Box Score BOX SCORE
RAPID REACTION: Head Coach Paul Calkins
HIGHLIGHTS
When and Where: March 25, 2017 – Manchester, N.H. (Larkin Field)
Score: Southern New Hampshire University 10, No. 1 Le Moyne College 0
Records: SNHU 3-2 (1-2 Northeast-10 Conference), Le Moyne 6-1 (3-1 Northeast-10 Conference)
Senior Daniel Trainor (Billerica, Mass.) scored a pair of goals, including what proved to be the game-winner with 7:15 left in regulation, as the Southern New Hampshire University men's lacrosse team defeated No. 1 Le Moyne College, 10-9, on a snow-covered Larkin Field Saturday.
The Penmen earn their first victory in program history over the top-ranked Dolphins after entering the contest winless in their previous 17 attempts. Southern New Hampshire's win also handed the reigning national champions their first loss in 26 games, as the Dolphins had been unbeaten since the 2015 NCAA Division II Men's Lacrosse National Championship game.
The Penmen trailed, 7-6, heading into the fourth quarter, and after the two sides traded goals in the first three minutes, it was an 8-7 game with 12:06 to play. Sophomore Andrew Liu (Piedmont, Calif.) won the ensuing faceoff before senior Scott Lavey (Wading River, N.Y.) scooped up the loose ball just outside the circle and took off along the right sideline. After Lavey raced past a defender and around the back of the cage, the long stick midfielder whipped a shot off the turf that bounced just inside the far post to knot the score at eight at 3:08 of the fourth.
Less than two minutes later, Southern New Hampshire took the lead for the first time since the 11:24 mark of the third quarter. Senior Will Thompson (Southington, Conn.) raked in a groundball in front of the Penmen cage, dodged a Le Moyne attacker and lofted a successful clearing pass to classmate Keifer Heckman (Peabody, Mass.) at the top of the Dolphins' box. Heckman spun past his defender in the left alley and darted to the middle of the field, where he skipped a shot five-hole on the Le Moyne keeper to put the hosts ahead, 9-8, with 10:04 remaining in regulation.
Trainor capped the three-goal run for the Penmen with an insurance marker at 7:45 that was the difference in the contest. Heckman started the play by rolling the crease and firing a low shot that bounced wide of the net. Junior Corey Cairo (Wading River, N.Y.) was camped out on the far post, and he corralled the loose ball before noticing Trainor driving towards the net. Cairo threaded a pass between three defenders to Trainor, and he buried his second of the afternoon to extend the lead to a pair at 10-8.
The Dolphins would not go quietly, however, as Dan Entenmann's second of the game with 2:20 left to play trimmed the Southern New Hampshire lead back to a single goal. After the Penmen turned the ball over with less than 20 seconds left in regulation, Le Moyne had a chance to tie the game with three seconds remaining. Entenmann collected a pass to the right of the Penmen goal and unloaded a shot in an attempt to beat the buzzer, but senior Tyler Walsh (Northampton, Mass.) registered his 16th save of the contest as time expired to secure the victory.
Southern New Hampshire fell behind early after the Dolphins opened up the contest with a pair of goals in less than five minutes. Brian Rogers broke through for the game's first goal at 2:29 before Tom Koster doubled Le Moyne's advantage at 4:17. Junior Devin Calkins (Bow, N.H.) set up Trainor for his first of the day midway through the frame before Cairo potted his sixth of the year with help from junior Chris West (Albany, N.Y.) with 3:02 remaining in the quarter. The visitors took a 3-2 lead into the first intermission, as Riley Larson found Justin Kesselring with just over a minute to go.
The snow began to accumulate at the start of the second, and neither side was able to generate any offense through the first seven-plus minutes of the period. Senior Cameron McGuire (Melrose, Mass.) took a pass from Trainor and netted the equalizer with a bounce shot to the far post with 7:13 left before the half. After Larson put the Dolphins back in front at 8:58, Southern New Hampshire closed out the half with three-straight goals to carry 6-4 lead into the break. Trainor collected his second assist of the quarter, as he fed junior Zach Tanner (Woburn, Mass.) for a shot that he skipped through on the short side with 4:14 remaining. Heckman followed with his ninth of the year from West at 13:12, and senior Zach Jacobs (Tewksbury, Mass.) closed out the half with his sixth at 14:13.
Le Moyne came out strong to start the second half and scored three times in the first six minutes of the third quarter to take a 7-6 edge. After West tied the game early in the fourth, Sean Emerson pushed the Dolphins back in front, 8-7, 3:54 into the final frame.
West tallied three points on a goal and two assists, while Heckman found the back of the net twice for Southern New Hampshire. Cairo turned in a multipoint afternoon with a goal and an assist in support of Walsh, who set a career high with 16 saves.
Entenmann led the Le Moyne attack with a hat trick, and Rogers also had three points in the setback on a goal and two assists. Both Emerson (2G) and Larson (1G, 1A) notched a pair of points, and Jack Sweeney suffered his first defeat of the season despite stopping eight shots for the Dolphins.
Notes:
- Saturday marked the first time the Penmen had ever defeated a No. 1 ranked opponent. The last time Southern New Hampshire defeated a team ranked in the top-five was on April 10, 2012, a 7-6 triumph over then No. 3 Merrimack College.
- The Penmen have won 11 of their last 13 games since the 2014 season in which they hold the opposition to less than 10 goals.
- Liu and senior Patrick Goff (Nashua, N.H.) combined to fo 13-for-23 at the faceoff X on Saturday. Since the start of the 2015 season, SNHU in 9-3 in games it has the advantage in faceoffs.
- Trainor has tallied at least one point in 20 of his last 21 appearances, which is a span that dates back to the 2015 season. 17 of those 20 games have been multipoint efforts.
- Heckman has one or more points in 32 of his last 35 outings, and of those 32 games, he has at least two points in 27 contests.
What's Next:
Southern New Hampshire resumes Northeast-10 Conference play on Tuesday (March 28) when it heads to Bentley University for a 7 p.m. faceoff.
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