ST. DAVIDS, Pa. (March 15, 2023) – Junior Keegan Hughes scored a career-high six goals and provided an assist as No. 20 Stevens Institute of Technology men's lacrosse team defeated Eastern University 14-10 Wednesday afternoon in a non-conference contest at Olson Field.
The 20th-ranked Ducks (7-1) won their sixth straight game, marking the sixth season in a row (excluding the abbreviated 2020 campaign) that they've had at least a six-game winning streak.
"It was a hard-fought win today against a very good Eastern University team," head coach Gene Peluso said. "I thought they had us on our heels in the first half, but I did appreciate the way our guys responded."
Senior Jake Wright and junior Jack Savarese each recorded four points, as Wright finished with one goal and three assists, while Savarese recorded three goals and one helper. Stevens improved to 2-0 all time against the Eagles.
Nicholas Fanelli and Connor Bachman each provided four points for the home team. Fanelli scored three times and added an assist, while Bachman tallied two goals and assists. The loss ends a three-game win streak for Eastern (3-3).
Three Ducks recorded two points in the contest. Graduate student Kevin Crowley, who was named the MAC Freedom Offensive Player of the Week, provided a goal and an assist. First-year Matthew Pergola scored twice in the game and sophomore Shea Grant had two assists. Sophomore Thomas Sabatino tallied an assist.
Graduate student Ryan Leahy, who was named the MAC Freedom Defensive Player of the Week for the third time this season, made 15 saves to earn his seventh victory this season. The Fort Lauderdale, Florida native has made double-digit saves six times this season. Ethan Myers made 12 saves in a losing effort to lead the Eagles.
Eastern got things started, scoring twice in the first four minutes to open up a 2-0 lead. The Ducks responded swiftly as Savarese scored less than a minute after the second Eagle goal to cut the deficit in half. Hughes then scored his first of the contest on the man-advantage to tie the game with 8:24 to go in the first, but that would be the last time Stevens scored in the frame. Nicholas Fanelli scored with 7:49 to go and then with 14 seconds left to put the Eagles up 4-2 heading into the second.
Pergola stopped the short run by Eastern with his first of the game on an assist from Wright less than four minutes into the second. Eastern scored two over the next three minutes to push the lead to 6-3, marking the Eagles' largest advantage of the day. Pergola struck again a minute after the Eagles' sixth goal to cut the lead back to two. Stevens then got a huge spark from Hughes as he scored three goals in the last six minutes to put the Ducks in front by a score of 7-6. Wright added an unassisted goal with 21 seconds left in the period to finish a 5-0 Stevens run which gave them an 8-6 lead at halftime.
"I thought the game we got from Keegan Hughes was awesome!" Peluso said. "He was really dialed in and gave us a real big boost late in the first quarter and all through the second. Anytime you get a win on the road against a good team, you're happy with that, but we also know that there's still work to be done. Now, we prepare for an excellent Tufts team, who has had a great start to the 2023 season."
Again it was the home team starting a half on a 2-0 run, as Eastern quickly tied things back up at eight. Like in the second quarter, Stevens wouldn't let Eastern re-take the lead, scoring three goals across three minutes to give the Ducks a three-goal advantage. Hughes scored an unassisted goal with 8:39 to put Stevens up 9-8. Savarese then scored his 26th of the season on an assist from Grant with under five to go in the third. Hughes then struck again with just over two minutes to go on a helper from Wright. Eastern was able to score once before the quarter finished as the Ducks led 11-9 entering the final frame.
Both teams felt the pressure of the close game in the fourth as neither team was able to find a score across the first seven minutes of action. Sabatino finally broke the scoring drought by scoring his second of the campaign with 7:50 to go to put the Ducks back up three. Less than a minute-and-a-half later, Crowley scored on the man-advantage to put Stevens up four. Savarese would score again a few minutes later to push the away team's lead to five, which was their largest of the game. Eastern was able to score again late, but the final result wasn't in question.
Stevens won its first game of the season as a ranked team, after checking in at No. 20 in the latest United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) rankings.
Both teams found success on clears as the Ducks went 18 of 24 while Eastern was 16 of 21.
The Ducks caused ten of Eastern's 17 turnovers. Graduate Carter Haske land senior Joseph Cawley each registered two caused turnovers, while six other Ducks each had one. Eastern caused 10 of the 15 Duck turnovers, with three players each causing two.
Sophomore Andrew Muller had six faceoff wins to lead Stevens, while first-year Will Giarrusso had three. Patrick McClain went 17 for 27 for Eastern.
"We recognized Bryan Creamer for all his middle of the field work today and we recognized Jake Wright as well for doing everything we asked him to do today," Peluso commented. "We were also impressed with the play that we got from Will Giarrusso when he went in and battled for some crucial faceoffs in the third and fourth quarters."
The Ducks went 3 for 4 on the man advantage, as Crowley, Savarese and Hughes each had power-play goals. Eastern was two-for-eight on the man-up opportunities.
Up Next: No. 20 Men's Lacrosse returns home as they take on No. 3 Tufts University on Sunday, March 19. The game is slated for 1 p.m. Tufts is 10-0 all-time against Stevens. Links for live stats and video are posted to StevensDucks.com.
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