| Contact Us Find People Site Index |  |
||
 |
|||
 THREE SAINTS ARE HONORABLE MENTION ALL AMERICA May 30: Three members of St. Lawrence University’s men’s lacrosse team were named to the USILA All America team as announced in Baltimore on Monday.
Defenders J.J. Hearty and Brian Crowley and goaltender Justin Demuth were named as Division III honorable mention All America.
Hearty earned honorable mention All America honors for the second straight year and was a first team all league selection. He was also selected to the USILA Scholar All America team which required All America status and a grade point average of 3.0 or higher. Crowley, who will join Hearty at the North-South All Star Game, was also All Liberty League.
Demuth was Liberty League Player of the Year and the first-team All League goaltender. He capped a stellar career with a 12-2 record in 14 games with a 5.41 goals against average and a .621 save percentage.
THREE SAINTS NAMED TO NORTH ALL STAR TEAM May 22: Three senior members of St. Lawrence University’s men’s lacrosse team have been selected to play in the North-South Senior All Star Game at Calvert Hall in Baltimore at 4 p.m. on May 25.
Defenders J.J. Hearty and Brian Crowley will join midfielder Brendan Lynch as Saint representatives on the Division III North roster.
Hearty had 34 ground balls and 17 caused turnovers in 16 games for the Saints and was a 2006 honorable mention All America. Crowley had a goal and an assist in 16 games to go with 27 ground balls and 12 turnovers and both Saint defenders were significant contributors to a defensive unit which held opponents to 5.86 goals per game.
Lynch was the Saints’ leading scorer from his midfield spot with 26 goals and 11 assists for 37 points. Included among his 26 goals were six game-winners.
All three Saint North-South players were first-team All Liberty League selections.
FELICE AND HEATH POWER RED DRAGONS PAST SAINTS IN NCAA TOURNAMENT May 12: The No. 12 Cortland State Red Dragons continued their success in the NCAA Tournament on Saturday, as the defending National Champions topped No. 5 St. Lawrence University in the Second Round of the 2007 Tournament. Cortland (13-5) used a five-goal second quarter and an outstanding day from senior Mike Felice, who notched six points (5g,1a) as the Red Dragons advanced to play Western New England College in the National Quarterfinals. Meanwhile, the Saints season, which saw the Scarlet and Brown climb to the highest ranking in the Division III polls in the program’s history, comes to an end with a 14-2 overall mark.
St. Lawrence’s last loss at home came on April 16th, 2005 , but the Red Dragons used a consistent defensive pressure in the midfield to give them an upper hand and converted several important goals in transition.
The visitors scored the game’s first goal at 7:04 when Cortland ’s Billy Fuchs picked up a turnover to St. Lawrence goaltender Justin Demuth’s left and caught the senior netminder out of position to give his team a 1-0 advantage. St. Lawrence would answer 3:25 later when sophomore Peter Carroll connected with fellow classmate Kyle Benton in front, and the Brasher Falls, NY native ripped a shot past Cortland ’s Michael Robinson to even the score.
With the first quarter winding down, though, Cortland’s leading scorer Ryan Heath found Ryan Simensky to Demuth’s left, and his shot under the cross bar beat the Saints goalie to give the Red Dragons a 2-1 lead after one quarter.
After a penalty was given to Fuchs at the end of the quarter for slashing, St. Lawrence took advantage with a man-up goal only 25 seconds into the second quarter to again tie the score at 2-2. First year student Will McKee took a pass from junior Kevin Russell, beat his defender to the left post and slipped a shot behind Robinson for the team’s second goal.
Cortland ’s resiliency began to show with the game tied at 2-2, though, as the Red Dragons ran off four straight goals to open up a 6-2 advantage. Fuchs and Heath worked a solid 2-on-1 to give their team a 3-2 lead, then Simensky found Felice for his first goal of the day 2:39 into the second quarter to make it 4-2 in favor of Cortland State.
The Red Dragons ball movement continued to hurt the Saints less than two minutes later, when a heads up pass from Kevin Kliszczewicz found Simensky right in front of Demuth for the team’s fifth goal. Cortland ’s four-goal run finished with Joey Morgan taking a pass from Fuchs and beating Demuth for a 6-2 lead.
Trailing by four goals for the first time all season, the Saints looked to claw back into the game when senior Nick Mastine scored an unassisted goal at 8:45 of the second quarter to bring the score to 6-3. The Erin, Ontario native made a strong move to his left around a defender and launched a hard shot that beat Robinson to end the Cortland run.
The defending national champions would bounce right back, though, and capitalize on a turnover to grab a 7-3 lead at halftime. With the Saints struggling to clear the ball, Demuth fired a pass into the midfield that was intercepted by Felice. He sent a long feed up ahead to Heath who was behind the SLU defense and he fired a low shot from just outside the crease to give Cortland a 7-3 halftime edge.
Though the Saints had hoped to grab the early momentum to dig out of their four-goal deficit, it wasn’t meant to be as Simensky scored his third goal of the afternoon to put Cortland ahead 8-3 only 1:24 into the third quarter.
However, the Saints were able to kill off a three-man advantage for Cortland following the goal, and appeared to finally have swung the momentum in their favor when they scored back-to-back goals at 11:47 of the third and 1:16 into the fourth to pull to within three goals at 8-5. After McKee completed the third quarter scoring to make the score 8-4, Demuth sent a long outlet pass to junior Mike Long. Long did the rest, avoiding one defender, faking another on a pump-fake, and firing a rocket past Robinson to make the score 8-5 early in the fourth quarter.
Unfortunately, four penalties in the final quarter would do the Saints in, as Cortland State capitalized for two consecutive man-up goals, both by Felice, to build a 10-5 lead. After Russell tried to get the Saints kick-started with a goal from Robinson’s right side with 7:20 remaining in regulation, a man-up turnover created a transition opportunity for the Red Dragons. Heath and Felice proved to be too much, working around Demuth and scoring a man-down goal to make the score 11-6 with 5:57 to play.
“Our game plan was to try and spread St. Lawrence’s defense out to try and open up some good looks, and it went well for us,” said Cortland State head coach Steve Beville.
The Scarlet and Brown would make one final push, as seniors Andy Centauro and Willie Lapinski tallied consecutive unassisted goals to bring St. Lawrence back to within striking distance at 11-8 with 4:58 to play in regulation and forcing the Red Dragons to use a timeout. However, the ensuing face-off was won by Cortland , and Adam Hyde ended the Saints run with an unassisted goal at 10:53 . Finally, Felice put it away with his fifth goal of the game only 29 seconds later to complete the scoring and move Cortland State into the NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals with a 13-8 victory over St. Lawrence.
Cortland State finished with a 39-29 advantage in shots, a 30-25 edge in ground balls, and won 13-of-23 face-offs.
“We knew we had to push the ball and work to get good shots against them, and we were fortunate to get them,” said Felice, who now has 51 points in the 2007 season (32g,19a).
“Their transition game was better than ours, and they capitalized on their chances,” said St. Lawrence senior captain Brian Crowley. “I’ve been here four years and it’s been a great run. Getting to the NCAA Tournament the last two years has been great for the program.”
This afternoon’s game at North Country Field was the last for the Saints ten seniors, including Demuth, Crowley , Mastine, Lapinski, Centauro, Brad Liston, Brendan Lynch, JJ Hearty, Rick Slingluff and Trevor Rainville.
Cortland State will square off with WNEC on Wednesday, May 16th with a spot in the NCAA Final Four on the line.
DEMUTH MAKES 14 SAVES AS SAINTS WIN SECOND STRAIGHT CONFERENCE TOURNEY The No. 6 Saints (above) celebrate their second consecutive Liberty League title after a 16-3 victory over Skidmore College on Sunday afternoon. (Tara Freeman photo)
May 6: The No. 6 St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team routed Skidmore College in the Liberty League Championship game by the score of 16-3 on Sunday afternoon. Senior goaltender Justin Demuth, who was named the 2007 Liberty League “Player of the Year” on Thursday, made 14 saves and led the Scarlet and Brown (14-1, 6-0) to the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season. For their efforts, Nick Mastine was named the Liberty League's "Offensive Player of the Week," Demuth the "Defensive Player of the Week," and first year student Will McKee the "Rookie of the Week"
The Saints continued their balance attack on both offense and defense, as fifteen different players collected at least one point for St. Lawrence as the team won their 18 th straight game at North Country Field.
“I am very proud of these guys and what they have done so far this season,” said Saints head coach Mike Mahoney. “We’ve gotten great leadership from our seniors and we’re playing with a lot of confidence right now. Getting off to a quick lead really got us jump-started.”
The lead Coach Mahoney was the 5-0 lead his team compiled less than a minute into the second quarter. The Saints, who hosted the Liberty League Tournament after going 6-0 in conference play in the regular season, scored four goals in the opening quarter while Demuth kept the Thoroughbreds off the board.
Senior midfielder Brendan Lynch scored his first of four goals 2:53 into the game when he picked up a turnover from Skidmore goalie John Capitani in the offensive zone and, with the netminder out of his cage, fired the ball into the open net for the 1-0 lead.
Senior Willie Lapinski and junior Kevin Russell would complete the first quarter scoring with three goals in a span of 3:26 to bring the lead to 4-0. Lapinski, a native of Canton , NY , made a great move to the middle of the field after taking a pass from junior Brian Chamberlain and ripped a shot into the upper-left portion of the goal.
Russell would then follow with back-to-back goals only 24 seconds apart to complete the first quarter scoring. The Madison , CT native put St. Lawrence ahead 3-0 when Demuth fired a long pass down field that bounced between Skidmore’s defenders and to Russell, who was all alone for a one-on-one with Capitani. Though the goaltender tried to challenge, Russell’s shot found the net and gave his team a 3-0 edge. He would then take a pass from junior Ben Prime only seconds later and beat Capitani again for the 4-0 cushion.
Skidmore had several chances in the opening quarter to get on the board, but Demuth and his defensive unit in front of him were too much for the Thoroughbreds. Their constant pressuring of the ball created six turnovers, and Demuth added five key saves to keep his opponents off the scoreboard.
The Saints only took 18 seconds into the second to extend their lead to 5-0 when Prime scored his lone goal of the day after Chamberlain found him wide open to Capitani’s right in transition off the face-off.
Skidmore’s Rob Lutin would finally get the visitors on the board at 2:23 of the second frame after taking a pass from Joe Tynan and beating Demuth from the right side. The Thoroughbreds then had another great chance to cut into the deficit less than a minute later when Nick Coppola had a breakaway chance on the Saints goalie. However, the Jordan, NY native held his ground and turned back Skidmore’s sophomore attack to keep the score at 5-1.
