Offense leads the way as Stevens tops Hartwick to reach E8 Final
Charles O'Brien
HOBOKEN, N.J. (May 2, 2018) – Junior attackman Max Bailey keyed a six-goal run with four assists to break open a one-score game as the top-seeded Stevens Institute of Technology Men's Lacrosse team defeated fourth-seeded Hartwick College 19-6 Wednesday in an Empire 8 Conference semifinal matchup at the DeBaun Athletic Complex. Bailey finished the afternoon with two goals and five assists to bring his season total to 87. The Millersville, Maryland native needs 14 more points to break the program's all-time single-season record for points in a season.
Freshman Ryan Gebhardt and sophomore Brendan Monteleone each had three goals and an assist and senior John Boutureira recorded his sixth hat trick of the year for the Ducks, who won their seventh straight to improve to 16-2 on the year. Stevens has bested Hartwick in 13 straight games.
"I thought we settled in nicely after starting really slow," said head coach
Gene Peluso. "Nicholas Carnovale did an excellent job getting us lots of possessions and we were able to get into a flow."
Senior Tommy Dawson was the main beneficiary of Bailey's assists, totaling five goals and an assist. Classmate Bryan Rogers collected three assists to bring his season total to 12. Junior Eric Radbourne had a pair of goals, freshman Ryan Caplis scored once and freshman Will Reed had an assist to round out the Stevens scoring.
"I thought Tommy Dawson put the team on his back in the first half with his play and his emotion," Peluso reflected.
Four different players scored for the Hawks, who fell to 9-5 on the year. Stevens has defeated Hartwick in the conference semifinals each of the past two seasons.
After allowing three goals in the opening quarter, junior Carson White settled down and made five saves over the final three stanzas to earn the victory. C.J. Alesandrini made five saves for Hartwick, but allowed a season-high 16 goals. Hartwick entered the game with the 13th lowest goals against average in Division III and Alesandrini ranked ninth in goals against average,.
"I loved what we got from our midfielders," Peluso added. "[They provided great shooting and solid ball movement."
Stevens outshot Hartwick 44-18 on the day, including a 24-12 margin in shots on goal. The Ducks went a perfect 16-for-16 on clear attempts, while Hartwick went 15-for-18. Stevens ranks 38th in Division III in clear percentage. Carnovale made his fourth start of the season and provided a big lift in the faceoff circle, winning 18 of 22 draws, including eight in the opening quarter, helping to jumpstart the Stevens offense. Stevens held a decisive 23-6 advantage in the 'X' and behind 14 from Carnovale, held a 41-26 edge in ground balls. Junior Daniel Crotty picked up five ground balls from the defensive side of the field and sophomore Bubba Brennan recorded a game-high four caused turnovers.
"[Dallas Creamer], Crotty and Brennan did a great job on the defense," Peluso offered.
It was Hartwick that opened the game's scoring, beating White twice in a four-minute span to take an early 2-1 lead. Carnovale won the ensuing faceoff, flipping the ball over his left shoulder to establish possession. Rogers picked up the ground ball and quickly fed a streaking Bailey for the Millersville, Maryland native's 24th goal of the year.
The Fairfield, New Jersey was again victorious in the 'X" to give Stevens the next possession. Gebhardt fired a pair of shots that sailed high and wide, but the Ducks continued to pepper Alesandrini with shots and Dawson fired one home from just inside the attacking area to put Stevens in front.
Dawson again found the back of the net after an extended possession to give the Ducks a two-goal cushion. Sam Ferguson stop the Stevens run with his 20th of the season, but the hosts ruined any chance for Hartwick to carry any momentum into the second quarter when Bailey found Monteleone with in the waning moments of the stanza.
Stevens came out firing in the second stanza, scoring five times in 5:17 span to break the game open. Dawson scored three times during the game-defining run with Bailey assisting on two of the tallies. Cordell Armstrong slowed down the high-scoring Ducks with his team-leading 23rd goal of the year, but Stevens scored twice in a 1:08 to give the Ducks a 12-4 lead at the intermission. Ranked seventh in the country in scoring, the Ducks crossed the 15-goal plateau for fifth straight game and for the 13th time this season.
Scores from Boutureira, Gebhardt and Radbourne surrounded a Wyatt Long goal to give the Ducks a commanding 15-5 lead after three quarters. Ferguson scored on a power play for Hartwick's lone score in the fourth and Boutureira, Caplis and Gebhardt found the back of the net to provide the game's final margin.
Stevens, ranked among the nation's leaders in man-up offense scored twice with the man advantage. Boutureira's fourth-quarter marker came with Stevens a man down after a Dawson penalty, as the Ducks held Hartwick to 1-for-3 in power play opportunities.
Up Next: No. 14 Men's Lacrosse returns to the Empire 8 Conference championship game for the second consecutive season year. The Ducks will meet second-seeded St. John Fisher, who topped Alfred 15-9 in the other semifinal.