STRONG SECOND HALF POWERS MIT OVER MEN'S LAX, 10-5

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – The MIT men's lacrosse team outscored Emmanuel College, 8-1, in the second half to come from behind and defeat the Saints, 10-5, on Wednesday night. Senior Chris Cook (Tully, N.Y.) recorded a hat-trick in the Engineers' season opener while junior Michael Donovan (Assonet, Mass.) paced Emmanuel (1-2) with two goals and an assist in addition to posting four groundballs and two caused turnovers.

The Saints opened the scoring after 2:34 expired on a solo strike by junior Michael Rogers (New Haven, Conn.) and then classmate Chris Curtis (Ashland, Mass.) increased the margin three minutes later. Emmanuel's lead grew to 3-0 when Donovan found sophomore Donnie Litzelman (Exeter, N.H.) with 4:59 on the clock. MIT ended the shutout shortly thereafter as freshman Christian Jamison (Huntington, N.Y.) set up Cook for the transition tally. The visitors then converted their first extra-man opportunity when Donovan redirected a feed from Curtis with 15 seconds to go in the quarter.

Six penalties during the first seven minutes of the second quarter helped the Engineers control the action as they out-shot Emmanuel, 6-2. The Cardinal and Gray eventually broke through as a goal by junior Paul Orrson (Baltimore, Md.) narrowed the gap to 4-2 at the 6:39 mark. The defensive battle resumed as the score remained unchanged heading into halftime.

Once action resumed, MIT quickly tied the game at four. Freshman Graham Davis (Crofton, Md.) cut the Engineers' deficit in half after 2:17 elapsed and then junior Jonah Hessels (Laytonsville, Md.) redirected a feed from sophomore Harris Stolzenberg (Weston, Fla.) for the equalizer with exactly 10 minutes on the clock. The next five minutes were a back-and-forth affair until Emmanuel possessed the ball for the final 4:27 of the frame. The Saints rattled off nine shots, one of which was stopped by junior goalie Eric Bartell (San Diego, Calif.), but they could not produce the go-ahead marker.

The Engineers ended the stalemate just over a minute into the final frame as Hessels gave them a 5-4 lead while another goal by Davis created some breathing room at the 12:02 mark. Emmanuel then ended its 35-minute scoring drought as it closed the gap to one (6-5) with 10:25 to play. On a clearing attempt by MIT, Curtis caused a turnover and scooped up the groundball that later led to Donovan's goal. MIT replied with a goal from Cook in the next 2:30 before finding the back of the net three times during the last four minutes to secure the victory.

Hessels finished with two goals and an assist as Stolzenberg earned two assists. Orrson and sophomore Michael Traub (Aliso Viejo, Calif.) both recorded one goal and one assist while Orrson tacked on four groundballs. Freshman Mitch Turley (Westfield, Ind.) notched the first goal of his intercollegiate career as junior Luke Verdi (Middletown, Md.) totaled four groundballs, two caused turnovers, and an assist. Sophomore Cody Jacobucci (Woodstown, N.J.) went 7-of-13 in faceoffs and collected four groundballs while freshman David Klee (East Greenbush, N.Y.) registered a game-high four caused turnovers. Bartell ended the night with eight saves and eight groundballs.

Senior goalie Austin Lauzier (Bedford, N.H.) tallied 10 saves and four groundballs for the Saints as sophomore Chris Baglivi (Mattituck, N.Y.) registered four groundballs and two caused turnovers. Sophomore Tony Cibelli (Westboro, Mass.) contributed three groundballs and two caused turnovers while senior Jake Pickett (Stratham, N.H.) was 9-of-15 in faceoffs and added five groundballs.

Next up for MIT will be a home game against Skidmore College on Saturday, March 7. Emmanuel, meanwhile, heads to Myrtle Beach, S.C. for a match up with Hilbert College on Wed 

*Release courtesy of MIT Sports Information Dept.