PLYMOUTH, N.H. – Senior
Crosby Fay (Waterville Valley, N.H.) scored a season-high five goals and classmate
Owen McNichols (Manchester, N.H.) moved within one of the all-time goalie wins record as Plymouth State University secured its first Little East Conference (LEC) regular season men's lacrosse title with a 15-7 win over the University Southern Maine during
Senior Night at Panther Field on Tuesday night.
Plymouth State moves to 12-4 (7-1 LEC) to claim at least a share of the regular season title. Based on the league tie-breaking scenarios, the Panthers could enter next week's LEC Tournament as the No. 1, No. 2 or No. 3 seed dependent upon the outcome of the remaining league games. PSU's seven conference victories also set a new program standard.
Southern Maine enjoyed a brief first quarter lead until the Panthers ran off five straight goals to take control. PSU led 7-3 at the half, then scored all provided all the offense in the third quarter as the advantage ballooned to 13-3.
The Huskies attempted a late charge, but tallies from freshman
Kevin Cougler (Dover, N.H.) and sophomore
Nate Curtin (Norwell, Mass.) secured the historic victory.
Following to the game, Plymouth State honored its senior class in an on-field ceremony; Fay, McNichols,
Nolan Burke (Worcester, Mass.),
John Barros (Milton, Mass.),
Doug Saalfrank (Ramsey, N.J.),
Anthony Lorizio (Milton, Mass.),
Marc Hirshom (Walpole, Mass.),
Liam Brown (Center Harbor, N.H.),
Jack Bonazzoli (Clinton, Mass.),
Ryan Hanlon (Hull, Mass.),
Jessy Hirwa (Penacook, N.H.) and
Alex Hawkom (Manchester, N.H.).
Southern Maine goes to 5-11 (1-6 LEC).
The Basics:
- Plymouth State 15, Southern Maine 7
- Plymouth State (12-4, 7-1 LEC)
- Southern Maine (5-11, 1-6 LEC)
How it Happened:
- The visitors opened the scoring just over a minute in, but Burke evened the game roughly three minutes later.
- Cougler and junior Shea Clark (Woburn, Mass.) buried goals 45 seconds apart and sophomore Josh Manickam (Littleton, Mass.) added a man-down goal late in the quarter as PSU took a 4-1 lead after one.
- Clark added another to start the second quarter, but Southern Maine answered back.
- Fay converted a pair of feeds from junior Ryan Collins (Attleboro, Mass.) to extend the margin to 7-2. The Huskies got one back to make it 7-3 at the half.
- Plymouth State put the game out of reach in the third quarter. Fay notched his third of the night two minutes into the frame and Hawkom made it 9-3 midway through the stanza.
- Junior Ryan Jones (Tolland, Conn.) and Fay poured in man-up goals 35 seconds apart and Fay added another with 4:28 left in the quarter for a 12-2 advantage.
- Manickam opened the fourth quarter scoring with his second of the night as the lead expanded to double digits, 13-3.
- The Huskies attempted a late charge, using a 4-1 spurt to get within 14-7 with six minutes to play, but Curtin capped the win with his second goal of the year to account for the final score.
By the Numbers:
- Fay scored five times to give him a team-high 40 on the year.
- McNichols moves to 12-4 on the year. He's one win shy of the season record of 13 wins he set last year, while his 29 career victories are one short of the program record.
- Manickam finished with four points on two goals and two assists, while Cougler and Clark also scored twice.
- Collins posted a team-high three assists, while sophomore Zach Marvel (Raynham, Mass.) also had a multi-point game with two helpers.
- Freshman Aiden Renner (Phillipsburg, N.J.) won 11-of-12 faceoffs and scooped a game-high nine ground balls.
- Junior Joey Loeber (Chelmsford, Mass.) notched a team-best three caused turnovers and added five ground balls, while Bonazzoli chipped in four ground balls and two caused turnovers.
- Plymouth State held a 28-13 advantage in shots on goal.
- PSU was a crisp 20-for-21 in clear attempts and doubled up the Huskies in the ground ball department, 50-25.
- The Panthers won 18-of-25 faceoffs and were 2-for-4 in man-up chances.
Up Next:
- Plymouth State could enter the LEC Tournament as any of the top three seeds, pending league results from Friday (Apr. 26). Should the Panthers end up as the No. 1 or No. 2 seeds, they will earn a first round bye and host a semifinal game on May 2. If PSU ends up as the No. 3 seed, the Panthers will host a first round game on Apr. 30.
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