Alfred Opens E8 Play With Win; Naz and Ithaca Victorious

Alfred Opens E8 Play With Win; Naz and Ithaca Victorious

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ALFRED 22, Houghton 3
The Alfred University men's lacrosse team improved to a perfect 5-0 on the season with a 22-3 win over visiting Houghton College in the Saxons' Empire 8 Conference opener Tuesday afternoon at Yunevich Stadium.
 
Sophomore attackman John Winchell (Vestal, NY/Vestal) led AU with a pair of goals and eight assists, while freshman attackman Jake Lynch (Whitney Point, NY/Whitney Point) had six goals and an assist.
 
AU allowed Houghton (1-4, 0-2 Empire 8) to score the first goal, then reeled off nine straight to take a 9-1 lead after one period. The Saxons, who led 15-2 at the half and 21-2 after three periods, outshot the visiting Highlanders 50-15 and held a 39-15 advantage in groundballs.
 
Eleven different players scored for AU. Sophomore midfielder Derek Bishopp (Livonia, NY/Livonia) had four goals and an assist and senior attackman Nicolas Wood (Canandaigua, NY/Canandaigua) chipped in with two goals and a pair of assists.
 
Sophomore midfielder Jimmy Pratti (Minisink, NY/Minisink Valley) won 20 of 24 face-offs and picked up a game-high 10 groundballs. Bishopp and Winchell (three caused turnovers) each scooped three groundballs. Sophomore defender Chris Deisenroth (Webster, NY/Webster Thomas) had five groundballs and caused a turnover.
 
Freshman goalie Drew Gardner (Whitney Point, NY/Whitney Point) earned his fifth win of the year, making two saves in 30 minutes of action. Four backups split time in net over the final two periods, combining for one save.
 

NAZARETH 9, Clarkson 5
Junior Luke Wooters scored three goals, including career goal No. 100, for host Nazareth Tuesday as the Golden Flyers defeated Clarkson in a non-conference men's lacrosse game, 9-5, on the artificial turf field.

Nazareth improved to 3-2 overall, while Clarkson saw it's record dip to 2-2 overall. Nazareth is now 6-0 all-time against the Golden Knights in men's lacrosse.

All of Wooters' goals came in the first quarter as Nazareth surged to a 5-0 advantage, from which Clarkson never recovered. Long-stick defender Vincent Parrillo then added his first career goal early in the second quarter after sprinting the length of the field on a clear to extend the lead to 6-0.

The Golden Flyers kept Clarkson off the scoreboard until 5:46 remained in the first half when freshman Sam Groves scored his first goal of the season. A goal by Matthew Gold just over a minute later closed the gap to 6-2, but Nazareth freshman Jacob Gray delivered his first career goal off one of Kye Famming's three assists, to push the lead to 7-2 before halftime.

The second half became more methodical with Clarkson scoring twice in the third quarter to close within 7-4. Nazareth snapped its second-half scoring drought at 13:24 of the fourth when junior Troy Haefele scored off an assist from sophomore Hunter Burdick. After a Clarkson goal, Fanning iced the win when he scored unassisted with 6:07 left after scooping up a loose ball of a broken Clarkson clear.

Nazareth played well defensively, especially early in the game when Clarkson had an extended opening possession that ended when sophomore goalie Michael Cuciti made his first of 11 saves. With long-sticks Jerry Chasteen andAndre Bond out with injuries, junior Damond Archung made his first career start along with seniors Parrillo and A.J. Small. In addition, sophomore Brian Defliece, normally a close defender, was bumped to long-stick middie. Nazareth caused five first-half turnovers and forced many of the Golden Knights' 42 shots to miss the cage.

Wooters' three first-quarter goals made his the 13th Nazareth player to reach 100 for his career. Fanning assisted on two of the goals, senior Will Fallo on the other. Senior midfielders Dan O'Brien and Matt McDermott also had goals in the first quarter as Nazareth started strong.

Clarkson had a 42-25 edge in shots, but senior Drew Simoneau won 10 of 16 face-offs. Groves finished with two goals for Clarkson and Ryan DaRin added one goal and two assists. Clarkson goalie Nick Strandholm made five saves.


ITHACA 9, Oneonta 8
The Ithaca College men's lacrosse team returned home to Higgins Stadium and defeated Oneonta 9-8 on Tuesday afternoon March 17, 2015. The Bombers outscored the visiting Red Dragons by a 5-1 margin over the second and third quarters and held on for a one-goal victory. Ithaca, ranked 13th in the latest United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association poll and 12th by Lacrosse Magazine, improved to 5-2 on the season. Oneonta is 3-3.
 
The Bombers controlled the game at the X, as face-off specialist Matt Greenblatt won 14 of 18 draws and led Ithaca with nine ground balls. As a team, Ithaca won 15 of the game's 21 faceoffs.
 
Oneonta led 2-0 in the first quarter, but Ithaca scored six of the game's next seven goals. James Manilla and Jack Shumway each scored twice during the second quarter for Ithaca. The Bombers led 5-3 at halftime. The only goal of the third quarter came from Ithaca's Steve Danylyshyn.
 
The Red Dragons pulled to within 6-5 on two goals early in the fourth quarter, but Ithaca answered with a three-goal run. John Januszkiewicz scored the first and third goals in that stretch, separated by Manilla's third goal of the game. Oneonta scored three times in the final four minutes, including a goal with 1:25 left and another with 22 seconds remaining. Oneonta won the game's final faceoff and moved into the Ithaca restraining area, but didn't get a shot attempt off before the fourth quarter expired.
 
Ithaca goalkeeper Scott Sidnam improved to 5-1 on the season and made nine saves. Ithaca converted 2-of-4 man-up opportunities and held a 40-29 advantage in ground balls for the game.