The rest of the quarter belonged to the Saints, as they ran off three consecutive goals to re-assert themselves before the end of the half. Senior Nick Mastine got into the scoring at 4:47 with an unassisted tally, and his goal was followed by sophomore Alex Slauson’s only goal of the afternoon. Finally, the Liberty League’s “Co-Rookie of the Year” Will McKee scored on his fellow award winner Capitani to end the first half scoring at 8-1 when he rifled a shot into the goal with only 54 seconds remaining in the first half.
The Saints defensive efforts were outstanding, as the combination of seniors JJ Hearty and Brian Crowley, junior Ben Buskey and sophomore Carl Festa used double teams to wreak havoc when Skidmore had the ball in the offensive zone. They did well to allow Demuth to see the Thoroughbreds’ shots on goal, as he finished with nine saves in the first half.
Junior Mike Long and Lynch would open the second half scoring to take St. Lawrence’s lead to 10-1 with 8:30 to play in the third quarter. Though Coppola and Cory Barkoff scored goals only 37 seconds apart to make the score 10-3 at the 5:23 mark, sophomore midfielder PJ Santora won a face-off, cut through Skidmore’s defense and found fellow classmate Nick Stefans who buried a shot to complete the scoring in the quarter with St. Lawrence comfortably ahead, 11-3.
The Saints relentless attack continued in the fourth quarter, as they out-scored Skidmore 5-0 in the final fifteen minutes to run the table in the Liberty League and earn the conference’s automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament. McKee, Lynch (2) and junior Derek Hansen (2) collected the five goals in the quarter with assists coming from Slauson, sophomores Peter Carroll and Collin Moon, and rookie John Manning.
“I think our discipline on both sides of the ball was very important today,” added Coach Mahoney. “Because we only took two penalties, we were able to keep them from gaining momentum. Our home crowd was great and we’re excited to play in the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season.”
Demuth finished with 14 saves in 55:13 minutes of action, while Capitani closed with 10 saves for Skidmore. St. Lawrence held a 43-25 advantage in shots and scooped up 33 ground balls to the Thoroughbreds’ 22.
St. Lawrence will host the defending national champions, the Cortland State Red Dragons, in an NCAA Tournament Second round game on Saturday, May 12th at North Country Field, where the Saints have not lost since April 16th, 2005. Game time is set for 1:00pm.
MASTINE'S HAT TRICK AND SAINTS DEFENSE OUST RPI FROM CONFERENCE TOURNEY May 4: The St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team ended a nineteen year hiatus from the NCAA Tournament last year when they won the Liberty League Championship. After capturing their eleventh straight victory on Friday afternoon, the Saints (13-1, 6-0) are only one win away from returning. Senior midfielder Nick Mastine scored three goals and fellow classmate Justin Demuth made seven saves as the Scarlet and Brown ousted Rensselaer (11-4, 3-3) from the Liberty League Tournament with a 10-4 victory at North Country Field. St. Lawrence, the top seed in the tournament, will square off with No. 2 Skidmore in the championship game on Sunday, as the Thoroughbreds defeated Clarkson, 9-6.
The Saints and Red Hawks engaged in a very physical battle for the right to play for the Liberty League’s automatic NCAA Tournament bid, with the two teams combining for a total of 16 penalties. The home team would open the scoring at 4:40 of the first period, as senior midfielder Willie Lapinski made a great pass to sophomore Kyle Benton, who showed great patience by maneuvering around Rensselaer ’s goalie Ryan Michels and giving his team a 1-0 lead.
Michels would settle in, though, and kept St. Lawrence from extending their lead while his offense went to work on the far end of the field. Though Rensselaer had two extra man chances in the first quarter, the Saints stingy defensive unit kept their opponents from evening the score. Senior JJ Hearty, who had the strenuous task of guarding the league’s top scorer PJ McComb, was very physical and caused several key turnovers to give his team the momentum.
The Saints offense would feed off of their defense’s play, and built a 3-0 lead after one quarter. Mastine scored his first of the game with 4:20 remaining after junior Kevin Russell hustled to the midfield line and allowed rookie attack Will McKee to get open in the offensive zone. McKee took a pass, found some real estate and made a slick pass to Mastine who finished the play to put St. Lawrence ahead 2-0.
A mere 34 seconds later, the Scarlet and Brown were celebrating again, this time on junior Ben Prime’s goal to give the home team a 3-0 cushion. Prime took a pass from junior Mike Long behind the net, made a nice up-and-under move to elude his defender and beat Michels to continue the offensive rush.
The Saints penalty killing was a major factor in the first quarter, as junior Brian Chamberlain and Hearty were outstanding in protecting their cage and keeping Rensselaer ’s offensive from getting jump started.
The Red Hawks would gain some momentum early in the second quarter, though, as they killed off an important one minute penalty and followed with their first goal of the game from Mike Sampson only 2:59 into the quarter. Briggs Thompson found Sampson to Demuth’s left, and he rifled a hard shot past the Liberty League’s “Player of the Year” to bring RPI to within two goals at 3-1.
The goal only seemed to motivate St. Lawrence, though, as they answered with three straight goals to close out the half and take a 6-1 lead into the locker room. Junior Ben Buskey made a great play to cause a turnover behind Demuth’s goal. The Saints quickly went the other way, as senior defenseman Brian Crowley led the charge in transition. The Acton , MA native, who was named to the Liberty League’s First Team on Thursday, made a quick pass to an open Peter Carroll, and the sophomore laced a high shot past Michels’ stick for the 4-1 lead.
After sophomore Alex Slauson gave St. Lawrence a 5-1 lead on a hard, bouncing shot with 4:18 to play in the second quarter, Mastine scored a man-up goal with 1:55 remaining to complete the first half scoring and put SLU ahead 6-1. With the extra man on, Rensselaer seemed to catch a break as the ball bounced to the midfield line on an errant pass. However, Crowley made a heads-up play and kicked the ball back to senior Brendan Lynch. Lynch gained the offensive zone, cut through the defense, and fed Mastine on the doorstep, whose low shot beat Michels again for his second goal of the day.
The Saints held a 22-10 shot advantage through the first half, as well as a 20-9 edge in ground balls. Demuth, who made a fantastic save with 20 seconds remaining in the half on Thompson to keep the score 6-1, finished with five saves in the half as did his counterpart Michels.
Penalties doomed RPI early in the third quarter, as the Red Hawks took five straight penalties in a span of 6:07 . The Saints would out-score their opponents 3-0 in the third quarter to all but seal their eleventh straight win. McKee, the Liberty League’s “Co-Rookie of the Year,” scored the first goal of the second half with 3:44 to play with an assist going to Russell.
Russell, a First Team All-Conference attack, continued to hurt the Red Hawks as he found a seam in the defense where Lapinski was waiting to fire on net. The Canton , NY native did just that, letting a hard shot loose that Michels couldn’t handle to put St. Lawrence on top 8-1. Russell would collect his third assist of the quarter on his team’s final goal of the period, when he hit Mastine with a pass and the Erin , Ontario native did the rest, beating his defender and giving St. Lawrence a 9-1 advantage heading to the fourth.
Rensselaer managed to notch three consecutive man-up goals in the fourth quarter to keep their slim hopes of a comeback alive. Alex MacDiarmid scored only 23 seconds into the quarter, and Thompson followed just over seven minutes later to make the score 9-3. Paul Cerone would complete the Red Hawks’ scoring at 10:51 , when he took a pass from McComb and scored on Demuth for his team’s fourth goal.
However, the Saints lead was too much to overcome for the Red Hawks, and Russell put the finishing touches on another important win when the Madison, CT native received a pass from Lynch and smoked a hard shot into the upper-right part of the goal to cap the scoring and move St. Lawrence into the Liberty League championship game with a 10-4 win over Rensselaer.
“I thought it was a very physical game, and each team had their chances to get some momentum on man-up chances,” said Saints head coach Mike Mahoney. “We scored some timely goals, our defense made some big stops and Justin (Demuth) came up with a few important saves. It was a solid team win against a very talented opponent. Now, we need to keep our focus and get prepared for Skidmore on Sunday.”
Sophomore PJ Santora won 11-of-16 face-offs for the Saints on Friday, while Demuth finished with seven stops to improve to 11-1 overall this season. Michels closed with 12 saves including five in the fourth quarter.
St. Lawrence protected their home field advantage with the win and will welcome Skidmore to Canton, NY on Sunday, May 6th for a spot in the 2007 NCAA Tournament Field. The game will begin at 12:00pm, with the NCAA Tournament field being announced later that evening.
ELEVEN SAINTS EARN 2007 ALL-CONFERENCE HONORS May 3: Senior goaltender Justin Demuth, who has anchored the St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team to the No. 6 spot in the national polls, has been named the Liberty League’s “Player of the Year” for 2007. First year student Will McKee joined Demuth as a major award winner, as he was voted “Co-Rookie of the Year” along with Skidmore’s John Capitani. Meanwhile, a total of eleven Saints earned All-Conference honors, including six on the First Team.
Demuth (left) has once again been the backbone of the Saints defensive corps, allowing Liberty League-best 4.05 goals per game. The Jordan, NY native was also third in the conference in save percentage, and he served as a captain for the second straight season. Demuth, who was also named the First Team All-Conference goaltender, allowed only 18 goals in five conference games this season.
McKee has made an immediate impact in his rookie season with the Scarlet and Brown, totaling 20 goals, which was second-most on the roster. The Old Greenwich, CT added yet another weapon to the Saints arsenal, as McKee (right) was named the Liberty League Rookie of the Week twice.
Seniors Brendan Lynch, Brian Crowley, JJ Hearty, and Demuth joined junior Kevin Russell and sophomore PJ Santora as six of the eleven members on the Liberty League’s First Team. Lynch's 22 goals was tops for the Saints this season, as were his six game-winning tallies. The Medfield, MA native finished tied for 2nd in the league in goals per game (2.33), seventh in points per game (2.83), and led the conference in game-winning goals (in league) with three.
Crowley and Hearty have made St. Lawrence’s defensive corps one of the best in the country this season, using their quickness, strength, and consistent play. Crowley scored his first career goal versus Oswego on March 27th, and was named the conference's Defensive Player of the Week on March 19th. Hearty was often assigned to the opponent's top offensive scorer, and helped the Saints keep a goals-against average under 5.00. The Weston, MA native was named the league's Defensive Performer of the Week on April 9th for his play against Potsdam and Hamilton.
Russell and Santora have been keys to the Saints offensive attack this season, with Russell using his creative style of play to forge chances for his teammates to score and Santora earning extra possessions for the Scarlet and Brown with his face-off abilities. Russell's 45 points led the Saints in the regular season, and he carries an active ten-game multi-point scoring streak into the Liberty League tournament. He finished second in the conference in assists per game (3.00) and third in points per game (3.67).
Santora continued to serve the Saints as their go-to player on face-offs in 2007. The Cos Cob, CT native won 157-of-235 draws (.668 win-percentage) and led the league in ground balls per game (8.17). Santora won 66% of his face-offs in league games as well, going 75-of-114 on draws in conference play.
