The Misericordia University men's lacrosse team used a 9-0 run from the middle of the first quarter through halftime and held on to defeat Alvernia University 13-6 and remain undefeated on a snowy Saturday afternoon on Mangelsdorf Field.
Senior JR Lauri (pictured below) led the MU offensive attack with four goals and an assist while Josh Schwartz and Nick Santillo each added a pair of goals.
Patrick Johnson allowed just two goals while making five saves during the first half while
Josh Shanker allowed four goals and made eight saves during the second half.
On a day where the field was covered in snow from the opening faceoff, Santillo found Schwartz for a goal just 90 seconds in to give MU (4-0) an early 1-0 lead, but the Crusaders (3-4) answered with back-to-back goals from Colin Gallagher to take a 2-1 lead just under seven minutes in.
The Cougars were quick to respond, as Santillo and Schwartz both scored within thirty seconds of each other to put MU back on top 3-2 and spark the 9-0 run. Lauri scored his first goal and assisted on a goal by
Matt Gonzalez before an Alvernia player sent an errant pass past his own goalkeeper to give the Cougars a 6-2 advantage after one quarter of play.
A
Sean Forsyth goal extended the Cougar lead to 7-2 and Lauri scored twice more before Santillo added a goal with just 14 seconds remaining in the half to send MU into the locker room leading 10-2.
Alvernia made a push at the start of the second half, limiting the Cougars' opportunities and scoring three consecutive goals to cut the deficit to 10-5 with just over five minutes remaining in the third period. However, Adam Lehnard ended the MU drought to push the lead back to 11-5 through three.
Alvernia's Brian Ray opened the fourth quarter with a goal to cut the MU lead to five, but Lauri responded with his final goal on a nifty over-the-shoulder flick past the Crusaders' Brandon Weaver.
Mason Quickel scored the final goal on a
Kyle Calabro feed.
MU will return to action on Wednesday when the Cougars host SUNY-Oswego at 4:00 PM.
