HOBOKEN, N.J. (April 25, 2008) – Rochester Institute of Technology senior midfielder Andrew Ruocco (Corning, N.Y.) scored five goals in leading the third-seeded Tigers to a 9-6 win over second-seeded Stevens Institute of Technology during the semifinals of the Empire 8 Men's Lacrosse Championship on Friday evening at the De Baun Athletic Complex in Hoboken, N.J. With the win, RIT (10-6) advanced to the finals where it will face top-seeded Ithaca College on Sunday at 1 p.m. in Ithaca, N.Y.
Stevens (8-5) was led by sophomore attacker Daniel Prakopcyk, who tallied three points on two goals and an assist. Senior goalie Corey Vaillancourt played the final 45:55 in net for the Ducks and made 10 saves after taking over for freshman Dave Decker, who was injured during the first quarter after making three saves and giving up just one goal.
Meanwhile, junior midfielder Jaeke Donahue collected a goal and an assist for Stevens. Senior defender/long-stick midfielder Nick Daniello finished with four ground balls and four caused turnovers. Senior midfielder Frank Sorrentino, sophomore midfielder Bobby Steinhauser, and sophomore attacker/midfielder Alex Couture chipped in with one goal apiece.
RIT received a strong performance from freshman attacker Iric Bressler (Stafford, Va.), who ended up with two goals and two assists. Senior midfielder Jacob Brunner (Lafayette, N.Y.) was 12-for-18 in faceoffs. Senior goalkeeper Brad Conlon (Ottawa, Ontario) allowed just six goals and made 10 saves in the game.
After falling behind 1-0, Stevens scored two straight goals to lead 2-1 after the first quarter. Sorrentino's man-down goal off a long pass from Prakopcyk with 1:08 left in the period sparked the Ducks early on. Shortly after Sorrentino found the back of the net, Decker was forced to leave the game with his injury. The Tigers responded and came out firing in the second quarter as they scored two goals in the first 2:07 to grab a 3-2 lead.
That spurt fueled a four-goal outburst as RIT held Stevens scoreless for nearly two full quarters. In fact, the Tigers out-scored the Ducks 8-1 over a 37-minute stretch to open a 9-3 lead on Bressler's second goal of the game with 6:24 left in the fourth quarter. Stevens refused to fold though and scored three goals in the span of 1:46 to close to within 9-6 with 3:24 remaining. That would be the closest the Ducks would get though.
For the game, RIT owned the edge in shots (40-36), ground balls (31-25), and face-offs (12-6). The Tigers converted on 77.8 percent (14-for-18) of their clears and were 1-for-8 in man-up situations. Stevens was 14-for-20 (70 percent) in clearing attempts and 0-for-6 in extra-man opportunities.
Coming up on Saturday, May 3, the Ducks will play a non-conference game at Villa Julie College in Stevenson, Md. The opening face-off is scheduled for 3 p.m.
