Box Score
|
Sophomore Peter Bowers has five goals in his first two games this season
|
MEDFORD - Senior co-captain Kevin McCormick (Laytonsville, MD) scored five goals, including two man-up tallies, as the second-ranked Tufts men's lacrosse team never trailed and won 16-9 over Connecticut College in NESCAC action on Tuesday afternoon at Bello Field.
The Jumbos, who were playing their 2012 home opener, also received 21 saves from sophomore Patton Watkins (Chattanooga, TN) in a strong performance. Tufts improves to 2-0 overall and in the league. The vistiing Camels, now 0-2 both overall and in NESCAC, also had solid goaltending with 15 saves by senior Rob Moccia (Malvern, PA).
The game was tied 1-1 early, but the Jumbos ran off four straight to lead 5-1 on a goal by junior Ryan Jorgensen (Ridgewood, NJ) with 12:55 remaining in the second quarter. They were up 7-2 at halftime, with seven different players scoring one goal apiece.
The Jumbos scored the first two goals of the second half to take a 9-2 lead on a man-up strike by McCormick that was assisted by sophomore Beau Wood (Sherwood Forest, MD), who finished with two goals and three assists.
Connecticut College showed some life, though they were never able to get back into the game fully. They scored four times in the final 7:07 of the third to pull within 11-6. Junior John Lyons (Barrington, RI) and sophomore JR Hartgers (Franklin Lakes, NJ) both had two goals, and Hartgers' second came with less than one second left in the quarter.
Tufts scored three man-up goals in five attempts overall, including McCormick's second with 13:26 on the clock in the fourth to make it 13-6 Jumbos. The Camels scored the next three, two by junior Andrew Freedman (Sudbury, MA), and it was 13-9 with 6:36 remaining. Tufts closed it out with the final three goals.
Sophomore Peter Bowers (Contestoga, PA) and freshman Cole Bailey (Millersville, MD) each finished with two goals and an assist for Tufts. Jorgensen also recorded a pair of goals. Defensively, juniors Matt Callahan (Acton, MA) and John Heard (Greenwich, CT) both had three ground balls, while junior Sam Gardner (Chelmsford, MA) caused two turnovers.
Lyons and Freedman both had two goals and an assist to lead the Camels offensively. Hartgers and freshman Chad Sawyer (Northfield, IL) also netted two goals each. Senior Clay Hillyer (South Windsor, CT) and senior Mike O'Donnell (Winchester, MA) caused a pair of turnovers each for the visitors. Senior Chuck Czerkawski (Cohasset, MA) won 15 of 27 face-offs.
Both goalies were busy as the teams combined for 91 shots, including 53 by the Jumbos. The stats were equal in ground balls (37-36 Camels) and turnovers (20-20).
Tufts embarks on a challenging spring break trip over the weekend. They will play at #4 Stevens on Saturday at 1 pm, and then at #9 Stevenson on Tuesday at 7 pm. Connecticut College is at Middlebury on Saturday at 1 pm.
Game boxscore
#
