THE BASICS:
 
- Score: MIT 14, Springfield College 8
 
- Records: MIT (12-5); Springfield (6-10)
 
- Location: Springfield, Mass. (Stagg Field)
 
- The Lead: A five-goal run during the first quarter gave No. 3 seeded MIT a lead it would not relinquish as it went on to defeat No. 2 Springfield College, 14-8, in the semifinals of the NEWMAC Men's Lacrosse Tournament on Thursday night. Sophomores Dylan Nelson (Sleepy Hollow, N.Y.) and Nick Stiles (New Canaan, Conn.) both produced four points for the Engineers as Nelson recorded three goals and an assist while Stiles posted two goals and two assists.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
 
- Springfield opened the scoring after three minutes elapsed, but MIT replied with five unanswered goals in a span of 2:42. Junior Bennett Stankovits (Rumson, N.J.) put the Engineers on the board at the 10:58 mark and then junior Heath Nilsen (Carlsbad, Calif.) scored shortly after the ensuing faceoff. Stiles was a factor in the next three goals as he earned an assist on a blast by first year Zach Bleil (New Canaan, Conn.) and then he connected on a feed from sophomore Matthew Sardis (Bernardsville, N.J.) five seconds after the faceoff. Nelson capped the run by redirecting a pass from Stiles with 8:16 on the clock. The Pride netted back-to-back goals, but Nelson gave MIT a 6-3 lead at the end of the quarter.
 
- The second quarter was a defensive battle until the Engineers generated four goals during the last four minutes of the frame. Nilsen started the scoring burst and later earned an assist on a strike by Stiles. Bleil and Nelson also found the back of the net for the visitors.
 
- Springfield ended its scoring drought with three goals during the first 3:32 of the second quarter, narrowing the gap to 10-6. The score remained unchanged until a blast by Bleil with two seconds remaining.
 
- MIT carried the momentum into the fourth quarter as it added three straight goals, increasing its advantage to 14-6. Sardis scored on the opening faceoff and then first year Braedon Rudolph (Denver, Colo.) set up sophomore Ethan Robertson (Wheatley Heights, N.Y.) with 10:24 on the clock. Exactly 40 seconds later, senior Tory Lentine (Flemington, N.J.) registered what proved to be the Engineers' final goal of the night. The Pride capped the scoring with two goals during the last 5:07.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
 
- Bleil registered a hat trick while Nilsen finished with two goals and one assist. Sardis won 23 of his 25 faceoff attempts, collected 19 groundballs, and added a goal and an assist. Senior Andrew Johnson (Dover, Mass.) totaled five groundballs and one caused turnover as sophomore Patrick Timons (Woodside, Conn.) contributed three groundballs and one caused turnover. In net, senior Devin McCabe (New Castle, N.H.) amassed a career-high 14 saves.
 
UP NEXT:
 
- MIT will travel to top-seeded Babson College for the NEWMAC Championship on Saturday, May 6 at 1:00 p.m. This will be the second year in a row and the second time in program history the Engineers will be playing in the title game. Last year, MIT defeated Springfield for the conference crown.
 
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