SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The #11/12 Union College men's lacrosse team used a balanced attack that saw 13 players find the net to storm past Springfield College, 14-7, in a non-conference matchup on Saturday afternoon.
Senior
Brian Davis was the lone Dutchman to score more than once on the day, while 12 other players scored one time each. Senior
Kieran McGovern led the team with three points on a goal and two assists, while senior
Keaton McCann, junior
Jake Titus and sophomore
Zach Davis scored one goal with one assist apiece.
Davis and sophomore
Justin Greene scored for the Dutchmen in a low-scoring first quarter that saw the visitors take a 2-1 lead. Springfield scored the first four goals of the second stanza to build up a 5-2 lead with 2:18 remaining, but Union started its surge by scoring three goals in 19 seconds – getting goals from the elder Davis, Titus and McCann – to quickly knot the score with 1:13 on the clock.
With the game tied at seven midway through the third quarter, Union went on a game-changing scoring surge, netting five goals in 1:29 to take control of the contest. Senior
Peter Burnes started the run with 6:06 left, followed 33 seconds later by senior
Jack Donahue to double the Union lead. Senior
Sam Byrne won the subsequent faceoff and went to goal for his first of the year just five seconds later. The Dutchmen then scored twice in five seconds again soon after, as senior
Kieran McGovern's goal was immediately followed by a faceoff win and score by sophomore
Matthew Paolatto.
The Union defense kept Springfield off the board for the entirety of the fourth quarter as well, with goals by sophomore
Jake Mabardy and junior
Gray Humphrey scoring to add the exclamation point for the visitors.
Byrne and Paolatto had a big game on faceoffs for the Dutchmen, combing to win 20-of-25 draws. Paolatto (9 of 11) grabbed a team-leading seven ground balls as well, while Byrne (11 of 14) added four ground balls.
Union finished the afternoon with a 55-48 edge in shots, with sophomore
Dan Donahue moving to 3-0 on the year by making 12 saves.
The Dutchmen will look to remain perfect on the season with a big nationally-ranked matchup at Williams College on Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. in Williamstown, Mass.
