Morrell nets four, but Bulldog comeback falls short against No. 11 Brown

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University men's lacrosse team outscored No. 11 Brown, 3-0, in the fourth quarter but couldn't complete the comeback Tuesday night, dropping a 9-8 decision to the Bears in the Ocean State Cup final.

Junior attack Shane Morrell (Glen Mills, Pa.) scored four times, including twice in the final 10 minutes, to drive the near comeback for the Bulldogs (6-9), while sophomore linemate Tucker James (Essex Fells, N.J.) saw his points scored streak extend to 24 games with a three-assist night. Junior netminder Gunnar Waldt (Freeland, Md.) was also stellar between the pipes, turning away 15 despite the loss.

The Bears (11-3) saw two scores apiece from midfielders Tim Jacob and Brendan Caputo (3 points) and got single scores from five other sources.

The opening minutes made all the difference for both the Bulldogs and the Bears, as Brown opened up a speedy 4-0 lead over a 70-second stretch off unassisted goals from Caputo, Jacob, faceoff specialist Will Gural and Larken Kemp less than three minutes into the contest.

Rookie midfielder Tom Kennedy (Farmingdale, N.Y.) broke the run with 9:42 to go in the first quarter with his own unaided tally, but the visitors made it 5-1 just 16 ticks into the second frame.

A Caputo slashing penalty led to the first of three man-up scores for the Black and Gold, with Morrell netting his first of the day off a feed from James with 11 minutes left before the halftime break. Caputo made up for the miscue with a goal of his own five minutes later, but another Brown penalty – this one on the nation's leading scorer in sophomore Dylan Molloy – sparked another successful extra-man opportunity for the hosts thanks to a Cam Ziegler (Carlsbad, Calif.) score that sent the Bears into the intermission with a 6-3 advantage.

Kylor Bellistri and Jacob opened third-quarter scoring for the visitors before James fed Morrell and senior Brian Schlansker (Glenville, N.Y.) for back-to-back tallies just three minutes apart. Molloy, who entered the game averaging four goals per outing, finally broke through with a sharp-angle shot to net his only tally of the evening with 4:11 to go in the frame for the 9-5 Bears lead after three periods.

Gantz created his own shot four minutes into the fourth stanza to cut that deficit to three, and Morrell secured his fourth hat trick of the season with 9:34 left to play for a 9-7 margin. The duo would pair up for the Morrell's final goal of the evening as the clock ticked down to five to play, but the Bulldogs couldn't convert an opportunity down the stretch to knot the score.

The Bears outshot the Bulldogs, 40-34, on the night, but the hosts won the ground ball battle, 32-26, behind six from senior faceoff specialist Kevin Massa (Huntington, N.Y.) and five more from redshirt-freshman defenseman Chas South (Lincroft, N.J.). Massa produced strong numbers at the X as well against top-tier competition, going 12-of-21 on the day.

The Bulldogs will now have the next eight days to rest and prepare for the upcoming Northeast Conference Tournament. Third-seeded Bryant will take on second-seeded Hobart Thursday, April 30 in one of two semifinals in Philadelphia, Pa.