The men’s lacrosse team continued its dominant play this past week with a commanding home victory against Trinity last Saturday and a nail-biting 11-10 triumph at Bates on Wednesday night. The wins extend the team’s overall record to 8-2 and improve its in-conference record to 5-1.
On Wednesday, it took a 3-0 fourth quarter for the Polar Bears to squeak past the Bobcats in Lewiston. Junior Tyler Williams’ unassisted goals with 10:36 and 2:07 left on the clock tied and won the game, respectively.
The contest was close, with six lead changes and neither team leading by more than two goals throughout the match. Williams led the team with three goals, and Dan Hanley ’14 netted two.
Last Saturday, the men jumped ahead to an early lead against the Bantams, scoring five goals within a 10-minute span to finish off the first quarter. The Polar Bears maintained their advantage in the second quarter, as both sides exchanged goals and were able to increase their lead to 8-2 going into the final period.
In the final quarter of play, Trinity showed slight resurgence in the contest, outscoring Bowdoin 3-1. However, it was too little too late for the Bantams. The Polar Bears closed out the remainder of the game to win 9-5.
“We came out very hot in the first quarter, which gave us the upper hand for the rest of the game,” said Ben Brewster ’14. “We have been concentrating on our blue-collar attitude all season. We gave a strong performance against Trinity and were able to stay focused and humble.”
Brewster led the defense with eight ground balls on the night. Connor Laughlin ’15 also had a tremendous night in front of the net, recording 13 saves for the Polar Bears.
“Connor did a great job in goal—we had some defensive breakdowns that he saved us on,” said Head Coach Jason Archbell. “In the future, we can’t put so much of the weight on his shoulders to make those saves.”
Conor O’Toole ’14 led the attack for the Polar Bears against Trinity, notching two goals and two assists. David Nemirov ’15 had two goals and an assist while Peter Reuter ’16 and Franklin Reis ’14 each scored two goals as well.
Reis currently leads the attack for the Polar Bears with 30 points, scoring 20 goals and dishing out 10 assists so far in the campaign. O’Toole (22 points), Reuter (22) and Wise (21) have also been top offensive contributors on the team.
“Most of our goals have come off assisted points. It’s a great indication of how well our offense is working together,” said O’Toole. “We stress a team aspect when we attack, focusing more on our movement and cohesion as a unit rather than the individual.”
On the defensive end, face-off man Rob Talcott ’15 and Brewster lead the team with 45 and 30 ground balls, respectfully.
“Ground balls have been an important emphasis for me,” said Archbell. “We focus on outworking and out-grinding opponents, that’s how we tend to win. Defensively, our work ethic and accountability is key.”
The men will play Connecticut College at 1 p.m. tomorrow.