LAX Picks Up First Win Against Bard

NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Mitchell College men’s lacrosse team picked up its first victory of the season on Saturday afternoon in a 12-6 final over Bard College.

Mitchell (1-3 overall) got multi-goal games from five different players, including a second straight hat trick from sophomore Adam Grillo. Junior Patrick Nielsen and senior Chris Saunderson also chipped in with two goals and a pair of assists apiece.

Rich Aberle netted a game-high four goals for Bard (0-6 overall) while Houston Stebbins added a pair. The six goals were a season-high for the Raptors, who had scored only 11 goals in their previous five games.

Junior Joseph Rice got things started for the Mariners, scoring the first of his two goals on an extra-man opportunity with 8:59 to play in the first quarter. Grillo followed with a goal nearly two minutes later, and Nielsen capped the period with his first as Mitchell led 3-0 after the first 15 minutes.

Bard started the second quarter with a man advantage and didn’t let it go to waste, as Stebbins scored just 18 seconds into the stanza to make it 3-1. Mitchell answered with goals from senior John Kearney and sophomore Chris Santapaola to pad the lead.

Aberle notched his first goal of the day with 4:51 to go before the break to trim the deficit to 5-2. The Mariners closed the half strong, however, getting goals from Nielsen and Grillo in the final 3:30 to take a 7-2 lead into the halftime intermission.

Santapaola, whose first career goal came in the first half, didn’t wait long to record his second. He scored just 1:31 into the second half to keep the momentum on Mitchell’s side, and Saunderson followed with his first score of the day to increase the margin to seven at 9-2.

Mitchell took its biggest lead at 12-3 on a goal by Saunderson with 12:38 remaining in the contest. The Raptors scored the game’s final three goals to keep it close, two of which came with a man advantage. Bard went 3-for-11 in extra-man opportunities on the day.

The Mariners held a 49-29 edge in shots and a 55-28 advantage in ground balls. Mitchell also won 12 of 20 face-offs and went 3-for-6 on extra-man opportunities. Rice went 8-for-15 in face-offs and scooped up a team-high seven ground balls.

Sophomores Joseph Nott and Gregg Jameson split time in goal for Mitchell. Nott played the first half and gave up two goals while making six saves. Jameson finished out the final 30 minutes and made seven stops while allowing four goals. Bard’s Michael Luxemburg played the entire game and recorded 16 saves.

Mitchell’s last victory came against Lyndon State College in 2008. The win was also the first for head coach Steve Jewett.

Mitchell returns to action at home against Emerson on Tuesday, April 6 at 4:30 p.m.