GLENSIDE, Pa. (April 20, 2024) - Sophomore Matthew Pergola scored six goals as the No. 13/12 Stevens Institute of Technology men's lacrosse team defeated Arcadia 17-10 in a MAC Freedom contest Saturday afternoon.

With the win, Stevens clinched a spot in the MAC Freedom playoffs. The Ducks can lock up the #1 seed in the tournament with a win over Delaware Valley on Wednesday. The Ducks record now reads 13-2 and 5-0 in MAC Freedom games. They also improved to a perfect 5-0 on the road. With the loss, Arcadia fell to 9-6 and 4-1 in conference play. The Ducks are now 8-0 all-time against the Knights.

After two minutes of scoreless action to start the game, Arcadia broke the deadlock to take the early lead. Stevens responded 75 seconds later with a goal from senior Joseph Grippo to tie the game. Despite tying the game, Arcadia scored the next two goals to take a 3-1 lead. Stevens closed the quarter with goals from Pergola at the 2:57 mark and graduate student Chris Kirschner at the 1:29 mark as the two teams remained tied at 3 after one. In the second quarter, Stevens took their first lead of the game as Pergola scored just over three minutes in. The Ducks would double their advantage a few minutes later as senior Keegan Hughes found the back of the net on an assist from Grippo. After Arcadia got back a goal at the 7:54 mark, Pergola answered 20 seconds later to put the Ducks back up two. Once again, the Knights answered, but this time Stevens followed that with three straight, as Chris Kirschner, Grippo, and junior Mikey Whiteside each found the back of the net. Each team would add one more before the break as Stevens took a 10-6 halftime lead.

Stevens scored just 45 seconds into the second half, as Savarese found the back of the net on a dime from Hughes. The Knights would then score the next three to get back within two, making the score 11-9 Ducks. Pergola would get one back at the 5:33 mark on another dish from Hughes, and Stevens would get another 22 seconds later from Chris Kirschner. Stevens would take the 13-9 lead into the fourth. In the final frame, the Duck defense shut down the Knights, holding them to just one goal in the quarter. Neither team was able to strike early on, but Whiteside got one with 10:32 to go to give the Ducks a five goal lead. A few minutes later, Pergola tallied another, putting Stevens up 15-9. Arcadia would get one back with under three minutes to go, but Stevens closed the game with the final two to secure the victory.

Top Performers

• Pergola tallied six points.
• Grippo scored twice and added two assists.
• Chris Kirschner had a hat trick and one assist.
• Whiteside had three goals.
• Hughes scored once and recorded two helpers.
• Sophomore Luke Lesizza caused four turnovers.
• First-year Penn corralled seven ground balls.
• Graduate student Kevin Holtby (13-2) made 13 saves.

The Opponent

• Billy Burton scored three goals and picked up an assist.
• Kyle McLaughlin scored twice and recorded one assist.
• Alex Herka caused three turnovers.
• Tyler Ravenelle picked up six ground balls.
• Nathaniel Hudgins (4-2) made 14 saves.

Around the MAC Freedom

• Misericordia 21, King's 9
• Lebanon Valley 16, DeSales 20
• FDU-Florham 8, Delaware Valley 11

Coach's Comments (Head Coach Gene Peluso)

• "It was a hard-fought game versus a strong Arcadia group. We loved the game that we got out of Matthew Pergola and Joseph Grippo at attack. Matt had a excellent day for us and really proved what he can do against a good team. Grippo led us on offense all day and was a catalyst for us."
• "I thought Mikey Whiteside and Chris Kirschner did an excellent job on offense and were able to get off great shots and score big goals for us. Nick Accardo was excellent in between the lines picking up a couple of ground balls with a couple of assists."
• "Jackson Penn dominated at the faceoff X and secured big possessions throughout the day."
• "It'll be nice to get back home for our last two regular season and games this week."

Up Next: Men's Lacrosse returns home on Wednesday as they host Delaware Valley in a MAC Freedom contest. The game is set for 7 p.m. The Ducks are 3-0 all-time against the Aggies, winning each match up by at least 11 goals. Links for live stats and video are posted to stevensducks.com