every day. Especially learning from last year, it can be taken away real quick, so you know, the best part of the day is when we’re together. Just having that attitude every day is big,” says goalie Colin Kirst.

The team is 6-2 with two games left to play in the regular season. They have already clinched a first-round bye in the upcoming tournament. It is an impressive accomplishment, considering Rutgers is playing a conference-only schedule against teams with powerhouse programs.

“It’s tough. It’s really tough because the practices are really intense and then the games are really intense and you kind of just want to take a deep breath, but you can’t,’” say player Connor Kirst.

Rutgers is currently focusing on finishing the regular season strong and winning the Big 10. The team’s best finish in the conference tournament was second place in 2016.

“Our offense kind of thrives off our defense and then they push the ball down the field and we’re able to take advantage of that sometimes. But yeah, I’d say the stronger part of our team is our defense,” says Connor Kirst.

The Scarlet Knights will hope to make its first NCAA tournament appearance since 2004 and will try to advance in the bracket for the first time in 30 years.

“Everyone is brought in. Everyone is holding each other accountable and that just makes the whole team work, like top to bottom. Everyone knows they’ve got a role they have to fill, that role every day, they come to practice and they do that,” says defenseman Bobby Russo.

Rutgers will play against John Hopkins on Saturday.