Earning All-Conference Second Team honors were sophomore attack Peter Carroll and senior midfielder Andy Centauro, who both add balance to the Saints offensive scheme. Carroll's efficient play makes him one of the team's most dangerous weapons, as he Pennington, NJ native often controls the Saints possessions. He finished the regular season tied for 7th in assists per game (1.00) and tied for 8th in points per game (2.67) in the conference ranks. Centauro remained one of St. Lawrence's most dangerous offensive players this season, totaling 26 points and notching the game-winning goal versus Union. The Sudbury, MA native finished tied for 9th in assists per game (0.83) in the conference.
Rounding out the 2007 Liberty League All-Conference recipients were junior defenseman Ben Buskey, sophomore midfielder Alex Slauson and McKee, who earned Honorable Mention status.
Slauson had a great run down the stretch for St. Lawrence, including seven goals in the last three games to lock up the top-seed in the Liberty League Tournament. The Shelburne, VT native had 12 goals in conference play, which was second-most for the Saints in 2007. Slauson's 2.00 goals per game average placed him 6th in the ranks in the Liberty League.
The Saints will host Rensselaer in the Liberty League Tournament semifinals tomorrow, Friday, May 4th at 4:00pm at North Country Field. The winner will advance to the championship game which will be played at the highest remaining seed on Sunday, May 6th at noon.
TOP-SEEDED SAINTS PREPARED TO DEFEND THEIR LIBERTY LEAGUE TITLE May 2: The nationally-ranked St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team is set to host the Rensselaer Red Hawks in the opening round of the 2007 Liberty League Tournament on Friday as the Saints look to win the conference championship and return the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season. The Scarlet and Brown have a tough road ahead, though, as RPI dropped the meeting between the two teams on April 14th by a narrow 8-7 margin in Troy, NY and look to avenge that loss.
The winner of the semifinal battle at North Country Field will then square off with the victor of the second semifinal game between Skidmore College and Clarkson University, which will be played in Saratoga Springs, NY on Friday as well.
“We’re obviously excited to be hosting the first round game versus Rensselaer” said Saints head coach Mike Mahoney. “They (the Red Hawks) played us very tough the first time around and we were fortunate to come away with a win. I think being in front of our fans at home will set a great atmosphere for an exciting game.”
The Saints, who are ranked No. 6 in the national coaches poll and landed the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament with a thorough 14-6 win over Skidmore last weekend, are riding a ten-game win streak that dates back to March 22 nd. The squad’s balanced offensive attack coupled with a stingy, swarming defense has made the Scarlet and Brown the toughest team to score on in the Liberty League.
St. Lawrence also hopes to lean on experience as they begin the tournament, as they are led by a corps of ten seniors and nine juniors that were part of the 2006 team that advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 19 seasons. The team’s tri-captains, senior goaltender Justin Demuth, senior defenseman Brian Crowley, and junior attack Kevin Russell have each had outstanding seasons and are one of the primary reasons the team has had success again in 2007.
“I think our captains have been leaders for us both on and off the field,” said Coach Mahoney, who has an overall record of 106-44 (.707) in ten years at St. Lawrence. “Justin (Demuth) has made the key saves when we’ve needed him, while Brian ( Crowley) has worked hard with his fellow defenseman to protect their goalie. Meanwhile, Kevin (Russell) makes so many things happen offensively. His creativity and unselfish play has allowed his teammates to flourish and make plays for us.”
Demuth comes into the Liberty League Tournament having led the conference in goals against average, allowing just over 4.00 goals per game. The Jordan, NY native also boasts the second-best save percentage (.561) in the league.
Crowley has also had a fantastic season for the Saints, as he and fellow defensemen JJ Hearty, Ben Buskey, and Carl Festa have allowed the least number of shots on cage in the Liberty League this season. The quartet has been able to neutralize some of the most dynamic forwards the region this season, and will look to continue their success against Rensselaer.
Finally, Russell has notched 45 points this season which leads St. Lawrence, and his 3.00 assist average per game is second in the conference. The Madison, CT native’s fiery personality serves as a spark to the Saints offensive unit, which enters the conference tournament second in goals per game (12.33).
Perhaps what has made St. Lawrence so tough to beat this season has been their diversity on offense, as seven different players have totaled over 20 points. Coach Mahoney credits much of their success to their depth, and believes if they are to advance in the tournament, it will be because of their consistent playmaking ability.
“We’ve been fortunate enough to have guys like Ben Prime, Alex Slauson, Brendan Lynch, Andy Centauro, and Will McKee as consistent offensive threats,” added Mahoney. “We’ve worked hard as a team, and our goals are within our sights.”
Though St. Lawrence is the top-ranked team in the conference tournament, their draw on Friday shows just how deep the Liberty League has gotten in recent years. Rensselaer, with an overall mark of 10-4, is the No. 4 seed and will travel to Canton, NY for a rematch of last year’s Liberty League Championship game.
The Red Hawks are led offensively by PJ McComb, who is the league leader in assists (3.33) and points per game (5.00). The team is also first in ground balls per game, man-up goals, and penalty killing (86%).
If Rensselaer is to upset St. Lawrence in the opening round on Friday afternoon, much of the burden may fall squarely on the shoulders of goaltender Ryan Michaels. The senior from Wilmington, DE is fourth in the Liberty League in goals against average (8.58) and fifth in save percentage (.552).
Meanwhile, in the second semifinal pits two of the conference’s top offensive weapons against one another, as Skidmore’s Micah Hawes-Sivitz meets Clarkson’s Greg Gibbons in a battle of the top-two goal scorers in the league. Hawes-Sivitz averages 2.67 goals per contest, while Gibbons is just behind, averaging 2.33 per game.
The Thoroughbreds finished with a 5-1 record in conference play, and thus host the Golden Knights on Friday afternoon. Skidmore finished the regular season atop the league in goals per game (12.5) and man-up tallies. Clarkson will need to stay at full strength throughout the game, as they are the most penalized group in the Liberty League. The Golden Knights may also rely on goaltender Eric Wolery to have a big day, as he boasted the best save percentage in the league this season (.614)
“That’s going to be a very good game between two very skilled teams,” said Coach Mahoney. “Though neither team can look that far ahead, both St. Lawrence and Rensselaer know they’d have their hands full on Sunday afternoon with an NCAA bid on the line.”
Both semifinal contests are slated to begin at 4:00pm, while the Championship game, which will be played at the highest remaining seed on Sunday, May 6th, will start at noon.
SLAUSON AND CARROLL PACE SAINTS TO LIBERTY LEAGUE REGULAR SEASON TITLE Apr. 28: The No. 6 St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team clinched the top seed in the 2007 Liberty League Tournament with a convincing 14-6 victory over previously-unbeaten Skidmore on Saturday afternoon at North Country Field. The win on “Senior Day” gave the Scarlet and Brown their second straight regular season conference championship with an overall record of 12-1 and a perfect 6-0 mark in conference play.
The game didn’t start out as planned for the Saints, as Rob Lutin took a pass from Matt Ward and beat senior goaltender Justin Demuth to give the Thoroughbreds the early 1-0 lead less than a minute into the game. The visitors appeared to make it 2-0 at 3:01 when Yosef Becher beat Demuth after picking up a ground ball in front of the goal. However, after the officials checked Becher’s stick, they ruled it to be illegal, thus disallowing the goal and giving the player a one minute penalty.
The fortunate break was all the Saints would need, as they erupted for eight straight goals to grab an 8-1 cushion midway through the second quarter. Sophomore Peter Carroll single-handedly got things started, scoring three consecutive goals in a span of 3:15 to give the Saints a 3-1 lead. The Pennington, NJ native backed down a defender to the right of the cage, and flicked a shot past Skidmore goalie John Capitani’s stick to even the score at 1-1.
Less than three minutes later, Carroll gave the Saints a lead they would never relinquish when he and junior Kevin Russell ran a beautiful give-and-go from behind the net, with Carroll burying the shot from just outside the crease for a 2-1 lead. He completed the first quarter hat trick only 45 seconds later when he ripped a shot in midair that clanked off the right post, off Capitani’s back and across the goal line. The fortunate bounce closed the opening quarter’s scoring with the Saints ahead 3-1.
St. Lawrence would assert themselves as the conference’s powerhouse in the battle of the undefeated in the second quarter, as they managed to outscore Skidmore by a 6-1 margin. Senior Brendan Lynch opened the second quarter scoring 48 seconds in with a powerful shot that Capitani couldn’t handle for the 4-1 lead.
Sophomore Alex Slauson, who has come on as one of the Saints most productive offensive weapons this season, continued his recent success with his first goal of the afternoon at 2:33 of the second. Lynch found Slauson in the slot, and the Shelburne, VT native did the rest, making a strong move to his right past a defender and sending a rocket over the goalie’s stick.
After sophomore Kyle Benton scored with 11:32 to play in the quarter to make the score 6-1, the Saints found themselves with a man-up opportunity after a penalty to Skidmore’s David Leibovitz. Russell used the hidden-ball trick, faking a touch pass to a teammate and sending a crisp pass to a wide open Will McKee in front of Capitani. The goaltender had little chance, as McKee finished the play to put the home team on top 7-1. St. Lawrence’s run of eight straight goals, manufactured much in thanks to unselfish play, was completed by McKee after taking a great pass from Slauson and slipping a shot behind Capitani.
Skidmore would break the string of goals when John Kotsinonos scored an unassisted goal with 5:35 to play in the first half, cutting the lead back to six at 8-2. However, Slauson responded with his second of the day, rifling a jumping shot into the right side of the goal, putting the Scarlet and Brown ahead 9-2 at the end of the first half.
St. Lawrence held a 24-8 advantage in shots at the half, and forced Capitani to make five saves to Demuth’s zero. The Saints were also winning the majority of ground ball chances, tallying 17 to Skidmore’s seven.
Slauson continued to pour on the offense 5:46 into the third quarter, as he completed his hat trick and gave the Saints a 10-2 lead. After Nick Coppola took a pass from Chuck McNeil and sent a low shot that beat Demuth with 3:43 left in the third, it was again the Saints that rebounded with a late goal to regain the momentum heading into the final fifteen minutes. After a great save by Demuth with eighteen seconds to go in the quarter, the Saints snagged the loose ball and headed up field. The attack worked in transition, as quick “tic-tac-toe” passing gave Russell an open-net goal for the 11-3 advantage with only nine seconds to play in the quarter.
Though the Thoroughbreds continued to battle in the fourth quarter, the deficit was simply too much against the Saints suffocating defensive unit. Skidmore would net three goals in the quarter, two from Tom Levesque and one from McNeil, but senior Andy Centauro’s man-up goal with 3:44 remaining put the game away and gave the Saints their 14-6 lead and their second straight regular season title. Junior Ben Prime and Slauson also scored goals in the fourth quarter for St. Lawrence.
