James cages five in Bulldogs’ 12-7 victory over Mountaineers, Tuesday in Smithfield
SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University men's lacrosse team was tied, 3-3, midway through the first half, but a 6-0 run allowed it to double-up Mount St. Mary's and cruise to a 12-7 Northeast Conference win at home on Tuesday afternoon.
Junior attack Tucker James (Essex Fells, N.J.) paced the Bulldogs (8-4, 3-1 NEC) with five goals, including a first-quarter hat trick, and sophomore mid Tom Kennedy (Farmingdale, N.Y.) found the back of the net twice. Junior mid Tom Forsberg (Huntington, N.Y.) and sophomore attack Cam Ziegler (Carlsbad, Calif.) netted a goal and handed out an assist each, and junior Ryan Sharpe (Poway, Calif.) distributed a pair of helpers. Senior goalie Gunnar Waldt (Freeland, Md.) was a brick wall in the second half, turning away nine shots, as he allowed just four goals over the final 54:37 of play.
"When Tucker is on his game, he is certainly one of the best attackman in the country," said Bryant head coach Mike Pressler. "I thought he played very well, and the offense as a whole in that first half was terrific."
Mark Hojnoski carried the Mountaineers (5-7, 1-3) with a first-half hat trick of his own, and Bubba Johnson registered two scores in the loss. Matt Vierheller only played the opening 17 minutes between the pipes for the Mount, but he allowed eight goals with no saves. Frankie McCarthy manned the crease over the final 43:10 and made six stops on just four goals against.
It was an incredibly fast-paced start the game, as Hojnoski netted a winder from the left side through the middle of the cage less than two minutes in. Junior long stick mid Jared Kaden (Martinsville, N.J.) picked up the ground ball on the ensuing faceoff and fired in a quick bounce shot to knot things up just eight seconds later. Both sides traded goals over the next five minutes, with Hojnoski tacking on another and James answering both times for the Bulldogs, making it 3-3 at the 8:23 mark.
Bryant clamped down defensively and dictated the tempo from that point on. Following James' second score, senior attack Shane Morrell (Glen Mills, Pa.) ripped a shot from about 15 yards out that sailed into the upper right of the net, giving Bryant its first lead of the day, 4-3, with 7:23 to go.
"The start was exceptional, but we really began to execute better after we took that first lead," said Pressler. "We shot it extremely well, but unfortunately we didn't keep our foot on the gas pedal the entire time and kind of rode out the win."
The hosts never looked back, as Morrell's goal was the second of six-straight scores, capped off by Forsberg's first at the 13:10 mark of the second quarter, giving the Black and Gold an 8-3 edge. Both sides traded goals once more to conclude the half, as James added his fourth and fifth of the day, the final goal coming on a spin move where he switched the stick from his left hand to his right and fired in a laser that caught the last six inches of the upper left corner.
"Although it came in a quick spurt, I thought we came out and had a great start to game," said Pressler. "Although it was a disappointing second half, we were able to ride it out and keep them down in the second thanks to a lot of quality defending and Gunnar making key stops."
Leading 10-5 heading into the third frame, the second half was a complete defensive battle for both squads. Scores were traded once again in the fourth to produce the 12-7 final. After going 11-for-17 at the X in the first half, sophomore mid Kenny Massa (Huntington, N.Y.) went 0-for-6 in the second stanza, but it did not play a factor, as the Bulldog defense was brilliant and allowed just two of the Mount's 20 second-half shots to find the back of the net.
"After the strong start, it was discouraging that we didn't put together a full 60 minutes today," said Pressler. "After we went up 10-5 at the half we should have put them away and tacked on an additional five or six goals, but at the end of the day, any conference win is a good win, and now we prepare for Hobart."
The Bulldogs will wrap up their home slate of games this Saturday on Senior Day when they host Hobart at 1:00 p.m.