NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Saint Joseph's College (4-2, 2-0 GNAC) topped Albertus Magnus College (0-5, 0-2 GNAC), 13-7, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's lacrosse contest on Saturday afternoon. Senior midfielder Dalton Eldridge (South Gardiner, Maine) netted three goals with an assist to help the Monks win their fourth-consecutive contest.
Saint Joseph's opened play with three goals in the first eight minutes, with two coming from freshman attack Patrick Hills (Colchester, Conn.), but Albertus Magnus tied the game with three straight scores, as Greg Buck (Berlin, Conn.) netted a pair and Austin Kozak (West Haven, Conn.) scored off a Mike Choiniere(Bethany, Conn.) pass with 9:37 left in the second quarter.
In an attempt to re-focus his squad, second-year Head Coach Dave Beriau promptly called a timeout following the tying goal, but the task proved more difficult after an illegal crosse penalty was issued to freshman midfielder Cam Zaborowski (Littleton, Mass.). Unfazed, St. Joe's proceeded to net a pair of man-down goals, as Eldridge scored at the 8:58 mark and assisted on a Brendan Barrett (East Sandwich, Mass.) marker 1:19 later to help the Monks seize a 5-3 lead as well as the momentum moving forward.
As it played out, the two man-down markers were just the beginning of a 6-0 run, as the Monks owned an 8-3 lead at halftime and saw Eldridge open the third-quarter scoring to make it a 9-3 game with 12:17 left in the third stanza.
The Falcons managed to play even with the Monks for the remainder of the play, as the conference counterparts netted four goals apiece over the closing 22 minutes – including two scores 30 seconds apart, the latter by Buck at the 4:29 mark. The Falcons' late offensive push would be for naught however, as the hosts could not recover from the Monks' 6-0 offensive surge.
The Monks' recent recipe for success has been a well-balanced offensive attack, and the formula for today's win was no different, as eight different SJC players found the back of the cage on the afternoon. Hills, senior Brad Loomis (Saunderstown, R.I.) and junior Jake O'Brien (Andover, Mass.) netted two goals apiece while Barrett tallied a goal and five assists in the triumph. Junior Dom DiRupo (Wilmington, Mass.) and freshmen Tom Lisiecki (South Boston, Mass.) and Joe O'Reilly (Suffern, N.Y.) also scored in the conference win. Zaborowski won six face-offs and corralled a team-high five ground balls while senior Colby Main (Jericho, Vt.) and freshman Liam Skinner (Irving, Texas) contributed three caused turnovers each.
Buck scored a game-high four goals for the Falcons while Dalton Sargent (Augusta, Maine) notched a goal and an assist and Kozak and Justin Bennet (Fairfield, Conn.) netted a goal apiece in the losing effort. Choiniere was credited with three assists and Greg Shawinsky (Trumbull, Conn.) won 17 face-off bids while collecting a game-high 14 ground balls in the setback.
In goal, senior Ethan Rettew (Ephrata, Pa.) posted 10 stops in 54:52 of play while Connor Trainor (Franklin, Mass.) allowed a pair of goals in 5:08 between the pipes. Falcons freshman Jack Kerner (Merrick, N.Y.) tallied 22 saves in the loss.
With the win, Saint Joseph's improves to 2-0 all-time versus Albertus Magnus College, a second-year NCAA DIII varsity program. For the Monks, the four-game win streak ties the program record for consecutive victories, a mark that was first set during the 2011 campaign.
Saint Joseph's hosts Husson University on Wednesday at 4:00 PM while Albertus Magnus hosts Regis College on Thursday at 3:00 PM.
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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 430-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.
