James, Gantz post career days as Bulldogs hand Hartford 16-11 loss Saturday afternoon

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Behind a career-high eight-point day from junior attack Tucker James (Essex Fells, N.J.), the Bryant University men's lacrosse team scored seven in the fourth quarter to secure a 16-11 victory over the University of Hartford Saturday afternoon.

The Bulldogs (3-1) never trailed after the first nine minutes of the contest despite a battle that stayed tight until midway through the final stanza. James's eight-point punch came off five goals and a trio of assists, while two more Bryant players – linemate and senior captain Shane Morrell (Glen Mills, Pa.) and senior middie Collins Gantz (Denver, Colo.) – picked up hat tricks of their own with three and four goals, respectively.

"Two guys who had career days offensively were Tucker James and Collins Gantz," said Bryant head coach Mike Pressler. "Through four games now, this was the first time Tucker has really broken out, so that was certainly a positive for us."

The Hawks (1-1) also saw big days from a pair of offensive standouts, getting five tallies from Griffin Feiner with three goals and three assists coming from the stick of Dylan Kinks. Jaedon Henderson, last game's leader for Hartford, was limited to three helpers in the outing, while Will Dulin found the back of the net once and added his own assist.

The Bulldogs quickly equalized two quick Feiner scores to open the game during a four-goal first-quarter run that saw James record a natural hat trick in the span of 4:13. Gantz would follow with his first of the day for a 4-2 Bryant edge with 2:31 left in the frame.

"Our guys came out and were ready to play," said Pressler. "We made some adjustments defensively after those first two goals, and once we got the lead, they never went back ahead for the rest of the game. That has been a positive trend for us over the last two games – catching our opponent after going down early and staying ahead of them."

Hartford would knot the score at 4-4 less than a minute into the second – the second of three ties in the game – but two goals from junior midfielder Tom Forsberg (Huntington, N.Y.) and one from classmate Ryan Sharpe (Poway, Calif.) would keep the Black and Gold on top entering the halftime break despite scores from Jinks and Feiner in the final minutes of the period.

Jinks knotted the game at 7-7 with an unassisted tally three minutes into the third, but James and Gantz would create their own opportunities to put Bryant out in front for good midway through the stanza.

Trevor O'Brien closed the gap to one, 9-8, with three left to play in the third, but it was as close as the hosts would get for the remainder of the contest, as the Bulldogs ripped off four-straight scores in less than three minutes early in the fourth to pull away with a 13-8 advantage.

Morrell would score all three of his tallies in the final quarter, including the eventual game winner off a feed from sophomore Kenny Massa (Huntington, N.Y.) at the 6:28 mark. It was the eighth game-winning goal of his career, tying him for the all-time program record in the category.

Gantz added two more in the frame, with James and Brett Baker (Ridgefield, Conn.) rounding out the scoring in the final 15 minutes. Brendan Gates and Jinks would get on the board for the Hawks in the final two minutes, but it would not be enough as the Black and Gold took home their second-consecutive road victory.

"That's the signature of a quality team," said Pressler of his team's success on the road. "In the early season, to go on the road in two high school trips, go down early and come back to win – those are character wins that start to define your team."

Bryant outshot Hartford, 45-37, on the afternoon and squeaked out the win in the ground ball margin, 33-32, behind six from Massa and five more from James. Dylan Protesto was stellar at the X for the Hawks, going 18-of-28 against four different Bulldogs and picking up 13 ground balls. Massa went 10-of-26 on the day.

Both sides were dominant on the clear and with the extra man, with Bryant going 17-of-18 and 4-for-5, respectively. Hartford failed just a single clear as well (11-12) and found two extra-man goals in three chances.

Between the pipes, senior captain Gunnar Waldt (Freeland, Md.) turned away 13, including four in the fourth. Ryan Vanderford finished the game with five saves for the home team.

The Bulldogs will need to hang on to their momentum with two huge home matchups coming up, as the Black and Gold host No. 7 Yale Saturday, March 5 (1 p.m.) before welcoming No. 14 Harvard to the Bryant Turf Complex Tuesday, March 8 (7 p.m.). Both contests can be seen live on NECFrontRow.com.