Men's Lacrosse Takes Down ECSU, 11-9, Tuesday Night

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. - The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) men's lacrosse team won back-to-back games for the first time this season, holding off intrastate foe Eastern Connecticut State University (ECSU), 11-9, on a rainy Tuesday night at the USJ Lacrosse Field in West Hartford, Conn. The victory for USJ over ECSU was the first for the Blue Jays in program history, snapping a three-game losing skid to the Warriors. With the result, the Blue Jays moved to 3-1 overall on the young 2024 season, while the Warriors dropped to 2-2.

KEY MOMENTS 

• Freshman attack Matthew Wurszt (Wilbraham, Mass.) opened the scoring at the 13:45 mark of the first quarter, finding the back of the net after reciving a pass from senior attack Ryan Paltauf (Southbury, Conn.).
• ECSU responded with authority though, scoring three unanswered goals to take a 3-1 edge with 6:35 left in the first.
• USJ responded in kind, as senior attack Evan Baden (Burlington, Conn.) and senior midfielder Sam Barbetti (Guilford, Conn.) rattled off two unassisted goals, before Wurszt netted his second of the quarter, establishing a 4-3 Blue Jays lead after the first period.
• The Warriors fired back with two goals to open the second, taking a 5-4 edge with 9:43 on the clock.
• The lead would not last long, as sophomore midfielder Nick Pestrichello (Newington, Conn.) rifled a shot into the net, tying the game at 5-5 with 7:28 remaining in the half.
• Pestrichello would then turn provider, finding junior midfielder Christian Decker (Bristol, Conn.), who reestablished the Blue Jays' lead, 6-5, at the 5:44 mark.
• ECSU answered back, knotting the game once again, 6-6, but Paltauf would pick out a pass to Baden, who scored his second of the game to send USJ into the halftime break ahead, 7-6.
• The scoring slowed down in the third as the Warriors regained the lead, 8-7, after two unanswered goals, but a Decker solo strike leveled the score at 8-8 entering the fourth quarter.
• USJ scored early in the fourth, as Wurszt rounded out his hat trick, giving the home team a 9-8 lead at the 13:21 mark.
• The game then settled down, as both defenses would not allow either offense to generate a clear-cut scoring chance.
• Pestrichello put an end to the stalemate though, increasing the USJ lead to two, 10-8, with a pivotal goal at the 4:22 mark.
• ECSU found the back of the net with 3:09 on the clock, cutting the gap back to one, but Baden rounded out his own hat trick, scoring with 1:54 left to play to secure a USJ victory, 11-9.

NOTES 

• Wurszt paced the team with four points off three goals and one assist. The hat trick was the first of his career.
• Baden also netted a hat trick, tallying three goals.
• Paltauf dished out a team-best two assists.
• Pestrichello, Barbetti, junior midfielder Garrett Lazor (Masuk, Conn.), and freshman long-stick midfielder Vinny Pusateri (Fitchburg, Mass.) corralled a team-high three ground balls each.
• Senior goalkeeper Trey McCann (Simsbury, Conn.) made 11 saves on the night, improving to 3-1 between to the pipes on the season.
• Junior goalkeeper Nick Schilling (Brookfield, Conn.) also played 1:16 in net for USJ, making a crucial save on the lone shot he faced.

UP NEXT

The Blue Jays head on the road for two games, starting with a trip to Saint Joseph's Long Island on Saturday, March 9. Opening faceoff against the Golden Eagles at Danzi Stadium in Patchogue, N.Y., is set for 3:00 p.m.

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