The Saints finished with a dominant 45-21 shot advantage and a 30-15 edge in ground balls. Capitani was solid for the Thoroughbreds, making twelve saves in the losing effort, while Demuth made three stops and improved to 10-1 on the season.
The road to the 2007 Liberty League championship could very well run through Canton, NY, as the top-seeded Saints will host No. 4 seed Rensselaer in the semifinals on Friday, May 4th at 4:00pm. The other semifinal match-up pits No. 2 Skidmore at home against No. 3 Clarkson, with the highest remaining seed hosting the Championship game on Sunday, May 6th at noon.
CROWLEY AND HEARTY ANCHOR NO. 6 SAINTS IN 10-3 WIN OVER CLARKSON April 25: Senior defensemen Brian Crowley and JJ Hearty were given the daunting task of trying to stop the Liberty League’s top scorer, Greg Gibbons of Clarkson on Wednesday afternoon as the Saints met their North Country rivals in Potsdam , NY in a conference game with major playoff implications. The defensive duo were outstanding, though, holding Gibbons to only two shots and zero points as the No. 6 Saints led from wire-to-wire and defeated the Golden Knights 10-3 to lock up one of the top-two spots in the Liberty League standings, guaranteeing the Scarlet and Brown at least one home game in the conference tournament.
The opening minutes of the contest gave both goalies a chance to shine, as both St. Lawrence’s Justin Demuth and Clarkson’s Eric Wolery looked sharp in the early going with a few impressive stops each. However, it was the St. Lawrence defense that was over-powering in front of Demuth, as Hearty and Crowley joined junior Ben Buskey in delivering several big hits to set the tone in front of their net.
With their defense having made several key plays in the opening minutes, the Saints offensive corps gave the visitors a 1-0 cushion at 8:20 of the first quarter. Sophomore attack Peter Carroll made a great, heads-up pass from behind the net to fellow classmate Kyle Benton, who beat Wolery for his sixth goal of the season.
Senior Brendan Lynch joined the scoring only 51 seconds later to put St. Lawrence ahead 2-0 with his first goal of the day. Sophomore Alex Slauson beat a defender and sent a shot towards goal. Though his bid hit the right post, the ball bounced right back in front of the goal to a wide open Lynch, who converted for his 19 th goal of the season to complete the first quarter scoring.
Clarkson came out of the gate well in the second quarter, but Demuth made an outstanding save on Jon Cathcart while playing man-down to keep the Green and Gold off the scoreboard. Demuth’s effort allowed his offense to make a play in transition, as junior Kevin Russell sent a long, cross-field pass to Slauson, who buried his first goal of the day for the 3-0 advantage.
Though the Golden Knights were unable to convert on four man-up chances in the first half, they cut the deficit to two goals when Cory Schneider scored an unassisted goal at 6:19 of the second quarter to make the score 3-1. However, Lynch responded in a big way, scoring his second of the game on a man-up opportunity with 3:49 to play in the quarter to put St. Lawrence back on top by three, 4-1.
With the Saints swarming defense continuing to frustrate the Knights, the visitors had one last chance to tack one on before the end of the half. Slauson’s speed earned him a one-on-one with Wolery with under ten seconds to play, but the goaltender stood his ground with an impressive stick save to keep Clarkson in the game trailing 4-1 at the half.
Clarkson’s hopes of establishing control in the second half were dashed early when Slauson and junior Ben Prime scored goals only 21 seconds apart in the opening two minutes of the third quarter to put St. Lawrence ahead 6-1. After Slauson scored his second of the game, one minute into the quarter, a loose ball came to Crowley in the Saints zone. The Acton, MA native ran the length of the field before sending a crisp pass to Prime who eluded a defender a ripped a shot past Wolery for the 6-1 lead.
Brian Hoey tried to keep the home team in the game with his first goal of the afternoon coming with 7:12 remaining in the third. He beat a St. Lawrence defender behind the goal and came around the cage to Demuth’s left where he buried the shot to cut into the Saints lead, 6-2.
However, the goal only seemed to motivate the Saints defensive unit even more, as they caused key turnovers and made impressive plays on ground balls to keep the tempo and the momentum on their side. Lynch would score his third of the game with 4:00 left in the third to give the Scarlet and Brown a 7-2 lead heading to the final fifteen minutes.
It was again the Saints that tacked on two early goals in the fourth to put the game out of reach and solidify their ninth consecutive victory. Carroll scored only 27 seconds in to stretch the lead to 8-2, while rookie Will McKee scored only 42 seconds later on a shot that squeezed just under the crossbar to put the Saints on top 9-2.
Carroll would put the finishing touches on a thorough victory with his second goal of the game with 4:08 to play after taking a pass from Russell. Though Hoey would tack on a late goal for Clarkson on sophomore goaltender Tom Hollingsworth, it was the Saints that left Potsdam , NY with an important conference win to lock up a home game in the 2007 Liberty League Tournament.
“We’ve had a pretty solid year defensively, and I think Sunday’s game against Union served as a wake-up call,” said Saints head coach Mike Mahoney. “I was very pleased with our physical presence today, and it was certainly one of our finest performances of the season.”
The win moved the Saints to 11-1 on the season and a perfect 5-0 record in conference. The victory also sets up a dramatic showdown with Skidmore College on Saturday, as the winner will ensure themselves of the No. 1 seed in the Liberty League Tournament May 4-6.
“We’re coming off of one heck of a road stretch (at RPI, at Union, at Clarkson) unscathed with a chance to win the league on Saturday,” added Mahoney. “It’s exciting to return home to play on ‘Senior Day’, and hopefully we can carry our momentum over against Skidmore.”
St. Lawrence finished with a 34-23 advantage in shots and kept Clarkson from scoring a man-up goal despite allowing their opponents to have six chances. Demuth was the victor, allowing two goals and making eight saves, while Wolery made 14 stops in a losing effort.
Saturday afternoon’s game for the Liberty League’s regular season crown between the conference-unbeaten Saints and Thoroughbreds is set to begin at 2:00pm at North Country Field.
SAINTS CLIMB TO NO. 6 IN THIS WEEK'S USILA POLL Apr. 24: The St. Lawrence University men's lacrosse team landed the program's highest ranking since the creation of Division III polls this week, as the Scarlet and Brown came in at No. 6 in this week's USILA Men's Lacrosse poll. The Saints jumped four spots from last week's No. 10 ranking after a 15-12 victory over Union College to improve to 10-1 on the season.
Salisbury retained their unanimous stranglehold on the No. 1 spot, boasting an 18-0 record. Gettysburg is at No. 2, followed by Western New England, Wesleyan, and Ithaca at spots three through five. After St. Lawrence, Nazareth College, RIT, Tufts, and Hampden-Sydney rounded out this week's top-10.
Though the Saints are the only Liberty League team in the national rankings, they have a pair of teams on the docket this week that are looking to crack their way into the top-20 before the end of the regular season.
St. Lawrence will look to remain unbeaten in conference play and lock up a home game in the 2007 Liberty League Tournament when they visit the Clarkson Golden Knights on Wednesday afternoon. The game, which was originally scheduled for April 18th, was pushed back due to weather. The Scarlet and Brown will meet Clarkson at 4:00pm in a rematch of last year's Liberty League semifinals.
The Saints will then close out their regular season schedule on Saturday, April 28th against Skidmore College at North Country Field. The Thoroughbreds are currently tied with St. Lawrence for first place in the conference, and Saturday's game may very well be for the regular season championship. Game time is set for 2:00pm, as the Saints honor their ten seniors on "Senior Day."
RUSSELL AND CENTAURO NOTCH FIVE POINTS EACH IN 15-12 WIN OVER UNION Apr. 22: Junior attack Kevin Russell and senior midfielder Andy Centauro netted three goals a piece and each collected a pair of assists for five points on Sunday, as the No. 10 St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team held off Matthew Douglas and Union College by the score of 15-12 in Schenectady, NY.
The Saints (10-1, 4-0) remained undefeated in Liberty League play, and can wrap up one of the top-two seeds in the conference tournament with a win at Clarkson on Wednesday. The loss dropped the Dutchmen to 4-8 overall and 1-4 in conference.
Union opened the scoring in the eighth minute when freshman Scott Garibaldi recorded the team’s first man-down goal of the season when he fired a shot past St. Lawrence sophomore goalie Tom Hollingsworth.
However, the Scarlet and Brown responded with five consecutive tallies, starting less than a minute later to grab the largest lead of the day. Junior Derek Hansen scored St. Lawrence’s first goal when he snagged a rebound in mid-air and sent his shot past Union’s netminder Rob Oram as the net toppled over.
Centauro followed with his first of three goals on the day before fellow senior Willie Lapinski scored with 3:32 remaining in the opening frame. Junior attack Ben Prime stretched the Saints lead to 4-1 with his first of two goals to close the opening quarter.
Senior Brendan Lynch would slip a shot between Oram and the near post to open the second quarter scoring only 1:37 in, but Union’s leading scorer Chris Collison converted a pass from behind the net by Tom Simmons to end the Saints streak with 11:44 to go in the first half.
After rookie Will McKee gave St. Lawrence a 6-2 lead midway through the second, Union began to swing the momentum in their favor, rattling off three straight goals to close the quarter and end the half trailing by one, 6-5. The Dutchmen received goals from Douglas, Collison, and Jon Miller to stay well within striking distance heading into the second half.
Douglas continued to shine in the third quarter, scoring his second of five goals at 4:47 to tie the score at 6-6. The goal, however, seemed to motivate St. Lawrence, who quickly responded with three goals in a span of 1:27 to gain a 9-6 advantage. Russell beat Oram with a low shot before Prime netted his second of the game. Russell would then collect his second goal of the quarter with an assist going to Centauro with 8:19 to go in the third.
The scoring in the third continued in streaks, as Union answered with a pair of goals to once again cut the lead to one at 9-8. The visitors quickly responded yet again with goals from sophomore Kyle Benton and Lynch to regain their three-goal cushion at 11-8. Union’s Garibaldi and Russell exchanged goals to end the quarter with the score at 12-9 in favor of St. Lawrence.
Douglas kicked off the fourth quarter scoring in style, netting back-to-back goals on Hollingsworth to once again cut the deficit to one goal with 3:27 to play. However, Centauro and Slauson answered with quick, consecutive goals to regain the three goal edge at 14-11 with 1:59 left on the clock.
Though Douglas would give Union a flicker of hope with his fifth goal of the game 20 seconds later with 1:39 to go, Centauro sealed the win with his third goal of the contest, firing a shot into a wide open goal with 39 seconds left in regulation.
St. Lawrence out-shot Union 62-32, with 36 shots hitting the cage. Oram kept the Dutchmen in the game with a season-best 21 save performance including nine saves in the first quarter. Though Hollingsworth didn’t face the number of shots as his counterpart, he made six clutch saves in the third quarter to allow the Saints to retain the upper-hand.
