PLYMOUTH, N.H. – Junior
Mike Fleury (Lebanon, N.H.) remained a dominant force on offense as he completed his third straight game with a hat trick in a 14-11 loss to Plattsburgh State University Wednesday afternoon on Panther Field in non-conference men's lacrosse action.
PSU trailed 3-1 entering the second quarter when Fleury launched a bullet to shrink the deficit to 3-2. He then helped rally together a comeback attempt after the Cardinals exploded for four consecutive scores in the middle of the third stanza. Fleury added two scores during a five-goal rampage that pulled PSU to within one, 10-9, but the Panthers were unable to get the equalizer as the comeback fell short.
Plymouth State falls to 1-4, while Plattsburgh State improves to 2-3.
The Basics:
- Plymouth State 11, Plattsburgh State 14
- Plymouth State (1-4)
- Plattsburgh State (2-3)
Top Performers:
How it Happened:
- Plattsburgh got on the board within the first minute, but senior Riley Roy (Laconia, N.H.) capitalized on a man-up advantage to tie the game at 1-1 after five minutes of play.
- The Cardinals answered back with consecutive goals to take a 3-1 lead into the second frame.
- Fleury teamed up with sophomore Marc Hirshom (East Walpole, Mass.) and sophomore Crosby Fay (Waterville Valley, N.H.) to get another three goals for the Panthers to cut into the deficit, but Plattsburgh scored in the final seconds of the half to take a 7-4 advantage into the break.
- Plattsburgh continued its barrage to open the third quarter with three consecutive goals to extend the lead to 10-4.
- The margin fired up the Panthers, though, as freshman Matt Miner (Chelmsford, Mass.) and sophomore Liam Brown (Center Harbor, N.H.) jumpstarted the offensive explosion with two consecutive scored and Fleury added his second with a helper from sophomore Ryan Hanlon (Hull, Mass.) to cut the Plattsburgh lead to 10-7.
- Sophomore Nolan Burke (Worcester, Mass.) bulldozed through the defense to punch in another score and Fleury topped off his hat trick with another snipe to eat further into the Cardinals' lead and make it a one-goal game, 10-9.
- Plattsburgh scored to add a cushion, but junior Nick Drew (Chelmsford, Mass.) retaliated with his own goal to enter the final quarter down 11-10.
- The Panthers' comeback fell short, however, as the visitors used a three-score burst to create some breathing room, before Fleury closed the scoring with his fourth of the day.
By the Numbers:
- Sophomore Owen McNichols (Manchester, N.H.) finished with 13 saves on the day.
- The teams each picked up 28 ground balls apiece.
- Plymouth State caused seven turnovers, with freshman Joey Loeber (Chelmsford, Mass.) leading the way with two.
- The Panthers were 2-for-5 on man-up opportunities, while the Cardinals converted 1-of-2.
Up Next:
- The Panthers wrap up their four-game homestand on Saturday (Mar. 19) when New England College comes to Panther Field for a 1:00 p.m. start.
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