KEENE, N.H. – Senior
Crosby Fay (Waterville Valley, N.H.) and junior
Ryan Jones (Tolland, Conn.) tallied five points apiece and senior
Owen McNichols (Manchester, N.H.) made two key saves in the final minute as Plymouth State University held off Keene State College, 13-12, in a huge Little East Conference (LEC) men's lacrosse game at Owl Athletic Complex on Saturday.
Plymouth State wins its fifth straight to improve to 11-4 (6-1 LEC). The Panthers lead the LEC standings by percentage points over UMass Boston, WestConn and Keene State, which slips to 6-6 (5-1 LEC).
Plymouth State ran off five straight goals to build an 8-4 lead midway through the second quarter. The Owls would chip away, twice pulling to within a goal, but PSU never surrendered the lead. Nursing a 9-8 advantage, Fay and Jones scored back-to-back goals to spark a 4-1 spurt to lead 13-9 early in the fourth quarter. The hosts would chip away, again closing the gap to just a single goal, 13-12, with 91 seconds to play, but McNichols came up with a pair of huge saves to preserve the win.
The Basics:
- Plymouth State 13, Keene State 12
- Plymouth State (11-4, 6-1 LEC)
- Keene State (6-6, 5-1 LEC)
How it Happened:
- Keene State sandwiched a pair of scores around a tally from senior Nolan Burke (Worcester, Mass.) for a 2-1 lead over the first five minutes.
- Graduate student Alex Hawkom (Manchester, N.H.) and sophomore Brady Hunt (Billerica, Mass.) found the back of the cage just seven seconds apart as PSU gained a 3-2 advantage.
- The Owls answered back with two straight, but Burke notched a man-up goal in the final minute of the frame to knot the score at 4-4 after one.
- Plymouth State took control in the first half of the second quarter. Jones gave the Panthers a lead and Fay followed with back-to-back goals for a 7-4 lead before junior Ryan Collins (Attleboro, Mass.) capped the run with his first of the afternoon.
- KSC used a 3-0 spurt to pull within 8-7 with 2:35 before halftime, but Jones gave the Panthers a two-goal lead at the break on his goal a minute later.
- The hosts again cut the deficit to one, 9-8, midway through the third before Fay and Jones teamed up to make it 11-8. The Owls added a late goal to pull within 11-9 heading to the fourth.
- Freshman Aiden Renner (Phillipsburg, N.J.) won the fourth quarter faceoff and raced downfield to score just 11 seconds into the frame and Fay made it 13-9 with a goal 45 seconds later.
- Keene State would begin to chip away midway through the period, ultimately closing the deficit to 13-12 with 1:31 left on the clock.
- McNichols came up big in the final minute with two huge saves to preserve the win.
By the Numbers:
- Fay notched four goals and an assist, while Jones chipped in three goals and two helpers.
- Burke scored twice and added an assist, while Hunt, Renner and Collins recorded a goal and an assist each.
- Renner went 20-6 on faceoffs and snagged a game-high 11 ground balls.
- Junior Zach Gilvar (Stratham, N.H.) anchored the defense with five ground balls and two caused turnovers.
- McNichols finished with 11 saves, his tenth game of 10-plus saves this spring.
- Plymouth State dominated the faceoffs, winning 20-of-28.
- PSU was 2-for-7 in extra man opportunities, while the Owls were scoreless in two chances.
- Keene State held a 23-22 edge in shots on goal.
- The Panthers went 16-for-22 in clear attempts.
- KSC maintained a slight, 36-30 edge in ground balls.
Up Next:
- The Panthers close out the regular season with a Senior Night clash with Southern Maine on Tuesday (Apr. 23). Opening faceoff at Panther Field is set for 7:00 p.m.
– 30 –
