TROY, N.Y. – Sophomore
Scott Garibaldi (Summit, N.J.) scored with just five seconds remaining to give Union College a 10-9 victory over Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Liberty League men's lacrosse action Saturday afternoon. The victory, which brings the Dutchmen to 5-1 on the season, marks the first over the Red Hawks since 1995. RPI drops to 6-2 overall seeing its six-game winning streak snapped with the loss.
Holding a 3-2 advantage after the first half of action, Union continued to pressure the homestanding Red Hawks, going up 4-2 at 12:47 of the third quarter on a tally by senior
Jon Miller (Yarmouth, Maine).
Back-to-back goals from seniors PJ McComb and Alex MacDiarmid knotted the game at 4-4 with 10:29 remaining in the quarter, but the Dutchmen quickly answered, scoring three goals for a 7-4 lead to begin the fourth stanza.
Rensselaer finally found an answer to the Union defense as it scored three goals to once again tie things up (7-7) with 10:37 remaining. Miller, who had a game-high four goals, pushed the visiting Dutchmen ahead once again just under 30 seconds later, but the Red Hawks didn't back down, taking their first lead of the game at 3:15 on a goal by senior Mike Sampson.
The Union offense proved to be too much in the closing minutes of the game as senior
Kyle Tilley (Hamilton, Mass.) scored at 2:05, setting up the drama in the closing seconds.
In addition to Miller, the Dutchmen saw Garibaldi finish with two goals and a team-best three assists. Senior
Tom Simmons (Salisbury, Conn.) added two goals while Tilley also finished with two. Junior
Christopher Keinath (Wilbraham, Mass.) finished with five saves in the victory.
For Rensselaer, MacDiarmid had a team-high three goals while sophomore Devin Arnold finished with two goals and an assist. Junior Josh Secora added a goal and three assist while three other players recorded a goal. Between the pipes, junior Ryan DeJordy made nine stops to shoulder the loss.
Union is back in action on Wednesday, hosting Oswego in a 5 p.m. game at Frank Bailey Field.