NORTON, Mass. – A 5-1 run during the final 6:10 of regulation helped MIT thwart a comeback attempt by Wheaton College as it posted a 20-11 win in NEWMAC men's lacrosse action on Saturday afternoon.
Riley Pierce led all players with six goals, including two during the final stretch for the Engineers.
THE BASICS:
- Score: MIT 20, Wheaton 11
- Records: MIT (8-6 Overall, 5-1 NEWMAC); Wheaton (9-5 Overall, 2-4 NEWMAC)
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- MIT opened the game with four straight goals before ending the first quarter with a 7-2 advantage. CJ Sanchez found the back of the net after 43 seconds elapsed and then Pierce generated a natural hat trick. Wheaton ended the shutout at the 8:28 mark, but Oscar Lindenthal put the Engineers up 5-1 exactly 1:10 later. A defensive battle ensued until the Lyons broke through with 2:39 on the clock. MIT replied with strikes from Lindenthal and Carter Magnano to create some distance.
- A pair of early Wheaton goals sandwiched a blast by Ashton Axe, making the score 8-4 at the 11-minute mark. The score remained unchanged until Hayden Calabretta connected on a pass from Garrett Campagna with 4:38 to go. Denley Kofoed then increased the Engineers' lead to 10-4 heading into halftime.
- In the third quarter, Pierce redirected a feed from Axe with just under 12 minutes on the clock. The Lyons replied with three consecutive goals, including two man-up strikes, to come within 11-7 at the 3:31 mark. Calabretta quickly ended MIT's scoring drought, setting off a brief exchange of goals that moved to the score to 13-8 after a Lindenthal tally.
- Wheaton kicked off the fourth-quarter scoring after 1:05 elapsed, however, Campagna and Zach Bleil pushed the Engineers' advantage to 15-9. Wheaton found the back of the net with 8:57 left to play, but this was as close as it would get until MIT put together its 5-1 run that secured the victory.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Campagna totaled two goals and three assists while Bleil finished with one goal and three assists.
- Lindenthal tallied three goals, four groundballs, and a caused turnover as Calabretta notched three goals, two caused turnovers, and one groundball.
- James Lukish collected six groundballs while Daniel Patterson registered three groundballs and two caused turnovers.
- Kaden Fenno won 15 of 18 faceoff attempts and corralled eight groundballs as Mason Prettyman went 12-of-17 at the faceoff "x".
- In net, Collin Lung made seven saves.
UP NEXT:
- MIT will wrap up the NEWMAC regular season when it hosts No. 5 Babson College on Saturday, April 25 at 1:00 PM.
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