GLENSIDE, Pa. (April 14, 2021)  – Senior Ryan Gebhardt of the Stevens Institute of Technology men's lacrosse team netted his 34th career hat trick to become the program's all-time leader in goals scored as the Ducks defeated Arcadia University 25-5 Wednesday night in a MAC Freedom matchup at Jean Lenox West Field.

Entering the game two shy of Hall of Famer Mark Bielicky's career output of 164, which was accumulated from 2004-07, Gebhardt wasted little time in reaching the milestone. The senior scored three times in the first quarter to help the Ducks overcome an early two-goal deficit to seize control of the game. The Baldwinsville, New York native netted the milestone marker with two minutes left in the quarter, beating Arcadia goalkeeper Timmy Fyock for the third time. 

Receiving the ball from junior Michael Burns, Gebhardt, who finished the game with four goals, made a move and then drove hard to his left, gaining a couple of steps on his defender. While falling to the ground, Gebhardt whipped a shot past Fyock to give the Ducks a four-goal advantage. 

Over his first three seasons in Hoboken, Gebhardt produced seasons with 55, 59 and 22 goals, before totaling 30 over his first eight games this season. Already the sixth student-athlete in program history to reach 200 career points, Gebhardt has essentially broken the program record for goals in just three complete seasons, taking into account the abbreviated 2020 and 2021 campaigns.

"We are really proud that Ryan Gebhardt broke the record," said head coach Gene Peluso. "It is amazing to break a record held by such a great player in Mark Bielicky. I know Mark has been in touch with Ryan and I think that that is what makes our alumni network and our program special. Very proud of Ryan and I am thrilled for him and his family."

Junior Michael Burns had five goals and an assist and first-year Jack Savarese scored four times for the Ducks, who opened up a 14-3 lead at halftime. The victory moved the Ducks to 6-2 on the year and 6-0 in conference play and the team remains atop the MAC Freedom standings. Stevens has won 21 straight regular season conference matchups.

Clo Muscara scored twice for Arcadia, who fell to 5-5 on the year and to 4-2 in league play. The Knights have dropped three of their last four games to fall into third place in the conference standings. The victory moved Stevens to 4-0 all-time against the Knights, with tonight's game marking the first meeting as conference opponents.

"I think the team really settled in nicely after going down 2-0," Peluso commented. "We are really excited about the play we received on both ends of the field. Our starting attacks: Burns, Savarese and Gebhardt really did an outstanding job. On the other end of the field, the trio of Daniel Crotty, Aidan Hinphy and Joe Cawley really put the clamps on a good Arcadia offense."

Senior Shawn Coulter totaled a pair of goals and two assists to finish with a career-high four points as 16 different student-athletes found the scoresheet. First-year Mikey Whiteside finished the first multi-point effort of his career with a pair of goals and an assist. Sophomore Jake Wright also netted a pair of goals, with juniors Craig Stockfeder, Brendan Sullivan and Jackson Brown, senior Ryan Caplis and sophomores Henry Murtagh and Shaun Spiegel each adding one to complete the list of goal scorers. Spiegel's fourth-quarter tally was the first of his career.

"Shawn Coulter and Craig Stockfeder were great in the middle of the field," Peluso said. "They both had outstanding days on both offense and defense."

Stockfeder and Caplis joined juniors Larry Park and Tom Conway and seniors Roman Bellisari and Tim Spears in dishing out an assist to round out Stevens' scoring. The helper with the first of the season for Conway and Park's first point as a member of the program. 

"I felt like a lot of our student-athletes did their job and played hard and played well," Peluso continued. "I am also very happy for Shaun Spiegel in getting his first career goal tonight."

Stevens' 25-goal output set a new season high and was the most for the program since the Ducks put up 26 goals in a victory over Stockton University on March 30, 2011. The Knights' five goals marked the team's second-lowest output of the season and marked the second-lowest total by a Stevens opponent this season.

First-year Jake Zeyher drew the start and made six saves to his second straight win in the cage. Senior Danny Tierney relieved at the start of the fourth quarter and made a pair of saves. Fyock played all 60 minutes for Arcadia, making 19 saves. 

It was Arcadia that got on the board first, with Evan Scott joining Muscara in finding the back of the net to provide the hosts with an early 2-0 lead less than five minutes into the game. The Ducks would win the ensuing faceoff, with Stockfeder and Gebhardt firing shots before Burns beat Fyock to put Stevens on the board.

The Ducks would force a turnover on Arcadia's next possession to go back on the attack, with Gebhardt burying his 27th of the season to close the sequence. Stevens would go on to score eight straight goals bridging the first and second quarters to turn the two-goal deficit into an 8-2 advantage.

An Arcadia goal briefly slowed down the surging Duck offense, before goals from nine different student-athletes completely broke the game open as Stevens opened a 23-3 lead in the fourth quarter on the strength of 15 unanswered markers.

Goals from Murtagh and Brown followed consecutive Arcadia goals to provide the game's final margin.

The Ducks fired a season-high 76 shots, holding a 76-24 edge in shot attempts. Over half of the Ducks' attempts (44) were on goal. Gebhardt led all student-athletes with 16 shots, while Burns added 13. Muscara led Arcadia with seven.

Arcadia committed 23 turnovers in the contest, with the Ducks causing 13 of them. Coulter was a disruptive force in the midfield, registering four caused turnovers, while Gebhardt forced two. The Ducks committed a season-low nine turnovers, with four different student-athletes recording a caused turnover to pace Arcadia.

The Ducks went 24-10 in the faceoff circle, with Larry Park earning 15 of the 24 wins. First-year Conner Park went 7-2 in the 'X,' while Coulter also added one win. Joe Marchesano accounted for half of Arcadia's faceoff wins.

The Park brothers' efforts in the 'X' also helped Stevens gain a 45-24 advantage in ground balls. Larry Park scooped up seven, while Conner added five. Coulter added five of his own as 18 different student-athletes had at least one. Cameron Mang led Arcadia with five.

Savarese's final goal of the game accounted for the Ducks' lone powerplay goal of the day. Savarese was able to take advantage of the extra-man opportunity created by a slashing penalty, which was Arcadia's lone infraction of the day. Arcadia finished 1 for 4 on the powerplay, with Wesley Spooner finding the back of the net in the second quarter.

The Ducks were a perfect 15 for 15 on clears and continue to rank among the nation's best. Arcadia went 14 for 22, with the Ducks forcing a pair of failed clears in each quarter.

Up Next: Men's Lacrosse welcomes King's (Pa.) College to the DeBaun Athletic Complex on Apr. 17 for a MAC Freedom matchup. The contest marks the first of three straight games on campus. Links for live stats and video are available on StevensDucks.com.

Please note that all event times, dates and opponents are subject to change.

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