Men's Lacrosse Suffers Setback On the Road At Rivier, 20-12, Saturday Afternoon

NASHUA, N.H. – The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) men's lacrosse team fell on the road at Rivier University (Rivier), 20-12, in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play Saturday afternoon on Joanne Merril Field in Nashua, N.H. Freshman Nick Pestrichello (Wethersfield, Conn.) paced the USJ offense with seven points from five goals and two assists.

GAME INFORMATION
Score: Rivier 20, USJ 12
Records: Rivier 7-2 (3-1 GNAC), USJ 5-6 (1-3 GNAC)
Location: Joanne Merrill Field | Nashua, N.H.

Senior attack Evan Baden (Burlington, Conn.) started the game strong for USJ, receiving a pass from freshman midfield Pestrichello before firing his shot into the net, establishing a 1-0 USJ lead. Rivier quickly answered back, but Baden came up big again for the Blue Jays, taking advantage of a man-up opportunity to reestablish a USJ lead, 2-1, at the 7:58 mark. The Raiders equalized again moments later, but USJ continued to pepper the Rivier net as Pestrichello worked his way out in front of the net before finding the corner of the goal, reestablishing a 3-2 advantage with 6:06 left in the first quarter.

The hosts continued to trade scores, eventually taking a 4-3 lead at the 3:43 mark. However, Pestrichello netted his second of the game before freshman attack Freeman Johnson (Swnazey, N.H.) collected a loose rebound before beating the buzzer with a goal to end the quarter, giving the Blue Jays a 5-4 edge entering the second quarter. Rivier though came out firing in the second, netting five unanswered goals to take a 10-6 lead with 8:29 left to play in the half. Pestrichello put an end to the Rivier run, completing his hattrick to pull the Blue Jays back within three, 10-7, but three-straight Raider's goals ended the first half, sending the hosts into the locker room with a 13-7 edge.

Senior attack Matt Crisco got the USJ offense rolling to start the second half, rifiling his shot into the net, cutting the gap to 13-8 at the 11:10 mark. The quarter then fell quiet, as senior goalkeeper Trey McCann (Simsbury, Conn.) kept Rivier off the scoreboard, until back-to-back goals established a 15-8 edge for Rivier. USJ would not go down easy though, as a sophomore midfield Christian Decker (Bristol, Conn.) goal sandwiched two Pestrichello strikes, bringing the Blue Jays back within four, 15-11, early in the fourth quarter. After the Raiders scored twice to increase the lead to six, sophomore Evan Zimnoch (Southington, Conn.) looked to spark a USJ comeback, cutting the deficit to 17-12 with 8:11 left to play. However, Rivier would net three unanswered goals to close out the game, taking home a 20-12 victory.

GOALIE BREAKDOWN

RIVIER – Sawyer Gagnon played all 60 minutes in net for Rivier, taking home the win (7-2) after allowing 12 goals while making 12 saves.

USJ – McCann saw the start in goal for USJ, picking up the loss (5-6) after allowing 18 goals while making 10 saves in 53:34 minutes of action. Sophomore Nick Schilling (Brookfield, Conn.) played the remaining 6:26 minutes in between the pipes, allowing two goals.

UP NEXT
The Blue Jays wrap up a two-game homestand with a stop at Dean University on Tuesday, April 4^th. First faceoff against the Bulldogs from Grant Field in Franklin, Mass., is set for 3:30 p.m.

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