No. 8 Stevenson Defeats Men's Lacrosse in Physical Battle, 9-7

2/28/2009 12:00:00 AM

HOBOKEN, N.J. (February 28, 2009) – The No. 8 Stevenson University men's lacrosse defeated No. 15 Stevens Institute of Technology on Saturday afternoon at the De Baun Athletic Complex in Hoboken, N.J. Stevenson outscored Stevens 4-1 in the all-important third quarter to take an 8-5 lead heading into the final 15 minutes of play, and the Ducks could not find the equalizer. The key to the game was possession as the Mustangs had the ball for about 65 percent of the time. The Ducks were led by two goals and an assist from sophomore attackman Chris Laurita, but were outshot 49-33 on the afternoon.

The Mustangs struck first exactly six minutes into the first quarter when freshman Rob Lamey (Chester, Pa.) scored an unassisted goal. Stevens answered 4:23 later, knotting the score at one when freshman midfielder Kevin Rose found net after a nice feed from Laurita.

Stevenson (2-0) scored the next two goals to build a 3-1 lead, but Stevens did not back down, tallying three of the game's next four goals to go into the locker room tied at four. Matt Keating scored his fifth of the season to pull the Ducks within one at 3-2, and after Stevenson scored to go up two, Laurita scored his first after a gorgeous pass over the top of the cage from sophomore attackman Joey Simone. Sophomore Alex Couture scored the equalizer thanks to an assist from Keating with 44 ticks left in the half.

In the second half, Stevenson struck first. The Mustangs got a tally from senior midfielder Chris Baldwin (Baltimore, Md.) 4:15 in to go up 5-4, but sophomore midfielder Brandon Faubert pulled the Ducks even with his first of the season 4:24 later.

Stevenson went on to score the game's next three goals to build a three-goal advantage that the Ducks were just not able to overcome. Laurita scored 43 seconds into the fourth quarter to make the score 8-6, and Rose notched his second of the game, going coast-to-coast down the right sideline after a turnover to get Stevens (1-1) within one with 13:18 remaining, but that would be as close as the Ducks could come.

Junior attackman Richie Ford (Baltimore, Md.) gave Stevenson some insurance with 11:53 left, and the Mustangs then proceeded to control tempo and possession over the final 10-plus minutes to secure the win.

Stevenson took 18 shots in the final quarter to Stevens' nine and ended up with a 49-33 advantage. The Ducks ended with slight, 29-25 edge in groundballs and turned ball over six fewer times than Stevenson (22-16).

Stevens also won 11-of-20 face-offs but came up empty on its four man-up chances while the Mustangs went 2-for-7 on theirs.

Sophomore Dave Decker took the loss in goal to fall to 1-1 on the season. He stopped 13 shots on theafternoon. Junior Geoff Hebert (Lutherville, Md.) got the win for Stevenson, making 12 saves and stoning the Ducks on several clear looks in front.

Stevens will take one day off before returning to action on Monday night against Kean University. Game time is slated for a 7 p.m. start at the De Baun Athletic Complex. The game will also be webcast live at www.Empire8.tv.
Print Friendly Version