PLYMOUTH, N.H. – Kicking off a difficult stretch of three games in six days, Plymouth State University dropped a Little East Conference (LEC) men's lacrosse game to league-leading University of Massachusetts Boston, 21-7, at Panther Field on Tuesday afternoon.
 
The Panthers limited the high-flying Beacons' offense to just two first-quarter goals and trailed by just one (2-1) after 15 minutes. The visitors scored two of the first three goals in the second to extend the lead to 4-2, before closing the first half with three straight and taking control in the second half.
 
Plymouth State drops to 2-3 (1-2 LEC), while the Beacons remain unbeaten at 6-0 (5-0 LEC). UMass Boston assures itself of at least a share of the LEC regular season title for the first time.
 
The Basics:

• Plymouth State 7, UMass Boston 21
  • Plymouth State (2-3, 1-2 LEC)
  • UMass Boston (6-0, 5-0 LEC)

Top Performers:

• Mike Donnelly (2 goals)
• Mike Fleury (1 goal, 1 asst, 2 ground balls)
• Robert Porter (9 saves)

How it Happened:

• UMass Boston scored twice in the first five minutes, but junior Mike Donnelly (New Hampton, N.H.) cut the deficit in half with his fourth of the year 1:25 later.
• The score would remain the same over the final eight minutes of the quarter.
• UMB extended the lead early in the second before sophomore Mike Fleury (Lebanon, N.H.) buried his sixth of the year to make it 4-2.
• The Beacons closed out the half with a three-goal spurt to take a 7-2 advantage into halftime.
• The teams traded goals over the first seven minutes, with PSU converting a pair of man-up opportunities behind goals from Donnelly and sophomore Nick Drew (Chelmsford, Mass.), with Drew's marker making it a 9-4 game.
• UMB ripped off a 4-0 run to close the quarter with a 13-4 advantage.
• The Beacons outscored PSU by an 8-3 margin over the final 15 minutes.

By the Numbers:

• Freshman Anthony Lorizio (Milton, Mass.) picked up his first career goal in the fourth quarter.
• UMB outshot the Panthers by a 51-37 margin and went 18-of-21 in clears. The Panthers converted 21-of-28 clear attempts.
• The Beacons scoped up 39 ground balls to PSU's 15.
• Plymouth State made the most of its man-up chances, scoring on four-of-nine opportunities.
• Senior Robert Porter (Groveland, Mass.) made nine saves over 42:26 in net, while freshmen Jessy Hirwa (Penacook, N.H.), Owen McNichols (Manchester, N.H.) and Trevor Gilligan (Marblehead, Mass.) combined to make two stops over the final 17:34.

Up Next:

• PSU remains at home on Thursday (Apr. 29) for a league game against Western Connecticut State University.