Second Quarter Surge Powers Emerson Past Men's Lacrosse, 11-7

THE BASICS 

Score:             
Emerson College, 11; Emmanuel College, 7
Records:         
Emmanuel College Saints (1-8, 0-4 GNAC)
Emerson College Lions (11-2, 1-1 NEWMAC)
Location:         
Boston, Mass. – Rotch Playground
Date:               
Wednesday, April 6, 2022

THE LEAD:  Emerson College scored six straight goals to open the second quarter, powering the host Lions to an 11-7 victory over Emmanuel College in non-conference men's lacrosse action on Wednesday evening at Rotch Playground.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Emerson opened the scoring with a man-up goal with 10:39 remaining in the first by Hunter Gervais before Emmanuel closed the quarter strong with a pair of scores from sophomore Thomas Quigley (Marblehead, Mass.) to give the Saints a 2-1 lead at the end of one.
• The Lions wasted no time in the second to even the score as Austin Franklin made it a 2-2 game just 20 seconds into the period, scoring the first of six consecutive goals by the hosts. The Emerson second quarter scoring barrage came in pairs as Jack O'Rourke gave the Lions the lead for good just 27 second later to make it 3-2, Emerson. The next pair of goals came just nine seconds apart as O'Rourke and Gervais found the back of the net at the 11:44 & 11:35 markers to bump the lead to 5-2. Franklin and Gervais capped the scoring spree with the sixth and seventh Emerson goals of the evening just 15 seconds apart to move the score to 7-2 with 9:28 left in the half.
• Emmanuel did not go quietly, recovering with a 4-0 run of its own as junior Ryan Castle (Boxford, Mass.) and senior Colin Dickinson (Barre, Vt.) each scored two in over the final nine minutes of the second including a Castle score with just 0:09 seconds left on the clock to make it a one-goal game heading into halftime at 7-6, Emerson.
• It remained a one-goal game for almost five minutes into the third before Skyler Celotto opened the second half scoring with his first goal of the night to give the Lions a two goal cushion at 8-6. The Emmanuel defense kept it a two-score game until Nicholas Fulgione snuck one in to give the hosts some breathing room at 9-6 with 6:17 to play in the third.
• Emerson added more insurance early in the fourth as Franklin scored his third of the night, shifting the score to 10-6 with 12:37 remaining in regulation before Fulgione added his third of the game to open it up to an 11-6 score with less than four minutes to play.
• The Lions nearly held the Saints scoreless in the second half but Emmanuel netted a man-up goal with 1:32 left on the clock by Dickinson to account for the 11-7 final.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS 

• Emerson outshot the Saints by a 50-37 margin in the victory, won the groundball margin 29-21 and controlled the faceoff game with a 15-7 advantage in the center circle.
• Malcolm McGrath earned the win in net for the Lions making 13 saves to improve to 10-2 on the year while sophomore Eric Anderson (Sparta, N.J.) was strong in defeat by making 19 saves for Emmanuel.
• Fulgione led all players with five points on two goals and three assists while Gervais added four points on three goals and one helper.
• For Emmanuel, Dickinson led the way with four points on three goals and one assist while Quigley finished with three points on two goals and one dime.

UP NEXT

• The Saints hit the road on Saturday, April 9 for a GNAC showdown in Standish, Maine vs. Saint Joseph's College at 1:00 PM
• Emerson hosts Springfield College the same day with the first faceoff scheduled for 1:00 PM in NEWMAC action.