Panthers and Warriors finish in tie for second; LEC Tourney begins Tuesday

            NEW HAMPTON, N.H. – Junior Tim Reilly (Hanover, Mass.) scored three second-half goals, including two on man-up situations, as Eastern Connecticut State University pulled away from Plymouth State University en route to a 12-6 victory in the Little East Conference men's lacrosse regular season finale for both schools at the New Hampton School field.

            The Warriors wrap up the regular season with three straight wins and a 7-6 overall record, while PSU dropped it's second in a row and is now 11-3. The two schools finish in a tie for second in the Little East standings with 5-2 marks. Based on head-to-head play, Eastern Conn. will be the No. 2 seed in next week's LEC Tournament and will have a first-round bye, while Plymouth State will be the No. 3 seed and will host a first-round game on Tuesday.

            Reilly and senior Dean Accomando (Monroe, Conn.) finished with three goals each for the Warriors, while freshman Dane Heckmann (Brookfield, Conn.) scored twice and senior Zach Thresher (Somers, Conn.) notched a goal and three assists. Senior Travis Tiger (Ridgefield, Conn.) led a strong Warrior defense, causing three turnovers.

            Senior Nick Morello (North Billerica, Mass.) was the top scorer for PSU with three goals, and classmate Aaron Boss (Keene, N.H.) contributed a goal and two assists. Senior Andy Ripley (South Paris, Maine) provided strong play in the midfield and totaled four ground balls and two forced turnovers.

            PSU capitalized on a turnover in the opening seconds of the game and junior Phil Pichel (Hopkinton, Mass.) scored just 18 seconds after the opening whistle. Accomando tied the game with a man-up goal with 5:27 on the clock, but PSU got a goal from sophomore Alex Croatti (Brunswick, Maine) with one second left in the period to take a 2-1 lead.

            Thresher, Accomando and senior Steven Nixon (Foxborough, Mass) pumped in goals in the first five minutes of the second frame to take the lead, but Morello answered for PSU with consecutive goals just 38 seconds apart to draw even at 4-4. Eastern took a one-goal margin into the intermission when Riley set up freshman Matthew Rougeot (Cheshire, Conn.) for a goal with a minute to go.

            Eastern tallied three goals in the first five minutes of the third period to open up an 8-4 margin. Reilly, Heckman and senior Matthew Garcia (Somers, Conn.) did the damage for the Warriors, and Reilly added a man-up goal later in the period. Boss and Morello scored third-period goals for PSU, pulling to within three goals, 9-6, heading into the final 15 minutes.

            The Warriors took control of the game in the fourth quarter, the defense denying any Panther attack and the offense tacking on three goals.  Heckman scored just 11 seconds into the period, and Reilly scored on a blind behind-the-head shot with two minutes to play before Accomando rounded out the scoring.

            The visitors had a 39-32 advantage in shots, while PSU won 12 of the 21 face-offs. Eastern junior goals Blake Smaldone (Hamilton, Mass.) made 11 saves to earn the win (7-5) while senior goalie Chris St. George (Marblehead, Mass.) made 12 saves in 52 minutes of action. Classmate Zach Taylor (Littleton, Mass.) started the game in goal for PSU, played eight minutes and made three saves without allowing a goal.

The 12 PSU seniors and their parents were recognized on the field before the game.

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