LEICESTER, Mass. – UMass Boston defeated Becker College 13-8 in non-conference men's lacrosse action Tuesday afternoon at Alumni Field. The win lifts the Beacons record to 2-0 while the Hawks sink to 0-2.
Becker jumped on the board just 13 seconds into the game when Cody Leary (Sandwich, Mass.) connected with Ryan Kearney (Katonah, N.Y.) for his first goal of the season. The Hawks increased their lead to 2-0 on Blake Gordon's (East Greenbush, N.Y) first collegiate goal.
With 9:41 remaining in the first quarter, Noah Ellis (Hingham, Mass.) put the Beacons on the board when he drove past two Becker defenders for his second goal of the year. Becker responded with goals from Blake Gordon and Daniel Johnson (Plymouth, Mass.) to take a 4-1 advantage. Noah Ellis closed out the first quarter with his second goal of the game, cutting the Becker lead to 4-2.
Becker increased their margin to 5-2 just 18 ticks into the second period when Ryan Kearney assisted Cody Leary for his first maker of the season. UMass refused to let the Hawks extend the lead further than three as Sean LeBlanc (Marshfield, Mass.) netted his first goal of the season to cut the score to 5-3.
After a Daniel Watson (Chapel Hill, N.C.) got a penalty for roughing, Becker capitalized on the extra man opportunity when Blake Gordon fed Blake Boutiette (Burriville, R.I.) for his second goal of the season. With Becker holding a 6-3 edge, Ryan McGoff (Charleston, Mass.) put the Beacons within striking distance with back to back goals to close out the first half.
Ryan Kearney kept the Hawks in front by a pair when he opened the second half with an unassisted goal. The Beacons would pull within one with 12:30 remaining in the third period on a Matthew Duggan (Weymouth, Mass.) goal. UMass finally tied the game 42 seconds later when Noah Ellis completed the hat-trick on an assist from Donny Delpha (Walpole, Mass.).
After the teams exchanged goals, Ryan McGoff gave UMass a 9-8 advantage, and what proved to be the game winning goal with eight seconds remaining in the third quarter.
The Beacons went on to score four unanswered goals on the fourth quarter to earn the 13-8 victory. Ryan McGoff finished the game with five goals and an assist while Matthew Duggan added two goals and a pair of assists. Noah Ellis dished out two assists along with his three goal performance. UMass goalie Craig Frehill (Norwell, Mass.) made 12 saves to earn his second win of the season.
Becker goalie Jeffrey Candee (Madison, Conn.) made eight stops in a losing effort.
The Beacons will try to improve to 3-0 when they travel to Gordon College on Friday, March 6 at 4:00 p.m. Becker returns to action on Saturday, March 7 when they hit the road to face Mount Ida College at noon.
