LYNCHBURG, Va. (May 16, 2021)  – Senior Ryan Gebhardt and classmate Ryan Caplis each scored two goals but No. 19 Stevens Institute of Technology men's lacrosse fell to No. 4 University of 14-8 Sunday in the second round of the 2021 NCAA Division III Men's Lacrosse Championship Sunday, in a contest played on Shellenberger Field.

Junior Tyler Ryan had a goal and an assist for the Ducks, who saw their 10-game winning streak come to an end. The Ducks finished the 2021 campaign 14-3.

Brett Rogers had three goals and two assists and Trammel Robinson scored four times for the Hornets, who outscored Stevens 7-1 in the second quarter in moving to 18-2 on the season. Winners of 12 straight, Lynchburg will meet No. 9 Christopher Newport University on May 22 in the national tournament's quarterfinal round.

"I thought we did a good job of playing tough for three quarters today," said head coach Gene Peluso. "The second quarter was obviously the difference in the game and credit goes to Lynchburg and its coaches. We got our shots today, but we weren't as efficient shooting the ball as our opponent was today."

Gebhardt's five-point outing brought his season total to 103, setting a single-season program record, the third school mark the Baldwinsville, New York native has set this season, moving past alumnus J.R. Mahler, who totaled 100 points in 2007. Gebhardt is just the second student-athlete in program history to cross the 100-point plateau.

The contest marked the final collegiate game for several student-athletes and Coach Peluso spoke fondly of their contributions to the program and about their post-Stevens outlook.

"We told our seniors after the game that we are proud of them and all the sacrifices they've made throughout this year and throughout their careers to help build our program," Peluso said. "We told them that lacrosse is a game, and we play it well, but it is still a game. We also told our seniors and our entire team that Lynchburg moves on, but we do too."

"Our student-athletes are special in a lot of ways," Peluso continued. "Our seniors have won a lot of games, including conference championships and NCAA games. Our seniors are winners, not only in the lacrosse arena, but more importantly, in life."

Senior Shawn Coulter joined first-year Nolan Quade and junior Michael Burns in also finding the back of the net for the Ducks, who concluded the season averaging over 18 goals per game to set a new program record. First-year Jack Savarese dished out one assist to round out the Ducks' offensive efforts.

"To finish the year having played 17 games and winning 14 of them during a pandemic took sacrifice, dedication, commitment and focus," Peluso said. "They will each remember their togetherness and teammates much longer than they remember any win or loss."

First-year Jake Zeyher started and made seven saves in suffering his first loss of the season. Senior Danny Tierney took over at the start of the fourth quarter and made two saves. Patrick Moore made 14 saves to earn the victory for Lynchburg.

"All of our student-athletes are special whether we outscore our opponents or not," Peluso reflected. "I told each one of our players that their stories are still being written and that their individual stories didn't end today."

Colin Dean opened scoring, beating Zeyher a little more than two minutes into the opening period. Gebhardt netted his milestone point with his first goal of the game to knot the teams at 1. Caplis scored four minutes later to put the Ducks in front. Dean netted his second of the day with 69 seconds left in the quarter to again draw the teams even heading into the second stanza.

The second quarter ultimately proved to be the deciding factor in the contest as Lynchburg outscored Stevens 7-1 in the stanza, with five of the seven goals coming in the final five minutes. The teams combined to each score seven goals across the other three quarters. 

Brooks Poli and Robinson opened third-quarter scoring, before Burns posted his 29th of the year to stop the Lynchburg scoring run and Gebhardt netted his final goal of the season to bring Stevens within seven at the start of the final quarter.

Stevens scored three of the game's final four goals to provide the final margin.

The Ducks outshot the Hornets 45-39, including a 16-9 margin in the opening quarter. Gebhardt fired off 11 shots, while Caplis took nine. Robinson paced Lynchburg with 10. Of the Ducks' 45 attempts, 22 registered on-goal.

Sophomore Joe Cawley caused three turnovers as Stevens recorded nine caused turnovers on 18 Lynchburg miscues. Conversely, the Ducks only turned the ball over 15 times, Lynchburg causing seven of them.

Lynchburg won 15 of the game's 26 faceoffs, with Quintin Ricci accounting for all 15 wins. Junior Larry Park won 10 times in the 'X,' while first-year Conner Park earned one. Park finished his season with 188 wins in the circle, the third-highest single-season total in program history.

Lynchburg won the ground battle, scooping up 53, while the Ducks picked up 41. Coulter and Park led the Ducks with seven each as 16 different student-athletes picked up at least one. Patrick Moore led Lynchburg with a game-high 10.

Stevens was successful on 24 of its 28 clears, including a perfect 11 for 11 in the first half. Lynchburg went 25 for 26.

The Hornets' Clayton Jones committed the only penalty of the game with an illegal body check in the fourth quarter.

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