The Scarlet and Brown clinched a playoff birth into the Liberty League Tournament with Sunday’s victory, and will look to defend their title from last season against Skidmore, Clarkson, and Rensselaer who have also earned conference tournament bids. The Saints can lock up a home-game in the 2007 tournament with a win over Clarkson in Potsdam, NY on Wednesday, April 25th. The contest between the North Country rivals is scheduled to begin at 4:00pm. St. Lawrence will then play host to Skidmore College on Senior Day, April 28th, in a game that could have major playoff implications.
SANTORA AND McKEE HONORED BY THE LEAGUE; CLARKSON GAME RESCHEDULED Apr. 16: St. Lawrence University sophomore PJ Santora and first year student Will McKee were honored by the Liberty League on Monday afternoon. Santora was named the conference's "Co-Offensive Performer of the Week," while McKee earned "Co-Rookie of the Week" honors for the second time this season.
Santora had an outstanding day in the face-off circle against Rensselaer in the Saints 8-7 win on Saturday. The Cos Cob, CT native won 16-of-18 draws and scooped up 10 ground balls, continuing to be one of the top face-off players in the nation.
Meanwhile, McKee scored a late, man-up goal for St. Lawrence against RPI in their win on Saturday. The goal gave the Saints a 7-5 lead at the end of the third quarter. The Old Greenwich, CT native also added three ground balls.
Also, the Scarlet and Brown will have to wait until Wednesday, April 25th to square off with their North Country rival Clarkson University. Due to the recent winter weather, the game has been rescheduled from this Wednesday, April 18th to next Wednesday. The teams still intend to play in Potsdam, NY with the game time remaining at 4:00pm.
St. Lawrence is scheduled to be in action before their meeting with Clarkson, however, as they will visit Union College on Sunday, April 22nd. The Saints and Dutchmen are scheduled to begin at 1:00pm
LYNCH AND RUSSELL LEAD SAINTS IN COME-FROM-BEHIND VICTORY OVER RPI Apr. 14: The No. 10 St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team used a five-goal third quarter to storm back from a 4-2 halftime deficit and earn an important Liberty League victory over Rensselaer on Saturday afternoon in Troy, NY by the score of 8-7. The Saints (9-1, 3-0) remained one of three teams with unblemished conference records thanks to senior Brendan Lynch and junior Kevin Russell, who each had three-point afternoons.
The first half belonged to the home team, as Rensselaer, who was undefeated until Tuesday when they were beaten by Middlebury, grabbed a two-goal lead after 15 minutes. Josh Secora opened the game’s scoring for the Red Hawks, as he scored an unassisted goal against Saints senior goalie Justin Demuth 4:47 into the contest.
Though junior Ben Prime would answer with his 12th goal of the season less than two minutes later to even the score at 1-1, Rensselaer would rattle off a pair of goals to end the quarter with a 3-1 cushion. PJ McComb scored at 11:42, followed by Mike Sampson’s first of the game with only six seconds remaining in the quarter to give the Red Hawks plenty of momentum heading into the second quarter.
St. Lawrence would begin to pour the offensive pressure on in the second quarter, as the visitors out-shot their hosts 15-2 in the frame. However, the scoring was even in the period as Paul Cerone and sophomore Peter Carroll exchanged goals to complete the first half scoring with Rensselaer boasting a 4-2 lead.
Red Hawk netminder Ryan Michels was the difference in the opening half, stopping ten shots including eight in the second quarter to keep the Saints potent offense from erupting. Demuth made two saves for the Saints, who trailed at the half for the first time all season.
After Rensselaer made it 5-2 on Cerone’s second goal of the afternoon 2:31 into the third quarter, the Saints began their offensive charge and pulled themselves back into the game. Junior Cory Yawger got things started for the Scarlet and Brown, scoring his fourth goal of the season (unassisted) at 3:29, followed by Lynch’s first of the game at 8:16 to pull St. Lawrence back to within one at 5-4.
Sophomore PJ Santora had an outstanding game in the face-off circle as he won 16-of-18 draws. His play gave the Saints several timely possessions, and allowed them to build a 7-5 lead after three quarters. Junior Mike Long evened the score with 4:54 remaining in the third thanks to an assist from Russell. Sophomore Alex Slauson continued his impressive play with his 12th goal of the campaign at 11:31 to give the visitors their first lead of the afternoon, while first year student Will McKee completed the scoring in the quarter with a man-up goal with a mere 1:43 remaining. Russell assisted on McKee’s lone goal of the game, which put the 10th ranked team in the country ahead 7-5.
Lynch would complete St. Lawrence’s scoring on the afternoon only 1:03 into the fourth quarter when he notched his 16th goal of the year to give his team a three-goal advantage.
However, McComb kept Rensselaer in the game with his second goal of the afternoon at 4:54 and assisting on Sampson’s second of the game on a man-up opportunity late in the fourth quarter to pull the Red Hawks back to within one goal at 8-7. Though the home team would have an excellent chance to even the score after Slauson took a 30 second pushing penalty with only one minute left in regulation, the St. Lawrence defense and Demuth held their ground, turning Rensselaer away and capturing a conference victory that could have major playoff implications.
“I’m really proud of the way our team hung in there today and came back to beat a tough Rensselaer team,” said Saints head coach Mike Mahoney. “We were able to make the plays in the second half to dig out of the 5-2 hole, and with three more crucial conference games left, it’s good to get a win like this one.”
Demuth finished with seven saves in the game to earn the win, while Michels took the loss despite stopping fifteen St. Lawrence shots. The Scarlet and Brown finished with the edge in shots (45-25), ground balls (48-40), and face-offs (16-of-18).
The Saints will be in action again this Wednesday, April 18th as they travel down Route 11 to visit their North Country rival the Clarkson Golden Knights. St. Lawrence and Clarkson, who each enter the game with perfect Liberty League records, will meet in Potsdam, NY at 4:00pm.
SLAUSON AND LYNCH NET HAT TRICKS AGAINST HAMILTON IN 9-2 WIN Apr. 7: The No. 12 St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team pulled out a hard-earned win against Liberty League foe Hamilton College on Saturday afternoon, leaning on their defensive unit to keep the Continentals’ offense quiet. The Saints got three goals a piece from junior Brendan Lynch and sophomore Alex Slauson on their way to a 9-2 victory, while the quartet of JJ Hearty, Brian Crowley, Ben Buskey, and Carl Festa were outstanding in protecting senior goalie Justin Demuth.
The win moves the Saints to 8-1 overall and 2-0 in conference play, while Hamilton falls to 2-7 and 0-2.
St. Lawrence wasted little time in taking the lead 1-0 only 38 seconds into regulation when junior Kevin Russell lifted a pass to sophomore Peter Carroll who had beaten the Hamilton defense and was on a breakaway against the Continentals’ netminder Ethan Shoemaker. The goalie was helpless as Carroll scored his eighth of the season to give the home team an early lead.
Hamilton’s Kevin Coughlin appeared to tie the game at 2:01 when he made a slick move to beat Demuth. However, the officials checked his stick and ruled it illegal, taking the goal off the scoreboard and sending Coughlin off for a 1:00 minute penalty.
Both defenses did an excellent job throughout the rest of the quarter in protecting their goalkeeper, especially St. Lawrence who did not allow a shot on goal the entire fifteen minutes and keeping Hamilton’s attackers around the perimeter. Lynch would score the only other goal of the quarter at 8:34 as he beat a defender and ripped a hard shot while running to his left that slipped past Shoemaker for the 2-0 St. Lawrence lead.
The second quarter was much of the same, as both offenses met strong resistance from their opponents. Hamilton’s Karl Gruss and Nate Harris put consistent pressure on Russell and Lynch, while Crowley, Hearty, and Festa did well to keep the Continentals at bay.
Hamilton would strike first in the second, however, when Clark Winter made a strong move and sent a rope past Demuth at 4:12 to make the score 2-1. Unfortunately for the visitors, the goal would not create any momentum as the Scarlet and Brown ran off the final two goals of the quarter to enter halftime with a 4-1 cushion. Senior Nick Mastine scored his lone goal of the afternoon with 6:07 remaining in the half, followed by Lynch’s second of the day only 49 seconds later on a fantastic pass from junior Ben Prime to close the first half scoring.
Through thirty minutes, the Saints held the edge in shots (20-8), ground balls (20-7), and face-offs (6-of-7), but found themselves ahead by only three goals thanks to Shoemaker, who stopped five saves in the first half while Demuth stopped one Hamilton shot. St. Lawrence’s four goals was the lowest scored by the team in the opening half this season.
The third quarter scoring was opened by Winter again for the Continentals, making the score 4-2 and giving the visitors some life in a close, two-goal contest. Winter’s second of the game came at 5:02 of the third.
From there on out, however, the game belonged to the Saints, reeling off five straight goals to end the game and walk away with a 9-2 win. Slauson would score his first of the game at a crucial time, crushing Hamilton’s momentum at 10:06 when he made a nice move to his right and ripped a shot low-left past Shoemaker. The goal re-established the Saints three goal lead, while Carroll’s second of the game with 1:01 remaining in the quarter gave St. Lawrence their biggest lead of the contest at 6-2 to end the period.
Though Hamilton would pressure Demuth in the fourth quarter, the Jordan, NY native held his ground and his defense picked up groundballs to not allow second-chance opportunities. Slauson’s second of the game opened the fourth quarter scoring with 8:41 remaining in the game to put St. Lawrence ahead 7-2. His hard shot from Shoemaker’s right side went over the goalie’s shoulder for his tenth of the season.
Lynch seemingly put the game away only 38 seconds later when he found a seam in the Hamilton defense and moved in one-on-one on Shoemaker. The Medfield, MA native slipped a shot between the goalie’s legs to make the score 8-2 and complete the hat trick. Slauson wasn’t far behind with his third of the contest, as he took a feed from Russell, ran through the center of the field and rifled a shot into the goal to complete the scoring and give the Saints an important 9-2 conference win.
“I don’t think the score reflected how close the game was today,” said head coach Mike Mahoney. “We worked hard for 60 minutes and came away with a win that we really needed as we head on the road for the next three weeks. Alex and Brendan scored some timely goals, but a lot of credit has to go to our defense, which did a great job protecting Justin (Demuth).”
The Saints finished with a 36-19 advantage in shots and a 36-11 edge in groundballs. Sophomore midfielder PJ Santora continued his success in the face-off circle, where he won 13-of-15 draws. Though there were eight penalties called in the game, neither the Saints nor Continentals were able to score a man-up goal. Shoemaker took the loss despite making 12 stops, while Demuth improved to 7-1 with a four-save performance.
St. Lawrence will have the week off before returning to action again next Saturday, April 14th in a marquee Liberty League game against currently-unbeaten Rensselaer (9-0) in Troy, NY. The Saints and Red Hawks are set to square off at noon in a game that could have major playoff implications.
