For the first time since 2013, Quinnipiac men’s lacrosse has won its first three games of the season in a contest that went down to the wire. The Bobcats improved to 3-0 with a 13-10 win over Bryant Saturday afternoon.
But the visitors started off the game on the wrong foot, finding themselves down three within the first five minutes against Bryant.
The Bulldogs took advantage of the faceoff, where they currently sit at No. 3 in the country in faceoff percentage. But Bryant’s dominance wouldn’t last very long.
The Bobcats clawed their way back to the top, capping off a four goal run with a strike by senior midfielder Steven Germain, who scored his sixth goal of the season. From then on it was a back-and-forth contest, with neither team getting above a three goal advantage.
Both teams had multiple lead changes with senior attack Dylan Donnery and senior midfielder Trevor Douglas leading the scoring charge, both earning hat tricks. Bryant’s potent offense kept it in the game until the end of the fourth quarter. Sophomore John Thomcheck — who helped lead that original three goal run for the Bulldogs in the first quarter — provided his own hat trick.
Once again, the Bobcats man of the hour was junior goalie Mason Oak, who before the contest versus the Bulldogs was No. 5 in the country in save percentage. Oak, who has already earned MAAC Defensive Player of the Week, put on another award winning performance with an astonishing 19 saves and a save percentage of 65%. His phenomenal defense has been a key factor in the Bobcats’ success over the past three weeks.
Although the second half was once again a close battle between the two teams, Bryant let the game slip through its fingers, committing several costly turnovers in the second half. The Bulldogs allowed another four goal run in the third quarter, which pushed the contest out of reach.
Quinnipiac’s 13th and final goal came at the hands of graduate student attack John DeLucia, who scored his third goal with three minutes left to go. DeLucia’s hat trick was the third for the Bobcats on the day, sending Quinnipiac into cruise control.
The team will travel to North Andover, Massachusetts to face Merrimack on March 2. The opening faceoff is set for 1 p.m.
