HOBOKEN, N.J. – The Union College men's lacrosse team outscored #9 Stevens Institute of Technology by a 6-1 margin in the decisive fourth quarter to pull away from the Ducks and earn a huge 17-11 victory in non-conference action on Saturday afternoon at DeBaun Athletic Complex.
 
There were many players that came up big for Union (2-4) in the win, but no one more so than goalie Nick Lynch. The sophomore surpassed the 20-save mark for the third straight game with a career-high 22 stops, keeping his team in the game early and continuing to make the big save when needed throughout the contest.
 
On the offensive end, sophomore Mike Wall had the best game of his career, netting a game-high four goals on six shots and adding an assist for a career-best five points. Classmate Mekhi Taylor and senior Peter Kip both registered five points as well, with Taylor scoring three times with two helpers and Kip finding the net twice and assisting on three. Junior Walker Popko scored three times and first-year Finbar Holland added a pair as well for the visitors.
 
Stevens (5-1) had the better of play in the opening quarter, outscoring Union by a 4-2 margin and taking 20 shots to Union's eight. Taylor and Popko opened the scoring to put the visitors up by a pair, but the Ducks came back with four in a row. Despite the deficit, Lynch did his best to keep the visitors in the game with eight key stops, allowing his offense some time to find its footing.  
 
The Garnet Chargers came back with six goals in the second period to even the score at eight headed into halftime. Goals from Wall, Kip and junior Emmett Lyne gave Union its first lead of the day with 9:48 left in the period, but Stevens came back with three in a row to regain its two-goal edge. However, Taylor responded 42 seconds later and Popko followed less than two minutes later to even the score, and the teams traded goals in the final minute to go into halftime tied.
 
Despite being outshot 15-7 in the third period, Lynch made six saves and the visitors scored three timely goals to take a one-goal edge into the fourth. Taylor and Kip scored 25 seconds apart early in the period to put Union up 10-8, and Holland scored his first of the game with 1:45 left to help Union take a slight advantage into the final period.
 
The final frame was all Union, as the Garnet Chargers won 7-of-8 faceoffs and controlled play almost throughout to clinch the victory. The run started early, when Popko scored 2:15 into the period and sophomore John Sula took the subsequent draw and went all the way to score just six seconds later to make it a three-goal game. After a Stevens response, senior Henry Quaintance restored the three-goal edge at the midway point of the period. Stevens managed only four shots the rest of the way and Lynch stopped all three on-target chances, while Wall scored twice and Holland added another to close out the win.
 
Stevens finished the afternoon with a 56-41 edge in shots, but Lynch stood tall with 22 saves to double up his Stevens counterpart Cooper Foote. Senior Luke McHugh also won 16-of-28 faceoffs to give the Garnet Chargers a decided possession advantage on the day.
 
Union will take the momentum into the start of conference play, when the Garnet Chargers head to the North Country to take on Clarkson University next Saturday at 1 p.m.