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.