SAINTS SCORE ELEVEN STRAIGHT GOALS TO PUT AWAY POTSDAM, 15-4 Apr. 3: The No. 12 St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team found themselves in tight game through the first quarter of Tuesday’s game with North Country rival Potsdam State. However, the Saints ran off eleven straight goals to put away the Bears by the score of 15-4 in a very physical non-conference game played at North Country Field. Leading the Saints was junior Kevin Russell with five points, including two goals and three assists.
The Bears took the early 1-0 lead just after a St. Lawrence penalty expired when Potsdam’s Jamie Settineri took a pass from Corey Reinhart just outside the goal crease and laced a shot past Saints goalie Justin Demuth at 5:53 of the first quarter.
The home team bounced back quickly, however, with two goals in a span of 57 seconds to take their first lead of the game. Russell tallied his first of five points by scoring the Saints opening goal at 7:12 by ripping a tough-angle shot into the corner of the net, followed by a tally from senior attack Andy Centauro to put his team ahead 2-1.
After Potsdam leveled the score on a goal by George Nolan, the Saints again responded with a pair of goals from Mike Long and Will McKee to snag a 4-2 advantage. The Bears refused to go away, though, scoring the final goal of the opening quarter with only 30 seconds remaining. Justin Wilson-Kirby took advantage of a good break on the face-off and came up with the ball right in front of a helpless Demuth, whom he beat to make the score 4-3 after one period.
Keeping the Bears in the game was goaltender Brian Hondorf, who made eight first half saves for Potsdam. However, his offense, which looked very promising in the first quarter, went quiet as the Saints defensive unit cracked down. St. Lawrence out-shot the Bears 11-0 in the second frame, and in turn out-scored them 2-0 to end the first half with a 6-3 advantage. Goals in the second quarter came from junior Ben Prime and sophomore Kyle Benton.
With the game’s outcome still very much in doubt, it was the nation’s 12th ranked team that established control behind nine straight second half goals to grab a dominating 15-3 lead. St. Lawrence again out-shot Potsdam 11-6 in the third, but Demuth was key, stopping all four of his opponent’s bids on net to again shut them out in the period.
On the other end of the turf, Hondorf made four saves as well, but could not keep the Saints potent offense off the scoreboard. The Scarlet and Brown scored five goals in the period to open up a commanding 11-3 cushion, with tallies coming from junior Cory Yawger, Russell, Benton, sophomore Alex Slauson, and senior Brendan Lynch.
The fourth quarter again belonged to the Saints, with goals from junior Derek Hansen, senior Nick Mastine, first year student Will McKee, and senior Willie Lapinski. The Saints allowed only two shots to the Bears, who scored the final goal of the game with 2:00 minutes to play (George Nolan).
The game was filled with hard hits and physical play, including 16 total penalties for 14 minutes. St. Lawrence finished with a 46-13 edge in shots and was 12-of-14 in clearing attempts.
Demuth stopped six saves in 54:15 minutes of play to earn his sixth win of the season, while Hondorf make 16 stops between the pipes for the Bears.
The Saints, who improved to 7-1 with Tuesday’s victory, will be in action again on Saturday, April 7 th in an important Liberty League contest with Hamilton College. The game between the Scarlet and Brown and the Continentals will begin at 3:00pm at North Country Field.
RUSSELL AND BUSKEY HONORED AFTER MAHONEY PICKS UP CAREER WIN NO. 100 Apr. 2: Juniors Kevin Russell and Ben Buskey were honored by the Liberty League on Monday afternoon, as Russell was named the conference's "Co-Offensive Performer of the Week" and Buskey the "Co-Defensive Performer of the Week." The awards came to the Saints duo after posting a 3-0 record last week, including an 18-2 victory over Vassar College on Saturday which was head coach Mike Mahoney's 100th career win.
Russell was fantastic for the Saints this week as they posted wins over Oswego State, Plattsburgh, and Vassar. The Madison, CT native totaled six goals and eleven assists for 17 points this week, including a season-best seven points (5g,2a) versus Plattsburgh.
Meanwhile, Buskey anchored the Saints defensive corps this week against the Lakers, Cardinals, and Brewers. The Hanover, NH native scooped up ten ground balls and added three caused turnovers as the Saints outscored their three opponents by a 49-12 margin.
Mahoney's 100th career win comes in his tenth season at the helm for the Saints men's lacrosse team, which moved up to No. 12 in this week's polls. He led the program to their first NCAA Tournament appearance in 19 seasons last year, and has the Scarlet and Brown amongst the elite teams in the nation again in 2007.
St. Lawrence will be in action again tomorrow, Tuesday, April 3rd against Potsdam State. The Saints and Bears are scheduled to begin at 5:00pm at North Country Field. The game will be webcasted live, and can be watched by clicking here at 4:45pm on Tuesday afternoon.
SAINTS COAST TO 18-2 WIN OVER VASSAR IN LIBERTY LEAGUE OPENER Mar. 31: The No. 13 St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team built a 9-0 first quarter lead in their 2007 Liberty League opener against Vassar and never looked back, coasting to an impressive 18-2 victory over the Brewers, while allowing their opponents a mere 13 shot attempts. The win moves the Saints to 6-1 on the young season and 1-0 in conference play.
The Saints offensive starters set a fast-paced tone early, and gave senior goaltender Justin Demuth all the support he would need. Seniors Andy Centauro, Willie Lapinski, and Brendan Lynch opened the game’s scoring with three goals in the opening 4:04 of regulation.
It would only get worse for Vassar, who had no answer to the Scarlet and Brown’s offensive attack and stifling defense. Sophomore Peter Carroll scored at 4:51 of the first quarter, with goals by juniors Rob Kopp and Ben Prime, Lynch, rookie Will McKee, and Lynch again to make it 9-0 St. Lawrence after one quarter.
However, it was the home team’s defense that didn’t give their opponents an inch, as seniors Brian Crowley and JJ Hearty protected their goaltender to the fullest extent, not allowing Vassar a single shot opportunity in the opening fifteen minutes while allowing the Brewers to convert only a single clearing attempt.
“I think we’re starting to really find our groove, and the games against Oswego and Plattsburgh this week really kept us sharp,” said head coach Mike Mahoney. “We’ve got two more tough home games next weekend against Potsdam and Hamilton, so we need our seniors to keep leading the charge.”
The Saints continued to pour on the offense in the second quarter, netting the period’s first four goals. Sophomore Alex Slauson scored his lone goal of the contest only 49 seconds into play, followed by Carroll, sophomore Kyle Benton, and junior Derek Hansen to make the score 13-0.
Vassar would get on the board with 2:06 to play in the first half when Vito Cataldo took a pass from Michael Littlefield and beat Demuth for the Brewer’s only goal of the half. However, Centauro answered quickly with a goal less than two minutes later to complete the opening half’s scoring at 14-1 in favor of the Scarlet and Brown.
Though neither team would score in the third quarter, junior goaltender Frank Maguire did an outstanding job in relief of Demuth, making seven saves in 22:42 minutes of action.
The final fifteen minutes again belonged to the home team, as St. Lawrence rattled off four goals to open the period, with tallies coming from rookie CP Rahe, two from Hansen and one from sophomore John Allen. Sean Murray scored an unassisted goal with 12 seconds remaining in the game on sophomore Tom Hollingsworth, who relieved Maguire between the pipes with 7:18 to play in the game to complete the scoring at 18-2.
Junior Kevin Russell picked up an impressive five assists for the Saints on Saturday, and rookie Scott Smith added two helpers as well. Demuth earned the win despite having to make only one save, while Vassar’s Ed Pappo made 15 stops and took the loss.
St. Lawrence will be in action again in a non-conference bout with North Country rival Potsdam State on Tuesday, April 3 rd at 5:00pm at North Country Field.
SANTORA'S GOAL SPARKS SAINTS TO 16-5 ROUT OF PLATTSBURGH STATE Mar. 29: Junior midfielder PJ Santora scored his first goal of the season only 20 seconds into regulation after winning the opening face-off, setting the tone for the No. 13 St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team in their evening showdown with North Country rival Plattsburgh State on Thursday. The Saints, led by junior Kevin Russell’s five goals and two assists, grabbed a 7-0 lead after the first quarter and never looked back, routing the Cardinals 16-5 in the team’s first away game of the season.
St. Lawrence continued their dominance over Plattsburgh State, as they are now 5-0 against the Cardinals since 2002 having outscored them 74-23 in the five contests. The win moved the Scarlet and Brown to 5-1 on the season, while Plattsburgh dropped to 5-2.
Santora’s goal sparked the Saints offensive unit, which matched its season-high for goals in a quarter with seven. Russell netted his first of the game at 4:03 with an assist going to senior Andy Centauro to put St. Lawrence ahead 2-0. The duo then scored back-to-back goals at 8:44 (Centauro) and 6:15 (Russell) to continue to pour on the early offense against Plattsburgh goaltender Brian Csorny.
Junior Cory Yawger scored his first goal of the 2007 campaign with 3:30 remaining in the opening quarter, followed by sophomore Kyle Benton’s first of the season at 13:26 and first year student Will McKee’s 11th of the year with a mere 14 seconds remaining in the quarter to complete the scoring. The opening fifteen minutes was the best of the season for St. Lawrence, while the Cardinals failed to get anything going against the Saints defensive corps. Sophomore Tom Hollingsworth, who got his first start of the season, had little to worry about as the Scarlet and Brown out-shot Plattsburgh by a 15-0 margin in the first quarter.
With their team trailing by seven, Pete Quinn and Bryan Copius tried to pull the Cardinals back into the game by scoring consecutive goals to open the second quarter. After Russell scored his second of the game at 10:16 of the second to give the visitors an 8-2 advantage, Plattsburgh’s Jimmy Tenny completed the first half scoring with an unassisted goal at 11:06 to pull the home team back to within five goals at 8-3.
Though Kyle Norchi would get Plattsburgh back to within four only 55 seconds into the third quarter when he beat Hollingsworth, the Cardinals would get no closer thanks to seven straight St. Lawrence goals.
Junior Ben Prime scored at 7:40 of the third quarter to make it 9-4 in favor of the Saints, while Canton, NY native Brian Chamberlain scored a mere 10 seconds later to make it 10-4. Senior Brendan Lynch scored his only goal of the game with 4:08 left in the third quarter, and Russell completed the scoring for the third at 14:00 to put the Scarlet and Brown up 12-4.
Centauro, Yawger, and Russell would each add insurance goals to open the fourth quarter, giving St. Lawrence their biggest lead of the contest at 15-4. After an unassisted goal by Pat Haertel made the score 15-5 with 5:58 to play in the game, McKee completed the scoring with his team-high 12th goal of the season, capping off another impressive outing by head coach Mike Mahoney’s team.
“I though we really played our game well tonight, and our defense deserves a lot of the credit,” said Coach Mahoney. “Being able to hold a team like Plattsburgh to only 18 shots shows that we controlled the ball and made good decisions throughout the game. Kevin (Russell) had a big day for us offensively, and we’ll need him to continue his success as we open the Liberty League schedule on Saturday.”
