Men's Lacrosse Falls on the Road at Wheaton, 17-7, Saturday

NORTON, Mass. – The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) men's lacrosse team fell on the road to non-conference foe Wheaton College (Wheaton), 17-7, Saturday afternoon at Diane Nordin '80 Athletic Field in Norton, Mass. With the result the Blue Jays drop to 2-1 on the young season, while the Lyons improved to 4-0.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Wheaton jumped out to an early lead, scoring four unanswered goals to grab a 4-0 edge at the 9:02 mark.
• Freshman attack Landon Lapointe (Lutz, Fla.) put a stop to the run, scoring his first collegiate goal with 8:32 on the clock, but the Lyons answered with three goals to close the quarter, taking a 7-1 advantage into the second.
• The Lyons continued to control the game, scoring twice to open the second quarter, before Lapointe notched his second goal of the game at the 5:02 mark, trimming the deficit to 9-2 at the half.
• Wheaton opened the third with three straight goals, before freshman midfielder Brady Stevens (Laconia, N.H.) notched his first career goal at the 9:14 mark, bringing the score to 12-3.
• Senior attack Nick Pestrichello (Newington, Conn.) responded with a man-up goal at the 6:38 mark, but Wheaton countered with two unanswered goals to close the third and establish a 14-4 gap heading into the fourth.
• USJ opened the fourth quarter strong, as senior attack Quinn Perkins (Norwich, Conn.) scored off an assist from sophomore attack Dominic Oakes (Southington, Conn.), before freshman midfielder Henry Pennell (Bellows Fllas, Vt.) notched his first career goal, closing the gap to 14-6 with 9:17 left to play.
• The Lyons answered with a man-up goal of their own, as Penell scored at the 4:42 mark to bring the score to 15-7.
• However, Wheaton scored twice more to close the game, securing the victory, 17-7.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE 

• Lapointe and Pennell paced the team with two goals each.

• Oakes and junior attack Alexander Milne (Branford, Conn.) dished out one assist each.

• Junior defenseman Dylan Hood (Orange, Vt.) corralled a team-best three ground balls.

• Junior faceoff specialist Aaron Goldstein (Walden, N.Y.) was the primary faceoff man for USJ, posting a 7-for-18 mark at the faceoff X.

• Junior goalkeeper Noah Isleib (Easton, Mass.) got the start in the cage, picking up the loss (2-1) after allowing 14 goals while making a career-high 17 saves in 48:17 minutes.

• Freshman Will Keegan (West Hartford, Conn.) made his collegiate debut, playing 8:48 minutes in goal, recording one save and allowing one goal.

• Freshman Jase Cronin (Rockland, Mass.) also made his collegiate debut, playing the remaining 2:55 in goal and allowing two goals.

UP NEXT

The Blue Jays return to West Hartford on Tuesday, March 3, opening a three-game homestand against non-conference and intrastate opponent Eastern Connecticut State University. Opening faceoff against the Warriors at the USJ Lacrosse Field is slated for 4:00 p.m.

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