Saints Strong First Half Lifts Men’s Lacrosse to 15-10 Win vs. New England College

BOSTON – Emmanuel men's lacrosse scored five unanswered goals in the final 5:29 of the first half, pulling away from the New England Pilgrims on a rainy, windy, and cold Wednesday night for a 15-10 win in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play on Clemente Field.

The win for Emmanuel moves them to 2-9 (2-3 GNAC) while the loss drops New England College to 2-7 (1-3 GNAC). Within the North Division, the Saints go to 2-1 and the Pilgrims move to 1-1.

The Saints led 4-3 late in the second quarter before the scoring outburst helped Emmanuel pull away to victory. First-year Cooper Mehlhorn (South Portland, Maine) started the scoring spree with 5:29 remaining, giving the Saints a 5-3 edge.

Senior Rob Favuzza (Saugus, Mass.) and Mehlhorn scored in quick succession, boosting the lead to 7-3 with 3:47 to go. The run resumed with junior Sanzio DiGesualdo (Niskayuna, N.Y.) scoring with 3:02 remaining and sophomore Ethan Madura (Clinton, Mass.) capping off the run with 25.5 seconds remaining, giving Emmanuel a 9-3 halftime lead.

The scoring run continued into the third quarter with senior Aidan Sullivan (Burlington, Conn.) and Mehlhorn scoring 1:15 apart, lifting the Saints to an 11-3 lead. Later in the quarter, the Pilgrims would cut the deficit down to five with junior Henri Pfeifle (Darien, Conn.) scoring twice and sophomore Nathan Hawkins (Salisbury, N.H.) adding one tally, putting New England down 12-7 after three quarters.

The Pilgrims never drew closer after the Saints and New England traded three goals each in the fourth quarter, including another pair of tallies for Pfeifle, as Emmanuel claimed a 15-10 victory on the night.

Mehlhorn finished with a career-high six points after a three-goal, three-assist showing for the Saints. DeGesualdo and junior Ryan Etzo (Bedford, N.H.) both finished with two goals and one assist for three-point nights. Senior goalie Eric Anderson (Sparta, N.J.) made seven stops for the Saints, moving to 2-9 with the win.

Pfeifle had a game-high six goals, improving his team lead to 33 tallies. Junior Thomas Norton (Mansfield, Mass.) added two goals and one assist in the loss. First-year goalie Nate Finn (Norwood, Mass.) made a dozen saves for the Pilgrims but fell to 3-4 on the year.

The Saints return to play on Saturday, April 6, for Senior Day and a 12:00 p.m. game against Elms. The Pilgrims return on April 6 for the second game of a three-game road trip at Johnson & Wales at 11:00 a.m.