Hollingsworth picked up his first collegiate win thanks to a seven-save performance in 55:18 minutes of action, while junior Frank Maguire came in for the final 4:42. Meanwhile, Csorny took the loss despite making nine saves in only 30:00 minutes, while his replacement Billy Hughes made seven stops in the final two quarters.
St. Lawrence finished with a 49-18 shot advantage, and was an impressive 23-of-27 on clearing attempts.
The Saints will look to extend their current three-game winning streak when they welcome Vassar College to Canton, NY on Saturday, March 31 st to open the 2007 Liberty League season. The Scarlet and Brown will meet the Brewers at 1:00pm at North Country Field.
CROWLEY AND HANSEN PACE NO. 13 SAINTS IN 15-5 VICTORY OVER LAKERS Mar. 27: Senior Brian Crowley scored his first collegiate goal and had an outstanding defensive game, while junior Derek Hansen tallied three goals including two man-up tallies as the No. 13 St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team handled Oswego State 15-5 at North Country Field in Canton, NY on Tuesday evening.
The Saints improved to 4-1 on the season and 3-0 on their home turf, while Oswego State fell to 2-3.
Crowley opened the game’s scoring only 2:13 into the contest when he rifled a shot past Oswego State netminder Matt Pfister. The Acton, MA native’s goal set the tone for the game, and junior Ben Prime followed with a goal only 2:19 later to put the home team on top 2-0.
The Lakers, who had expected to play the game in Oswego, NY but couldn’t due to field conditions, scored their first goal with 7:13 remaining in the first quarter to cut their deficit to 2-1 and complete the scoring in the opening period. Mike Recor beat Saints goalie Justin Demuth on an unassisted tally to bring the Lakers back to within one.
The second quarter belonged to the Scarlet and Brown, though, as St. Lawrence built a 7-1 lead behind five consecutive goals. Last week’s Liberty League “Rookie of the Week” Will McKee scored his first goal of the contest only seven seconds into the period thanks to a face-off win by sophomore PJ Santora. Hansen followed with his first man-up goal of the game only 52 seconds later to extend the Saints cushion to 4-1.
After Canton, NY native Willie Lapinski made it 5-1 on a long shot through traffic, senior Brendan Lynch and McKee scored to make the score 7-1 with 6:30 remaining in the second period. Though Mike Brewster scored an unassisted goal at 2:49 for the Lakers, it was the Saints that carried a large 7-2 lead into the half.
The Saints defensive unit had a solid showing, as Crowley, fellow senior JJ Hearty and juniors Ben Buskey and Brian Chamberlain were outstanding in protecting Demuth and shutting down the Oswego State offense. They held Oswego to only nine shots in the first half, while their offense fired 27 attempts towards Pfister.
St. Lawrence opened the third quarter in style, netting the first two goals to extend their lead to 9-2. Sophomore Alex Slauson and senior Andy Centauro scored their only goals of the game at 13:25 and 11:12, respectively, to help build the lead to seven.
However, after rookie Trevor Scoon took two penalties at 8:51, Oswego State had their chance to perhaps get back into the game after a goal by Mike Strohm made the score 9-3. The Saints defensive core, playing man down for two minutes, buckled down and allowed only the one goal.
Hansen would then net his second man up goal of the game at 2:19 after Oswego’s Matt Ficarra was given a 30 second penalty for Illegal Procedure. After the Lakers got a goal from Mike Brewster, the Saints had one last chance to score before the end of the third quarter. Buskey intercepted a pass near midfield and sent a long pass ahead to McKee with the clock under five seconds. McKee made a quick, heads-up pass to junior Kevin Russell to Pfister’s right, and the Madison, CT native buried a shot over the goalie’s right shoulder as the buzzer sounded to end the quarter with the score 11-4 in favor of the Saints.
Though the Lakers scored the opening goal of the fourth (Steve Tronovitch), the final fifteen minutes also belonged to the Scarlet and Brown, as the rattled off four straight goals to end the game. Senior Nick Mastine, sophomore Peter Carroll, Hansen, and rookie CP Rahe all scored in the final quarter to give the Saints their fourth win of the season by the score of 15-5.
“It wasn’t pretty, but we’ll take it,” said Saints head coach Mike Mahoney. “I thought Brian ( Crowley) had a very solid game, and Justin (Demuth) made seven big saves in the second half to keep the momentum on our side. We still have potentially three games remaining this week, so we need to stay focused and energized.”
Demuth finished with ten saves and improved to 4-1 on the season, while Pfister made 12 stops and dropped to 2-3. The Saints held a 46-22 advantage in shots were 16-of-23 on face-offs, much in thanks to Santora who finished 16-of-21 with 12 ground balls.
The Saints have two more scheduled games remaining this week, as they will visit Plattsburgh State on Thursday for a night game at 7:30pm. They will then welcome Vassar College to Canton, NY on Saturday, March 31st for the 2007 Liberty League opener.
McKEE NAMED LIBERTY LEAGUE'S "CO-ROOKIE OF THE WEEK" Mar. 26: St. Lawrence University first year student Will McKee has been named the Liberty League's "Co-Rookie of the Week" for his performances versus Bowdoin and Amherst during the team's spring trip to Florida last week.
The Old Greenwich, CT native has added yet another weapon to the Saints offensive arsenal this season. Against Bowdoin, McKee tallied three goals and an assist, and followed with a solid performance against Amherst, scoring four times including the eventual game-winning goal.
"Will has gotten off to a great start, and he really came to play against Bowdoin and Amherst," said Saints head coach Mike Mahoney. "We'll need him to continue to play at a high level as our schedule is only going to get tougher down the road."
St. Lawrence (3-1) will take on the Oswego State Lakers tomorrow, Tuesday, March 27th in Oswego, NY at 4:00pm. The team will then head to Plattsburgh, NY to face the Cardinals of Plattsburgh State on Thursday evening at 7:30pm, followed by a home game on March 31st against Vassar to kick off the 2007 Liberty League season.
SAINTS BOUNCE BACK WITH IMPRESSIVE 16-9 WIN OVER AMHERST Mar. 22: Two days after suffering their first loss of the 2007 campaign, the No. 10 St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team bounced back with an impressive 16-9 victory over Amherst in Florida on Thursday afternoon. The Saints scored three goals in the final minute of the opening half to open up a 10-2 lead and put the game out of reach.
The Saints (3-1) looked much more crisp offensively on Thursday than they did against Bowdoin, and head coach Mike Mahoney was glad to see his team respond well after their first loss.
“I am really pleased with the way our guys came back after a tough overtime loss on Tuesday,” said Coach Mahoney. “We played hard against Bowdoin and just came up a little short. I’m proud that we didn’t get down on ourselves and were ready to play against a tough Amherst team this afternoon.”
The Saints received multi-point efforts from seven players, including big games offensively by sophomore Ben Prime, senior Andy Centauro, junior Kevin Russell, and first year student Will McKee. Prime scored four goals, while Centauro had two tallies and two assists to go with Russell’s goal and three assists. Meanwhile, McKee matched Prime’s effort of four goals, including the game-winner off of a face-off in the final minute of the first half.
Sophomore PJ Santora, who was the 2006 Liberty League “Co-Rookie of the Year”, continued his success on face-offs, winning 20-of-23 draws against Amherst. His talents carried over against the Lord Jeffs, as he created several quick opportunities for the Saints to score, with the Cos Cob, CT native notching two assists.
Other contributors up front for St. Lawrence on Thursday included sophomore Peter Carroll (1g,2a), senior Nick Mastine (2g), sophomore Alex Slauson (1g), senior Willie Lapinski (1g), and sophomore Collin Moon (1a).
Between the pipes, senior Justin Demuth was solid once again with an eight-save performance in 45 minutes of action. The Jordan, NY native picked up his third victory of the young season. Meanwhile, sophomore Tom Hollingsworth and junior Frank Maguire split the fourth quarter and made three and two saves, respectively.
Amherst was led by Derek Cherney’s four point outing, tallying two goals and two assists. His teammate Tom McDonald was also sharp on Thursday, scoring twice despite falling to the Scarlet and Brown.
Thursday’s game against Amherst concluded the Saints Spring Break trip to Florida, as the team will be in action again on Tuesday, March 27 th in Oswego to take on the Oswego State Lakers. The game is set to begin at 4:00pm.
CENTAURO TALLIES FIVE POINTS AS NO. 12 SAINTS ROUT HARTWICK, 17-2 Mar. 13: The No. 12 St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team improved to 2-0 with an impressive 17-2 win over the Hartwick Hawks (1-2) on Tuesday afternoon at North Country Field. Senior Andy Centauro keyed the Saints win with three goals and two assists, while fellow classmates Brendan Lynch (2g,1a) and Nick Mastine (2g,1a) chipped in three points a piece.
The visitors opened the scoring at 3:37 when Brandon Wilk scored an unassisted goal, firing a shot past St. Lawrence goalie Justin Demuth to put the Hawks ahead 1-0. Hartwick played a fairly conservative first half, trying their best to protect their goaltender Jason Fautus. Though the Saints managed 11 shots in the first quarter, it seemed they would be shut out in the opening fifteen minutes of play. However, junior Ben Prime made a crisp pass to a cutting Kevin Russell in front of Fautus, and the Madison, CT native beat the goalie with only 15 seconds remaining the quarter to even the score at 1-1.
The goal ignited the Saints offense, which would run off fifteen consecutive goals, dominating Hartwick on both ends of the turf. The second quarter was all Saints, as they out-shot the Hawks 11-3, scoring seven goals to take an 8-1 cushion into halftime.
Prime scored his only goal of the game 6:17 into the second quarter, giving the Saints the lead for good. He took the ball behind the Hartwick goal, made a move around a defender and planted himself directly in front of Fautus. The goalie had no chance to stop the shot, and the rout was on from there.
St. Lawrence would run off six more goals in the next 7:54 to put away their opponents. Lynch scored his first of the game at 7:01, followed by Centauro’s first (8:25) and Mastine’s first (10:14) to make the score to make the score 5-1. Centauro then extended the lead on a goal at 12:26 from Lynch, while Mastine followed with his second of the game at 13:37. The final goal of the half came from sophomore Alex Slauson with 49 seconds on the clock, with an assist going to Centauro. Slauson’s first goal made the score 8-1 and put the 12th ranked team on cruise control for the second half.
With all of the momentum on their side, the Saints ran off seven goals to begin the second half to make the score 15-1. Goals came from Centauro, who completed the hat trick 35 seconds into the second half, Slauson, Lynch, first year student Will McKee, sophomore Peter Carroll, and junior Rob Kopp who scored a pair of goals at 12:06 and 13:37 to complete the third period scoring.
