Men's Lacrosse Falls on the Road at Hartford

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. - The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) men's lacrosse team fell on the road at nearby University of Hartford (Hartford), 12-5, Tuesday afternoon on Al-Marzook Field in West Hartford, Conn. With the result, the Blue Jays move to 1-1 overall, while the Hawks open they year at 1-0 overall.

KEY MOMENTS 

• The Hawks would strike first, taking a 1-0 lead at the 12:47 mark.
• USJ would fight back, taking advantage of a man-up situation, as sophomore midfielder Nick Pestrichello (Newington, Conn.) answered back, tying the score at 1-1 with 8:55 left in the first.
• The Blue Jays continued to pepper the net but could not find a second goal as they game remained tied at 1-1 entering the second.
• Hartford would retake the lead with 11:03 on the clock, but the lead did not last long, as senior midfielder Sam barbette (Guilford, Conn.) quickly equalized the score for the Blue Jays, 2-2, with 10:01 left in the half.
• USJ would generate another great scoring chance, taking advantage of another man-up chance, as freshman attack Matthew Wurszt (Wilbraham, Mass.) found an open junior midfielder Christian Decker (Bristol, Conn.), who fired his shot into the net, establishing a 3-2 USJ lead.
• The Hawks responded 30 seconds later, retying the game, before senior attack Evan Baden (Burlington, Conn.) swung the lead back in USJ's favor, 4-3, with 5:04 on the clock.
• Hartford would find the back of the net late in the half, sending the two teams into the break deadlocked at 4-4.
• The Hawks would take control of the game in the third quarter, scoring three unanswered goals to take a 7-4 edge into the fourth.
• Hartford increased the lead to 9-4, as Baden was able to cut the Hawks scoring run, pulling the Blue Jays within four, 9-5, with 4:15 left in the game.
• However, the deficit proved too much to overcome, as the Hawks took home a 12-5 victory.

NOTES 

• Baden paced the team with two goals.
• Decker and senior attack Ryan Paltauf (Southbury, Conn.) caused a team-high two turnovers.
• Senior goalkeeper Trey McCann (Simsbury, Conn.) played all 60 minutes in net, tallying nine saves.

UP NEXT

The Blue Jays make their 2024 home debut, hosting Manhattanville on the USJ Lacrosse Field on Saturday, March 2. Opening faceoff against the Valiants is slated for 1:00 p.m.

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