CARROLL NAMED CO-OFFENSIVE

PERFORMER OF THE WEEK

Mar. 25: Junior Attack Peter Carroll was named the Liberty League’s “Co-Offensive Performer of the Week” on Monday following his efforts last week as the St. Lawrence men’s lacrosse team took on national powerhouses Bowdoin and Salisbury during their Spring training trip in Orlando, Florida.

Carroll (Pennington,  NJ/Hopewell Valley Central) got his junior campaign off to an impressive start in

St. Lawrence's games against Bowdoin and No. 1 Salisbury. The Pennington, NJ native anchored the team's offense, scoring three goals and adding one assist against the Polar Bears while tallying two scores against the defending national champion Seagulls.

The Saints, who are 0-2 in 2008 thus far, will host SUNY Oswego on Wednesday, March 26 in their season’s home opener on North Country Field. The contest is scheduled to begin at 4:00pm.

SAINTS STAND TOE-TO-TOE WITH NATION’S BEST TEAM,

FALL TO SALISBURY 11-10

Mar. 20: The No. 14 St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team held the lead three different times against the defending national champions and current No. 1 Salisbury University on Thursday afternoon, including a 6-5 lead at the half. However, the Seagulls, coached by St. Lawrence University graduate Jim Berkman, won their 72 nd consecutive regular season game, rallying for an 11-10 win against the Scarlet and Brown in Sylvan Lake Park, FL.

“We are very proud of the way we bounced back from our opening game against Bowdoin, and stood toe-to-toe with the best team in the country,” said Saints head coach Mike Mahoney. “I think we learned a lot about what we are capable of doing as a team.”

The Saints, who played Salisbury tough in their last meeting in 2006 (lost 9-7), took a 3-1 lead after one quarter of play. Sophomore Will McKee, the reigning Liberty League Rookie of the Year, scored twice in the quarter along with senior Ben Prime to give the Saints a two goal cushion.

Salisbury would flex their muscle early in the second quarter, as they scored four of the first five goals in the stanza to take a 5-4 lead of their own, with the lone Saint goal coming from senior Cory Yawger. St. Lawrence refused to go away, though, as junior Peter Carroll and senior Kevin Russell scored only 1:45 apart in the final four minutes of the half to put the underdogs on top, 6-5, at the end of the first half.

After Russell extended St. Lawrence’s lead to 7-5 only 2:24 into the third quarter, the Seagulls rattled off three straight goals to take an 8-7 lead with 5:01 to play in quarter. Prime would end the run with his second of the game with 2:41 remaining, but Salisbury scored back-to-back goals only 1:32 apart to build a 10-8 cushion with only 28 seconds to go in the third.

Off the face-off, however, the Saints were able to control and score, as Carroll added his second of the contest with only two seconds remaining in the quarter to set up an exciting final 15 minutes.

Though the two teams combined for 19 goals in the first three quarters, the fourth proved to be one full of defense, with Salisbury scoring their only goal of the period at 2:55 to extend their lead to 11-9.

St. Lawrence answered the call yet again, as sophomore Dillon Simpson scored only 1:01 later to pull the Scarlet and Brown back into it at 11-10.

The Seagulls defensive unit, considered one of the best in the country, would buckle down in the remaining ten minutes. Despite St. Lawrence’s best offensive efforts to net the equalizer, Salisbury was able to hang on and protect their 11-10 lead to keep their NCAA consecutive wins record in tact.

“We played a heck of a game, controlling the ball well on offense and executing,” added Coach Mahoney. “Defensively, we played hard, making it difficult for one of the most potent offenses in the country to score.”

Junior Thomas Hollingsworth was solid between the pipes for St. Lawrence, as he made 13 saves in net. Salisbury’s starter Riley Clark made 9 saves in net for the Seagulls.

Thursday’s contest was St. Lawrence’s final game during their spring trip, as the Saints are slated to play their first home game of the season on Wednesday, March 26 at 4:00pm against the Oswego State Lakers.

SAINTS DROP SEASON OPENER

TO BOWDOIN, 17-10

Mar. 17: The No. 14 St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team dropped its 2008 season opener to Bowdoin on Monday afternoon in Sylvan Lake Park, FL by the score of 17-10. The Saints played the Polar Bears to a 2-2 draw after one quarter, but a six-goal second quarter gave Bowdoin a five-goal lead they would not relinquish.

The Saints (0-1), who had their first two games of the season cancelled due to weather, were led offensively by junior Pete Carroll and sophomore Will McKee. Carroll tallied a team-high three goals and had one assist, while McKee picked up two goals and two helpers.

Other goal scorers for the Saints against Bowdoin include seniors Mike Long and Cory Yawger, junior Nick Stefans and sophomores Dillon Simpson and Scott Smith.

Though St. Lawrence tied Bowdoin in both the first and fourth quarters with two and four goals, respectively, the Polar Bears controlled both the second and third stanzas. Bowdoin out-scored the Saints 6-1 in the second and 5-3 in the third to take control of the game and ensure a 17-10 victory.

Between the pipes for the Scarlet and Brown, junior Thomas Hollingsworth made five saves and allowed eight goals, while senior Frank Maguire made eight saves while allowing nine tallies.

The schedule does not get any easier for the Saints this week, as they take on the defending national champions, the Salisbury Seagulls, on Thursday, March 20 at 12:00pm in Sylvan Lake Park, FL.