HOBOKEN, N.J. (March 10, 2018)  – No. 9 Stevens Institute of Technology men's lacrosse scored four straight goals to pull within two at halftime, but No. 14 Tufts University scored four times in the third quarter to extend its advantage en route to a 16-7 win Saturday afternoon in a non-conference game at a chilly DeBaun Athletic Complex.

Freshman Ryan Gebhardt scored three goals and junior Eric Radbourne had two goals and an assist for the Ducks, who saw their three-game winning streak come to an end. Stevens fell to 3-1.

Ben Connelly had four goals and five assists and Andrew Seiter netted four goals for Tufts, who improved to 3-0.

"Great job by a very talented Tufts team," commented head coach Gene Peluso. "They play fast and are talented."

Senior John Boutureira extended his goal-scoring streak to four with a second-quarter marker. The Eastchester, New York native also added an assist. Freshman Nico Ipeker scored his second of the year and senior Tommy Dawson had an assist to round out the Stevens scoring.

Seiter opened the game's scoring, beating goalie Carson White for his seventh goal of the year. Gebhardt answered at 6:13 of the first to even the score. Tufts appeared to break the game open with six straight goals over an 11-minute span that carried into the second quarter, punctuated by a man-advantage score by Matt Treiber that pushed the margin to six. 

With Tufts leading 7-1, a save by White and a great effort-goal by Radbourne appeared to wake up Stevens. Off the ensuing faceoff, White made another save, leading to Gebhardt's second score of the game on the ensuing Stevens possession. After scoring a goal on the previous possession, Radbourne played the role of facilitator, setting up the Baldwinsville, N.Y. native's second tally of the game. 

"We thought our pace in the second quarter was great, but we need to play more than a quarter to compete with Tufts," reflected Peluso.

Sophomore Alec Caseiro successfully turned Tufts over right after the faceoff, leading to Boutureira's goal. Senior Bryan Rogers caused another Tufts miscue, leading to the completion of Gebhardt's hat-trick to extend the run to four.

With time winding down in the first half, although trailing 7-5, momentum was on the Stevens side of the field. Tufts' Luke Kurtz was called for a 1:00 cross-checking penalty, leading to an extended man-advantage situation for the Ducks at the start of the second half. However, a tight Tufts' defense only allowed two shots during the extra-man opportunity, with neither attempt finding the cage.

Tufts ended Stevens' run with a Murphy goal, giving the visitors an 8-5 lead. Tufts was especially efficient with its offense in the third quarter, with five of its eight shots registering on goal and four finding the back of the net. On the day, each team fired 44 shots, with Tufts registered 29 shots on goal to only 21 for the Ducks. White made 13 saves on the afternoon. Mason Pollack allowed six goals on 19 shots to earn the victory.

"We have to learn from these types of games and pull out the good and learn from the not-so-good," Peluso added. There was both today."

The teams alternated fourth-quarter scores before Frank Hatter and Murphy scored the final two goals of the afternoon.

Tufts went 18-7 on faceoffs, with Henry Hollen earned 16 wins. Caseiro had six wins in the 'x' for the Ducks. 

Junior John Crotty led the team with six ground balls. Hollen led all players with seven. Stevens held the advantage on clears, going 21-for-22. The Jumbos went 20-of-24.

Up Next: No. 14 Stevens heads to Virginia Beach, Virginia for a non-conference matchup with Skidmore College.

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