HOBOKEN, N.J. (April 12, 2023) – First-year
Matthew Pergola matched a program record with nine goals and 13 points as No. 20 Stevens Institute of Technology men's lacrosse cruised to a 29-9 victory over Arcadia University Wednesday night in a MAC Freedom matchup at the DeBaun Athletic Complex.
Junior
Jack Savarese had a career-high eight points and senior
Jake Wright finished with two goals and five assists for the Ducks, who scored the first 10 goals of the game in winning their fourth straight in improving to 11-2 on the year and to 4-0 in the MAC Freedom. The victory was the Ducks' 35th straight in regular season conference contests.
Billy Burton had three goals and an assist to lead Arcadia, who dropped to 4-7 on the year and to 3-1 in the MAC Freedom. The Ducks' victory was their fourth over Arcadia since joining the conference and snapped the Knights' three-game winning streak.
"I loved how our guys came out early in the first quarter today!" head coach
Gene Peluso said. "We played fast and were sharp with our ball movement and our shooting. To score 13 goals in the first quarter versus Arcadia is not an easy feat."
For the second time in four games, the Ducks set a new program record for goals in a game. After breaking a nearly 20-year old record with its 28-10 win at FDU-Florham on March 29, the Ducks broke their newly minted record when sophomore
Tommy Robertozzi converted senior
Trevor Carroll's feed with just over two minutes left in the contest. Stevens' 29-goal performance is tied for the eighth-most in a Division III game this season.
As the goals continued to pile up, Pergola marched closer to a pair of program records. With his nine goals, the Nutley, New Jersey native matched the production of alumni Ryan Gebhardt (2021) and Patrick Bailey (2006), who each also found the back of the net nine times. Additionally, Pergola dished out four assists to match Hall of Famer J.R. Maehler, who totaled 13 points in 2007.
"We were thrilled for first-year
Matthew Pergola and the game he had tonight," Peluso shared. "His near record-breaking night is impressive for a young player against a top team in our conference."
Sophomores
Nicolas Accardo and
Shea Grant each had two goals and an assist as 16 different players finished with at least one point. Junior
Joseph Grippo scored twice, while Robertozzi, senior
Joseph Cawley, sophomore
Bryan Creamer, first-year
Mac Waynick, junior
Keegan Hughes and senior
Shaun Spiegel each scored once. Graduate student
Kevin Crowley finished with a goal and an assist and has had at least one point in each of his 13 games on Castle Point. Carroll finished with two assists, as did sophomore
Thomas Sabatino. Sophomore
Blake Creamer dished out one assist to account for the Ducks' offensive contributions.
Graduate student
Ryan Leahy made 11 saves to earn the victory. Junior
Jake Zeyher made a pair of saves in the fourth quarter in relief of Leahy. Nathaniel Hudgins stopped 13 shots in a losing effort for Arcadia. Joseph Tesler relieved Hudgins early in the final quarter and stopped three shots.
The Ducks scored the first 10 goals of the game, including three in a 40-second span to take an early 3-0 lead. Stevens would pad its lead to 10, scoring five times in a 4:30 stretch to open a commanding lead. Burton finally broke through with a power-play goal late in the frame, but two goals from Pergola and one from Cawley over a 36-second sequence sent the teams into the second quarter with the Ducks holding a 13-1 lead.
"Defensively we had solid performances in the first three quarters against their very talented attackers and midfielders," Peluso said. "We now focus on our next opponent and get ready for Saturday's game."
Pergola opened scoring in the second quarter and the teams alternated two-goal runs that resulted in the Ducks taking a 16-4 lead into halftime. Stevens essentially ended any Arcadia hope for a comeback by outscoring the Knights 6-0 in the third quarter. The offensive onslaught continued in the final quarter as the Ducks scored the first five goals of the frame to open a 24-goal lead. Arcadia reeled off five unanswered goals to cut into the Ducks' advantage and Robertozzi netted the record-setting marker to provide the final margin of victory.
Despite the lopsided final score, interestingly enough, the teams were even in the faceoff circle. Junior
Conner Park won 14 times in the 'X,' while sophomore
Andrew Muller won four times. First-year
Will Giarrusso won twice to round out the Ducks' 20 faceoff wins. A.J. Dominguez had 19 of Arcadia's 20 wins. Seven of the Knights' 20 faceoff wins came in the fourth quarter.
"We were impressed with
Conner Park and his performance against a very strong Arcadia faceoff unit," Peluso commented.
Stevens finished the game with a 52-40 edge in ground balls, including a 44-25 advantage over the first three quarters.
Bryan Creamer and senior
Joseph DeGuida each picked up a team-high six, while Dominguez had nine to lead all players. DeGuida's six ground balls set a new career high.
Bryan Creamer finished with three caused turnovers as the Ducks forced 16 of Arcadia's 25 miscues. Alex Herka recorded two caused turnovers to pace Arcadia, although the Ducks committed a season-low 13 turnovers.
Stevens was nearly perfect on clears, finishing 27 for 29 and the Ducks continue to lead the MAC Freedom. Conversely, Arcadia finished 14 for 23 as the Ducks continue to rank among the nation's leaders in opposing clearing percentage.
Arcadia converted five of its 14 extra-man opportunities, while Stevens went 2 for 5, with Savarese and Grippo netting power-play goals in the first quarter.
Up Next: No. 20 Men's Lacrosse continues MAC Freedom play on Saturday, April 15 as the Ducks welcome King's College to the DeBaun Athletic Complex. The Ducks have scored exactly 25 goals in each of the two all-time meetings and lead the series 2-0. Links for live stats and video are posted to StevensDucks.com.
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