PORTLAND, ME – Mount Ida College (3-7, 2-0 GNAC) defeated Saint Joseph's (5-6, 0-2 GNAC), 13-6, in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's lacrosse action at Deering Memorial Stadium on Wednesday night. Zachary Chaisson '14 (Concord, NH) netted three goals and added an assist for the Monks in a losing effort.
The Mustangs scored the first three goals of the game, but Chaisson closed the gap for the hosts with two tallies in a matter of 40 seconds to make it a 3-2 contest with 2:36 left in the first quarter. After a well-played second stanza, Mount Ida carried a slim 5-3 edge into the intermission.
The Mustangs began the third quarter with three straight scores to take an 8-3 lead, but Benson Pasquarello '12 (Kennebunk, ME) found the back of the cage in a man-up situation to cut the Monks' deficit down to four goals with 51 seconds remaining in the third period.
Mount Ida senior Dan Harrington (Westford, MA) sparked his team with two man-up goals in the first two minutes of the final quarter and the visitors held a 12-4 advantage with 6:48 remaining.
The Monks received goals just 15 seconds apart from Chaisson and Spencer Hunt '13 (Jeffersonville, VT) to make it a 12-6 game with 4:14 on the clock, but the late scoring burst proved to be futile as the Mustangs clamped down defensively and added another marker in the closing minutes to secure an important conference win.
For the Monks, Hunt netted a goal and an assist and Robert Murtha '13 (North Kingstown, RI) added a tally. Bryan Johnson '13 (Brookline, NH) broke the program's game record with nine caused turnovers and Jake Ricciardi '14 (Sharon, MA) corralled six ground balls in the loss.
For the Mustangs, Nick Yacuzzi '13 (Worcester, MA) recorded three goals and two assists, Harrington netted three goals and an assist, Matt Savage '11 (Peabody, MA) tallied two goals and two helpers, and Ian Saunders '12 (Glens Falls, NY) chipped in with a pair of markers. Carl Grimo '12 (Bristol, RI) scooped up six ground balls and Nick Maurais '13 (Peabody, MA) added five caused turnovers in the Mount Ida triumph.
SJC keeper Christopher Driscoll '13 (Saco, ME) made 13 stops and Mount Ida netminder Chandler Webb '13 (Newton, MA) recorded seven saves between the pipes.
Mount Ida held advantages in shots (50-24), ground balls (48-41) and face-off wins (14-8) in the conference victory. The Mustangs also converted five of nine extra-man opportunities on the night.
With the loss, the Monks fall to 0-3 in the history of the matchup with Mount Ida College.
The Monks have five games remaining this season, with all five being conference contests and the next three on the road beginning with an April 9th tilt at Rivier College (1:00 PM).
Mount Ida College will host Daniel Webster in a conference contest on Saturday at 1:00 PM.