Pat McCormack scored an unassisted goal at 2:48 of the fourth quarter to complete Hartwick’s scoring on the afternoon, while the Scarlet and Brown answered with two goals from junior Derek Hansen at 6:37 and 10:41 to complete the game’s scoring, as the Saints were impressive in their second home game of the season.
Demuth finished with 4 saves for the Saints in 42:06 minutes, while Fautus closed with 15 saves in 45:00. Each goalie was relieved during the game, as Demuth was replaced by sophomore Tom Hollingsworth (4 saves) and John Meade (3 saves) replaced Fautus for Hartwick.
The Saints’ thorough victory included a 53-17 shot advantage and a 31-18 edge in ground balls. Sophomore PJ Santora had a solid day for St. Lawrence as well, winning 13-of-16 face-offs. Another impressive aspect of the game for the home team was their stingy defense, as seniors JJ Hearty and Brian Crowley and junior Ben Buskey shut down the Hartwick offense and kept their opponents without a man-up goal (0-of-4).
St. Lawrence will be in action again on Saturday, March 17th at 12:00pm when they take on No. 7 Nazareth College in a game that could have an impact on the national rankings. The Saints and Golden Flyers will play in Syracuse, NY.
LYNCH AND DEMUTH EARN LIBERTY LEAGUE AWARDS Mar. 13: Seniors Brendan Lynch and Justin Demuth earned Liberty League honors this week for their performances against the defending National Champions on Saturday as the Saints defeated Cortland State by the score of 7-5. Lynch was tagged the conference's "Co-Offensive Player of the Week", while Demuth was named the Liberty League's "Defensive Player of the Week."
Lynch led St. Lawrence with two goals and an assist against the Red Dragons. The midfielder from Medfield, MA scored an unassisted goal at 2:39 of the third quarter, which proved to be the game-winner. Lynch shared the "Offensive Player of the Week" honors with Rensselaer's Alex MacDiarmid.
Meanwhile, Demuth was outstanding between the pipes for St. Lawrence, as the Jordan, NY native made 16 crucial saves and allowed only 5 goals to one of the nation's best offenses. The victory moves Demuth to 27-10 in his career at St. Lawrence.
"Brendan and Justin are both very deserving of their recognition after solid performances last weekend," said Saints head coach Mike Mahoney. "We will need them both to play well again on Tuesday against a tough Hartwick team."
The Saints and Hawks are set to meet Tuesday, March 13th at 3:30pm as a rescheduled game from March 3rd. The home game will be the last for the Saints until March 31st when they welcome Vassar College to Canton, NY.
15TH RANKED SAINTS UPEND No. 12 CORTLAND, 7-5 March 10: St. Lawrence University’s men’s lacrosse team, ranked 15 th nationally, jumped out to a 4-0 lead and held off a late rally by 12 th-ranked Cortland State for a 7-5 win over the Red Dragons on North Country Field Saturday afternoon.
The Saints won their season opener and snapped a two game losing streak to the Dragons, defending NCAA Division III champions. Cortland, 1-2 on the season, won games against the Saints in both 2005 and 2006 with the last Saint win coming in 2003.
Ben Prime scored two goals and Brendan Lynch had one and assisted on two others for the Saints in a hard-hitting defensive game. Goaltender Justin Demuth had 16 saves for the Saints while Matt Hipenbecker had 13 for Cortland.
The Saints took a 4-0 lead in the first 6:53 of the game as Nick Mastine opened the scoring 2:26 in, Ben Prime worked inside and scored 1:11 later and Andy Centauro took a feed from Lynch to make it 3-0 with 9:32 to go in the first period. Mike Long completed the swift Saint start with the fourth goal with 8:07 to play. Cortland scored on the first of two goals by Ryan Heath with 1:10 to go in the first period to make it 4-1 after one and narrowed the gap to 4-2 on a man up goal by Heath from Kyle Simensky with 8:18 to play in the half.
The Saints had a quick answer for that one as the Saints scored a man-down goal when PJ Santora fed Collin Moon as the Saints made a quick clear after a save by Demuth to make it 5-2 with 7:51 to go and the Saints took that lead into the lockerroom at halftime.
Lynch scored the only goal of the third period with 2:39 to play to give the Saints a 6-2 lead after three, but Cortland cut it to 6-3 with 11:54 to go in the game on a shot by Billy Fuchs. Lynch fed Prime for his second goal of the game with 5:32 to go for a 7-3 Saint lead, but Fuchs scored with 3:15 to go to make it 7-4 and Chris Hanson scored a man-up goal with 33 seconds to go to cut the lead to 7-5 before the Saints were able to run out the clock.
The Saints will host Hartwick in a makeup game Tuesday afternoon at 3:30.
NO. 15 SAINTS SQUARE OFF WITH REIGNING NATIONAL CHAMPIONS ON SATURDAY After having the opening game of the 2007 campaign pushed back due to inclement weather, the No. 15 St. Lawrence University men's lacrosse team is ready to open up the new season on Saturday, March 10th against the defending National Champions, the Cortland State Red Dragons. Cortland enters the game ranked 12th in the country with a 1-1 record, as the two teams meet at 1:00pm at North Country Field.
The Saints are coming off of their first ever Liberty League championship last season, as they posted a perfect conference record and earned the automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
This year's team welcomes back many of the top players, including seniors Brian Crowley, Nick Mastine, Justin Demuth, Andy Centauro, Brendan Lynch, JJ Hearty, and Willie Lapinksi. Head coach Mike Mahoney also has a deep roster this season, including juniors Kevin Russell and Ben Buskey and sophomores PJ Santora and Peter Carroll.
NO. 16 SAINTS MEET HARTWICK ON SATURDAY IN 2007 SEASON OPENER The St. Lawrence University men’s lacrosse team, ranked 16th in the country in the pre-season polls, will open its 2007 schedule on Saturday afternoon against the Hartwick Hawks from the Empire 8 conference, despite the fact that several inches of snow remain on the ground all over campus.
“That’s why we have turf!” replies Saints head coach Mike Mahoney.
Mahoney enters his tenth year at the helm for the Saints, who made their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1979 last season. The Scarlet and Brown topped Endicott in their opening round game, 13-10, but fell to the Geneseo Blue Knights in the second round.
“We are looking forward to getting the season underway, though we certainly have some very difficult challenges ahead of us, beginning this weekend with Hartwick College,” said Coach Mahoney. “Our hope is that by competing against some of the top teams Division III has to offer, we will be fully prepared for what will prove to be an extremely challenging Liberty league campaign.”
In 2006, St. Lawrence scorched through their Liberty League schedule with a perfect 6-0 record in the regular season and then defeated Clarkson and Rensselaer in the conference tournament. Their victory landed them an automatic bid into the national tournament, and with 29 returning players including ten seniors, the Saints hope to play a major role in the national championship picture.
“We are fortunate to have some game-tested upperclassmen on this year's team and we hope to build on that experience both on the field, as well as from a leadership standpoint,” added Mahoney.
The Saints hope to produce a balanced offensive scheme coming from both the attack and midfield positions. St. Lawrence out-scored their opponents 202-121 last season, led by a quintet of 20-goal scorers including Ben Prime, Peter Carroll, Brendan Lynch, Andy Centauro, and Kevin Russell.
Meanwhile, the defensive core is anchored by pre-season All Americas JJ Hearty and Ben Buskey along with tri-captain Brian Crowley. Hearty is given the daunting task of defending some of the most explosive attackmen in the country, but using his strength and intelligence, is often able to keep them from being a factor. Buskey and Crowley also help to add intimidation through force on the defensive end of the field as each is noted for their physical style of play
“I think that balance, depth, and unselfish play will allow us to be a productive offensive unit as the year goes on,” said Mahoney. “Defensively, we have a nice blend of experience and youth. Both our close defense and defensive midfield group have had an excellent pre-season.”
Two other crucial areas that the Saints anticipate to be very solid are face-offs and goaltending. Sophomore PJ Santora is coming off of a season in which he was ranked 2nd in the country in face-offs, winning 231-of-336 draws. The Cos Cob, CT native consistently earned face-off wins, allowing the offense to go on the attack.
Between the pipes, Demuth continues to be reliable in the clutch, posting a 14-4 record while stopping 145-of-254 shots. The Jordan, NY native made nine critical saves in the Saints’ NCAA Tournament win over Endicott last season, and Demuth will clearly be one of the keys if the team is to return to national prominence this season. The senior netminder will be backed up this season by junior Frank Maguire and sophomore Tom Hollingsworth
“The face-off position is always critical, and PJ does a tremendous job for us,” commented Mahoney. “We hope that his success from last year carries over to this spring. As with any defense, one of the key components is good goaltending and I think we have a starter and back-ups that provide for a very solid group at that position.”
St. Lawrence will not have to wait long to be tested as they open up at home against two very challenging teams. Hartwick is looking to improve on a 4-10 season, while the defending National Champion Cortland Red Dragons come to Canton, NY on Saturday, March 10th.
The Saints and Hawks will get the 2007 season underway at North Country Field at 1:00pm.
HEARTY AND BUSKEY HONORED AS SAINTS PREP FOR DEMANDING 2007 SCHEDULE Dec. 12: Senior defenseman JJ Hearty and junior long-stick middie Ben Buskey have been named Pre-Season All-Americas by Inside Lacrosse Magazine. The two players, who were each given All America Honorable Mention status last season, will lead the Saints defensive unit as the team hopes to repeat as Liberty League Champions in 2007 and once again advance to the NCAA Tournament.
Hearty is a Third Team Pre-Season All America defender coming off of a season in which he was one of St. Lawrence’s most reliable players along the back line. He picked up 26 ground balls and had one assist as a junior, though playing on the defensive side of the ball is when the Weston, MA is at his best.
“JJ is the guy that we turn to when we need to try and shut down an opponent’s most dangerous attacker,” said Saints head coach Mike Mahoney. “He doesn’t have the most glamorous job on the field, but he was one of the primary reasons for our success last year. We’ll need him to be effective again this year to reach our goals.”
Meanwhile, Buskey, an Honorable Mention for Pre-Season All Americas, had a breakout season for the Scarlet and Brown as a sophomore. He used his 6’3 frame to both shut down opposing offenses and deliver some big-time hits to set the tone of the game. The Hanover, NH native had a goal, an assist, and 50 ground balls last year, anchoring the Saints defense at the long stick middie position en route to their first NCAA Tournament appearance in nineteen years.
“Ben’s physical style of play not only helps to keep opponents from being able to attack, but his hits often lead to possession changes,” added Coach Mahoney. “What gets lost in his game is his speed, athleticism, and stick skills. He’s a great athlete and we expect him to have another solid year.”
With the announcement of the Pre-Season All America selections also comes the Liberty League Pre-Season Rankings and All-Conference Team. The Scarlet and Brown are the pre-season favorites to win the Liberty League for the second straight year, coming in at the top spot ahead of Hamilton College. Rensselaer is ranked third, followed by Clarkson, Skidmore, Union |