HOBOKEN, N.J. (April 17, 2021)  – The Stevens Institute of Technology men's lacrosse team scored 10 goals on 23 shots in the opening quarter en route to a 25-2 victory over King's (Pa.) College Saturday in a MAC Freedom matchup at the DeBaun Athletic Complex.

Seven different student-athletes found the back of the net in the opening period as the Ducks put five goals on the board before the Monarchs took their first shot of the game. First-year Jack Saverese began the offensive onslaught, scoring his 22nd goal of the year just 46 seconds into the contest, converting a feed from junior Craig Stockfeder. Junior Larry Park won the game's opening faceoff, setting the Ducks up in the offensive zone right away, a trend that would take place throughout the contest.

Savarese finished the game with three goals to post his sixth hat trick of the season. Fresh off becoming the program's all-time career leader in goals, senior Ryan Gebhardt added three more to his impressive four-year total. Sophomore Trevor Carroll and first-year Joseph Grippo finished with three goals each as 14 different student-athletes recorded at least one goal. The three-goal outing for both Carroll and Grippo marked the first career hat trick for either student-athlete.

"It was great to get another conference win today," said head coach Gene Peluso. "We were also very excited to get a chance to play everybody that was able to play today."

"I thought our offense shared the ball well," Peluso continued. "We had a good amount of multiple-point scorers. It's always great to see so many assists on goals."

The victory was the third straight for the Ducks, who moved to 7-2 on the year and to 7-0 in the MAC Freedom. 

Brendan Gambino and Joe Gianella each scored for King's, who dropped to 1-8 on the year and to 1-5 in league play. The Monarchs have lost three straight. 

Senior Max Ranaldi joined sophomore Jake Wright and junior Jackson Brown in scoring twice, while seniors Shawn Coulter, Tim Spears and Ryan Caplis each had one. First-year Trevor Cole, juniors Brendan Sullivan and Henry Johnson and sophomore Shaun Spiegel also added one goal each to round out the goal scorers.

Spiegel finished the day with a career-high four assists, while Gebhardt, Ranaldi and junior Michael Burns each had three. Ranaldi finished the day with a career-high five points. 

Savarese had a career-best two assists, with Grippo, Wright, Brown, Cole, and junior Evan Eggleston each adding one to round out the Ducks' offensive efforts.

First-year Jake Zeyher drew the start in the cage and made two saves to earn the victory. Senior Danny Tierney took over at halftime and made four saves over the final two periods. Matt Wall started for King's and made 12 saves in defeat. Joe Plahcinski took over in the final quarter and stopped three shots.

"The coaching staff recognized Max Ranaldi as our top game performer with two goals and three assists," Peluso commented. "He also had multiple ground balls and caused turnovers."

"The coaches were also impressed with the game we received from Trevor Carroll and Joseph Grippo," Peluso continued. "Carroll had some nice goals early and Grippo finished with three goals and an assist."

After the Ducks totaled 10 goals in the opening quarter, Stevens continued to apply pressure offensively, scoring eight times in the second quarter on 20 shots. After Savarese completed his hat trick in the first, Gebhardt completed his in the second. Through the first two periods, a total of 10 different student-athletes found the back of the net. Johnson netted his first goal in exactly two years with 10 seconds left in the second quarter to punctuate the Ducks' offensive fireworks.

Gianella put an end to the Ducks' hopes for a shutout, beating Tierney 2:26 into the third quarter to open second-half scoring. Carroll completed his hat trick to answer Gianella's goal less than two minutes later, before Gambino netted his 10th of the year in what would prove to be the final King's goal of the day. Stevens capped off the day by scoring six unanswered goals to provide the final margin of victory.

The Ducks' 25-goal output matched a season high. The Monarchs' two-goal output marked the lowest for a Stevens opponent this season. The Ducks have reached double figures in goals in each of their seven victories this season and six of the team's seven victories have come by double digits.

The Ducks fired early and often, finishing with 63 shots. Of the Ducks' 63 attempts, 43 came in the opening half. Gebhardt led both teams with eight shots, while Grippo, Brown and Carroll each had five. Conversely, Stevens held King's to just 15 shots on the day, only two of which came in the first half. Gambino and Gianella each took three shots to lead King's. 

Sophomore David Bendis finished with a career-high three caused turnovers and Gebhardt and first-year Nolan Quade each had two as Stevens forced King's into 26 turnovers on the day. Of the Monarchs' 26 miscues, the Ducks registered 17 caused turnovers. While Stevens was able to cause frequent King's turnovers, the Ducks coughed the ball up just 10 times, marking the second-lowest total for the team this season.

Stevens was excellent in the faceoff department, going 23-8 in the circle. The disparity was a factor in the first and second quarters, where Stevens won 19 of a possible 20 faceoffs. Park was a perfect 8 for 8 on the day, while first-year Conner Park was 13 for 13. Senior Trey Kiessling accounted for the other two Stevens wins in the circle. Trevor Douenias took all 31 faceoffs for King's, winning eight times. 

"We thought Larry Park did an excellent job winning all of his faceoffs," Peluso said. "I thought our defense also did a great job in the first half holding King's to just two shots."

For the second straight game, the Park brothers' efforts in the 'X' helped Stevens gain a significant advantage in ground balls. Combined, Larry and Conner Park totaled 16 as Stevens finished with 60 for the day. Douenias had four to lead the Monarchs.

Stevens was a perfect 2 for 2 on the powerplay, with Gebhardt and Ranaldi scoring on the man-advantage. The Ducks killed off all four of their penalties.

Entering the game ranked 17th in Division III in clearing percentage, the Ducks went 19 for 20 on the day, including a perfect 8 for 8 over the first two quarters. Conversely, King's was 16 for 21 on its clearing attempts, going 2 for 7 in the opening quarter, before settling into more of a routine over the next three.

Up Next: Men's Lacrosse welcomes DeSales University to campus on Apr. 21 for a pivotal MAC Freedom matchup. It will be the first meeting between the teams since Mar. 20, 2002, which Stevens won 15-5. The Ducks have claimed the last two meetings in the all-time series, although the programs have split two meetings. 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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