FINALLY! #2 Men’s Lacrosse Dominates Saint Leo, 23-6, to Win Program’s First National Title

Links: Box Score // Press Conference

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Behind an offensive onslaught that saw the No. 2 Merrimack College men's lacrosse team build a 13-1 halftime advantage over No. 6 Saint Leo, the Warriors dominated the 2018 Division II National Championship game to defeat the Lions, 23-6, at Gillette Stadium on Sunday evening. The victory marked the program's first national title and the third ever for any program at Merrimack College. The 23 goals scored tied the single-game record for most goals scored in a national championship game, which had occurred twice, most recently during the 1980 title bout.

The Basics
Score: Merrimack 23, Saint Leo 6
Records: #2 Merrimack (18-1, 10-1 NE10) | #6 Saint Leo (16-3, 7-0 SSC)
Location: Gillette Stadium | Foxborough, Mass.
Attendance: 21,198
Duration: 2:05

Rapid Recap

• After allowing the first four shots of the game, the Warriors proceeded to attempt the next 12 of the first quarter. Merrimack went on a 6-0 run to close the frame, which was started by a goal by senior Jack Trask at the 7:12 mark. Classmate Bailey Walsh tacked on the next marker, which was followed by back-to-back strikes from freshman Christian Thomas, and that set the tone for the opening stanza. 
• Holding a 5-0 lead late in the frame, freshman Sean Black fed senior Kyle Stenberg out front for the quarter's sixth and final goal, which found the back of the next with 0.1 seconds remaining to give Merrimack a six-goal cushon after 15 minutes.
• The Warriors scored 50 seconds into the second quarter, but Saint Leo finally got on the board with 13:55 left in the half. That goal, however, was quickly answered by a 6-0 scoring run, keeping the Lions off the scoreboard over the remainder of the half. Thomas finished the half with a team-best six points followed by Black's five. Merrimack finished the first half with more goals (13) than Saint Leo had shots (12)
• The third quarter saw Saint Leo go on a quick 3-0 spurt that brought the Lions within 11 goals (15-4). Merrimack's offense did not stay silent for long, as the Warriors scored three times in the final five minutes of the penultimate stanza, including twice in the last minute, to build their advantage back up to 14 goals (18-4) entering the final quarter of play
• Needing five goals to equal the all-time output for a championship game, the Warriors potted just that many to cap off the championship-winning effort. Saint Leo scored its last goal at the 10:47 mark, and Merrimack ended the game on a 4-0 run. Trask scored two of the four goals, including the final tally of the night with 1:55 to play in the contest. Merrimack joined UMBC (1980) and Hobart (1977) as Division II programs to score 23 goals in a national championship game.

Top Performances

• Appropriately enough given the fact that underclassmen have dominated the scoresheet for Merrimack all season, it was rookie Christian Thomas who led the way with an incredible 10-point outing on the back of three goals and seven assists. He was one point and two assists away from tying the Division II single-game record for both categories.
• Right behind him was Black, who concluded an incredible freshman campaign with seven more points on the strength of of a hat trick and four helpers.
• Five different Warriors had hat tricks, including sophomore and lead goal-scorer Charlie Bertrand (4), Black (3), junior Michael O'Connell (3), Thomas (3) and Trask (4).
• In total, the freshmen class combined for 17 of Merrimack's 40 points on six goals and 11 assists.
• Senior Blake Boudreau concluded his incredible career with another dominant showing on the draw, going 17-of-27 at the X (62.3 percent).
• Defensively, Bertrand caused two turnovers and 10 other Warriors chipped in one apiece.
• Boudreau and senior Hunter Schmell each picked up a game-high eight ground balls. Classmate Eric Coburn had seven scoops while Black had six.
• Rookie Peter Brown finished with eight saves to finish the season with a 16-1 record in net.

Notes and Numbers

• The 23 goals scored by Merrimack tied an NCAA Championship Game record across all three divisions. UMBC (D-II, 1980) and Hobart (D-II, 1977) previously put away 23.
• Merrimack's margin of victory (17) set an NCAA Championship Game record across all three divisions.
• Merrimack opened the game's scoring with seven unanswered goals–the most by the Warriors in the 2018 NCAA Tournament.
• The squad's seven tallies in the second quarter mark the first time that feat has been accomplished in a Division II Championship Game since Limestone did so in the second against LIU Post in 2014.
• The Warriors held Saint Leo off the scoreboard for the first 16:05 of play including the entire first quarter. That is the longest such stretch by Merrimack in the 2018 NCAA Tournament and longest since the Warriors shut out Assumption for 16:52 to open play on April 17.
• Teams from the Northeast-10 are 42-26 all-time in the NCAA Tournament and 13-10 when playing for the National Championship. Merrimack is the third NE-10 program to capture an NCAA crown, joining Adelphi (7) and Le Moyne (5).
• Merrimack's 18^th victory of the season added to its new school record, topping the previous record of 15 set in the last two years.
• Merrimack claimed the third overall national championship in the history of the athletic department, joining the 1994 softball team and 1978 men's ice hockey team in that elite company.
• The Merrimack defense held its 16^th opponent in 19 tries to single-digit goal totals.
• The Warriors won their 14^th straight game, extending a program record.
• Merrimack has now won the last 30 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 added to his league-leading goal total on the year (62), while Black added to his conference-leading total in overall scoring (98 points) and assists (58).
• Black finishes the season with 98 points, the third-most in school history. He is the first Warrior since former All-American Greg Rogowski's 108-point campaign in 2006 to surpass 90 points on the year.
• Shots: 53-30 (37-14 SOG)
• EMO: (MC-SL): 2-5 // 0-2
• Faceoffs: 19-11 // Ground Balls: 54-38
• Turnovers: 15-16 (12-12) // Clears: 15-18 // 13-17

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