Men's Lacrosse knock off Mitchell 9-4

(Nashua, N.H.) The Rivier Men's lacrosse team defeated Mitchell College this afternoon by the score of 9-4. With the win, the Raiders improve their season record to 7-2. As for Mitchell, their record drops to 3-3 on the year.

The game began in favor of Mitchell College. For nearly the entire 1^st quarter, neither Rivier nor Mitchell could seem to find their way onto the score board. It looked as if both teams would be shut out in the first until Will Ryan-Johnson (New London, Conn.) was able to score an unassisted goal with only 26 seconds remaining in the quarter. Much like the first quarter, the second quarter began very slowly for both squads.

Unfortunately for the Raiders, again it was Mitchell who broke the scoring drought. Tyler Desances (Norwalk, Conn.) off of a nice pass from McCarthy Brodaski (East Lyme, Conn.) was able to score at the 10:15 mark to push the Mitchell lead to 2-0. With seemingly all of the momentum, Mitchell looked as if they would squeak out a low-scoring victory over the Raiders. Despite the slow start, the Raiders, with their exceptional team communication and chemistry, dug deep and put together what would be the game winning run.

William Ryan (Dorchester, Mass.) got it all started for the Raiders by scoring their first goal of the game at the 9:15 mark. 3 minutes later, Rob Auer (Salem, N.H.) scored an unassisted goal to tie the game at 2-2. Less than a minute later, Cody Lynch (Salem, N.H.) was able to lead the Raider man-up attack as he scored an impressive goal off of a great pass from Joe Kelland (Watertown, Mass.) at the 6:01 mark. Lynch was able to score again for the Raiders just before halftime. The Raiders led 4-2 heading into the break.

The third quarter was all Rivier in this one. The Raider defense was solid as they limited Mitchell's shot attempts, forced them to make bad passes, and ultimately, kept them off of the scoreboard. Max Tucci (Newton, Mass.) pushed the Raider lead to 5-2 when he was able to beat the Mitchell goalie and score an unassisted goal at the 10:01 mark. Kevin Dembkoski (Salem, N.H.) off of a Max Tucci (Newton, Mass.) pass, gave the Raiders an even larger lead. Less than 8 seconds later, Cody Lynch (Salem, N.H.) put in another goal for the Raiders pushing their lead to 7-2.

The Raiders weren't finished there, as they continued to press Mitchell and work the ball on offense. Kyle Graham (Londonderry, N.H.) from a Tyler Tambouris (Hooksett, N.H.) pass, scored a man-up goal for the Raiders to put the game too far out of reach for Mitchell. Despite the large deficit, Mitchell did not give up and continued to fight until the very end. Dan DiGioia (Glen Ridge, N.J.) and Tyler Kradas (Kensington, Conn.) each scored a goal for Mitchell to cut the deficit to 4 goals. Tyler Tambouris (Hooksett, N.H.) put the dagger in the coffin as he was able to score again for the Raiders with only a few minutes left.

For their next contest, the Rivier Men's lacrosse team will play host to GNAC foe Anna Maria College on March 31^st at 7:00pm. As for Mitchell College, they will next play host to Albertus Magnus College on April 1^st at 4:00pm.