Men's Lacrosse Falls at Home to Emmanuel, 10-4, During GNAC Play Tuesday

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) men's lacrosse team fell at home in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play to the visiting Emmanuel College Saints Tuesday afternoon on the USJ Lacrosse Field in West Hartford, Conn.

GAME INFORMATION
Score: Emmanuel 10, Saint Joseph 4
Records: Emmanuel 6-3 (4-0 GNAC), USJ 5-5 (1-2 GNAC)
Location: USJ Lacrosse Field | West Hartford, Conn.

The game began quiet, as both defenses kept the opposing offenses at bay, not allowing a clear-cut scoring chance. The Blue Jays looked to have the better chances in the opening minutes, but it would be the Saints who broke the deadlock, netting the game's first goal at the 7:15 mark off a man-up situation. The goal sparked a streak of three unanswered goals by Emmanuel, as the visitors held a 3-0 edge with 3:56 left in the first quarter. Sophomore midfield Christian Decker (Bristol, Conn.) put an end to the Saints' run, firing his shot into the net after a pass from classmate Jay Kajander (Reading, Mass.), cutting the gap to 3-1. Freshman Nick Pestrichello continued the Blue Jays momentum, using a terrific solo effort to pull back within one, 3-2, with 1:39 on the clock. However, Emmanuel responded with two goals in the closing minute to hold a 5-2 edge entering the second quarter.

The Saints carried their momentum into the second quarter, increasing the lead to 6-2 at the 11:35 mark. Emmanuel would try and further their lead, but senior goalkeeper Trey McCann (Simsbury, Conn.) came up with a pair of fine saves, preventing the Saints from adding onto their advantage as USJ called a timeout with 4:43 left in the half. McCann continued his stellar play in net, keeping Emmanuel off the scoreboard for the remainder of the half as the Saints headed into the locker room leading, 6-2.

Emmanuel struck first again to start the third quarter, but Pestrichello quickly fired back, netting his second of the game to cut the gap to 7-3 at the 9:01 mark. However, Emmanuel scored twice more in the third, increasing the lead to 9-3 heading into the fourth quarter. The Saints opened the fourth quarter with a man-up goal, extending the lead to 10-3 with 13:34 left to play. Senior attack Evan Baden (Burlington, Conn.) found the back of the net late in the game, but the deficit proved too much to overcome as Emmanuel took home a 10-4 victory.

GOALIE BREAKDOWN

EMMANUEL – Randy Castle earned the win for the Saints (6-1) tallying 16 saves while letting in four goals.

USJ – McCann played all 60 minutes in between the pipes for USJ, picking up the loss (5-5) after allowing 10 goals and making nine saves.

UP NEXT
The Blue Jays begin a two-game road trip, starting with a GNAC matchup against Rivier University on Saturday April 1. First faceoff against the Raiders is set for 3:30 p.m. on Joanne Merrill Field in Nashua, N.H.

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