#4 Men's Lacrosse Wins Huge NE-10 Rivalry Matchup vs. #5 Adelphi, 18-14, Saturday Afternoon
Links: Box Score // Highlights
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – Powered by an 11-goal first half on offense and several stellar performances from multiple players across all three ends of the field, the fourth-ranked Merrimack College men's lacrosse team won its biggest game of the season, 18-14, against fifth-ranked Adelphi on Saturday afternoon at Martone-Mejail Field. Both teams now stand at 5-1 in conference play this season, with the Warriors now holding the valuable head-to-head tiebreaker over the Panthers.
The Basics
Score: Merrimack 18, Adelphi 14
Records: #4 Merrimack (7-1, 5-1 NE-10) | #5 Adelphi (7-2, 5-1 NE-10)
Location: Martone-Mejail Field | North Andover, Mass.
How It Happened
Meeting for the first time since last year's NCAA Quarterfinal matchup in Long Island, Merrimack and Adelphi entered Saturday with plenty on the line. A win for the Warriors would move them into sole possession of second place in the league standings, while an Adelphi victory would have kept the Panthers tied for first for the time being.
Battling a steady rainfall throughout the contest, Merrimack was undeterred by the dreary weather at the game's onset, scoring three quick goals in a three-minute span to push ahead. Adelphi would answer at the 7:29 mark of the first quarter, but freshman Michael O'Connell (Sudbury, Mass.) found the back of the net for the first of what would be a career-high five times to respond.
Adelphi's Salvatore Tuttle made it a two-goal lead again with just over four minutes left in the first, but that would be the last time Adelphi would find the back of the net for nearly 15 full minutes, as junior John Bassett (Clifton Park, N.Y.) was quick to respond off a feed from faceoff specialist Blake Boudreau (Amherst, N.H.), and the Warriors would carry a 5-2 edge into the first intermission.
The second quarter belonged almost entirely to the Warriors on offense, as Merrimack ran off six uninterrupted markers over the first 14 minutes of the frame. Junior Max Allen (West Caldwell, N.J.) had a hat trick locked up after burying his second man-up tally of the afternoon with 9:55 to go in the half, and three goals later it was senior captain Tom McLaughlin (Billerica, Mass.) scoring his first collegiate goal as the defense got involved up front, as the Warriors took their largest lead of the game (11-2) with less than four minutes to play in the half.
With an offense as danger as Adelphi's, however, the game hardly was ever out of reach, and the Panthers took advantage of some sloppiness by the hosts to score two goals in the final minute of the second quarter – including one with 0.3 seconds left – as the Panthers cut the deficit to 11-4 entering halftime.
Merrimack temporarily put those turnover bugs behind them as O'Connell buried a feed from Allen just 2:30 into the third quarter, restoring the Warriors' eight-goal lead. An Adelphi response from Tuttle temporarily staunched the bleeding, but Merrimack ripped off the next three tallies from O'Connell (2) and senior captain Ryan Poirier (Wakefield, R.I.), to stake the hosts to their biggest lead of the game – a 10-goal cushion (15-5) – with 2:12 left in the third.
Again, though, the Panthers were never out of it with the firepower they possessed, and a Gerard Cunningham goal with six seconds left in the third quarter served as a premonition of what was to follow, as the Warriors took a 15-6 advantage into the final respite.
The final frame belonged to Adelphi, which used lightning-quick scoring chances to make things interesting down the stretch. After a man-up goal from Chris Racalbuto and another one 23 seconds later from Gordon Purdie Jr. had the visitors within striking distance, Allen quieted them with his fourth strike of the afternoon at the 12:31 mark.
The Panthers, though, scored three goals in a two-minute span to suddenly claw to within five (16-11), and with less than 10 minutes left all of a sudden the Warriors' 10-goal cushion had been cut in half.
However, shortly after that, Boudreau would win arguably the biggest faceoff of the game, cut into the Adelphi defensive third and score from straightaway for an important answer. The sophomore specialist then won the next draw to set up another quick score from the Warriors, as junior Jack Trask (Colorado Springs, Colo.) put a bow on Merrimack's 18-goal performance with the Warriors' last goal of the game at the 9:02 mark of the fourth.
Adelphi would not go quietly, scoring three more times in the final four minutes, but ultimately the deficit was too much to overcome, as the Warriors won for the third time in four tries against Adelphi dating back to last season.
Notes and Numbers
- Boudreau, again, had a stellar afternoon, winning 19-of-34 faceoffs (55.9%) against the top faceoffman in the country in Adelphi's John English; he also picked up a game-high 10 ground balls
- Allen led all Warriors with seven points (4g, 3a) to tie his career-high, while Tuttle was magnificent on the other end for Adelphi, finishing with 10 points on six goals and four helpers
- O'Connell continued his impressive rookie season with a career-high five goals/points, while Boudreau's two points (1g, 1a) also tied a career-high
- Poirier was particularly strong on the playmaking front, as his four assists (in addition to his one goal) were a new career-high, while Trask also recorded his third-ever hat trick
- Other multi-point producers were Bassett (1g, 1a), sophomore Kyle Stenberg (Annandale, N.J.), and sophomore Dean Prouty (Hanover, Mass.)
- Senior Scott Corcoran (Haverhill, Mass.) was a menace defensively, forcing a career-high five turnovers while adding four ground balls
- In net, sophomore Sam Ventresca (Woburn, Mass.) finished with 13 saves
- EMO: Merrimack (4-7) // ADE (2-4)
- SOG: Merrimack – 29 // ADE – 27
- Ground Balls: Merrimack – 41 // ADE – 33
- Clears: Merrimack (18-for-24) // ADE (18-for-21)
Up Next
Merrimack will have a quick turnaround before continuing league play with a short trip to Waltham, where the Warriors will meet Bentley University for a midweek clash on Wednesday (April 6). Game time is set for 7 p.m.
--
For continuing coverage of Merrimack College Athletics, visit MerrimackAthletics.com and follow the Warriors on Twitter and on Facebook.
