Links: Box Score
WALTHAM, Mass. – The second-ranked Merrimack College men's lacrosse team rallied from down two goals early in the third quarter and ultimately denied host Bentley an upset bid, as the Warriors edged the Falcons, 11-7, in a heated Northeast-10 Conference matchup on Wednesday night in Waltham.
The Basics
Score: Merrimack 11, Bentley 7
Records: #1 Merrimack (5-1, 2-1 NE10) | Bentley (1-4, 0-3 NE10)
Location: Waltham, Mass. | Bentley Lacrosse Field
Attendance: 267
Duration: 1:50
Rapid Recap
- A slow-developing first quarter saw both defenses shine; the visitors outshot Bentley by a 9-4 margin in the opening frame, but it wasn't until the final two minutes of the period that the Warriors broke through on a goal from sophomore Dom Thomas, his first of three on the evening.
- Things opened up in the second, as Merrimack suddenly found itself in a slugfest. Bentley popped in two goals in less than a minute to grab its first lead early in the second, but the Warriors returned the favor with two in response – the first two of the afternoon from sophomore Charlie Bertrand, who would wind up with a career-high seven strikes on the way to a historic personal milestone.
- Bentley tied the again at 3-all before Bertrand recorded a hat trick with 8:03 left in the half to push the visitors up by a 4-3 score. The Falcons, however, would take a one-goal lead into halftime after closing the second quarter with goals at the 4:42 and 1:20 mark.
- That momentum continued for Bentley to start the second half, as the Falcons took their largest lead of the game (6-4) just after the opening minute mark. But the Warriors would answer, mostly thanks to the heroics of Bertrand, who buried back-to-back man-up goals off of feeds from freshmen Christian Thomas and Sean Black, and then it was Black who put the Warriors ahead with only three seconds left in the stanza on a setup from junior Michael O'Connell, making it a 7-6 lead for the Navy and Gold heading to the fourth.
- The hosts refused to go quietly and kept the pressure on the Warriors with a goal just 45 seconds into the fourth quarter, leveling the ledger once again at 7-7. But the brothers Thomas – Dom and Christian – would team up for the game-winner with 13:09 left, and then Dom Thomas and Bertrand closed out the game with three more Merrimack markers over the final 10 minutes of regulation, with Bertrand netting the latter two, propelling the Warriors to the win.
Top Performances
- Bertrand tied his career high with his seven-point outing and set a new personal best for goals in a single game with his seven-tally performance. More impressively, the sophomore sensation hit the career scoring century mark, posting his 100th point in just his 23rd game as a Warrior.
- Black set up three of Merrimack's goals and finished with four points overall (1g, 3a).
- Dom Thomas recorded his first career hat trick as part of a three-point outing, while O'Connell and Thomas each had two assists.
- Senior Blake Boudreau dominated the draw, winning 15-of-22 (.682) while adding 12 ground balls. Sophomore Dan Cotnoir led the way defensively with two caused turnovers.
- Freshman Peter Brown recorded eight saves in net for the second straight game, tying his career-high.
Notes and Numbers
- Merrimack has now won the last 17 games it has scored 10 or more goals in; its last loss when posting a double-digit scoring total was in double overtime against Le Moyne (12-11) on March 18, 2017.
- Bertrand moved into second place in the league leader board in goals this season (20), while he and Black are both in the league's top-four in total scoring. The latter ranks second in the NE10 in assists (19).
- Bertrand scored the most goals by any Warrior in any game this year, while Boudreau's 12 ground balls were the most by a Merrimack player in a single outing.
- EMO: (MC-BEN): 3-6 // 0-3
- Shots: 43-31 (27-15 SOG)
- Faceoffs: 15-7 // Ground Balls: 30-16
- Turnovers: 12-11 (3-4 CT) // Clears: 12-14 // 17-19
Up Next
Merrimack returns home to take on American International this Saturday (March 31) at 1 p.m.
