Saturday, March 9
Bethlehem, Pa.
1 p.m.
Lehigh University
3-3, 2-0PL
11
vs
8
Army West Point
4-2, 1-1PL
1
2
3
4
F
Army West Point
1
3
1
3
8
Lehigh
4
1
4
2
11
Lehigh beats second straight ranked foe, topping No. 16/17 Army West Point 11-8
3/9/2019 4:48:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – After No. 16/17 Army West Point scored first, the Lehigh men's lacrosse team recorded two separate 4-0 runs and never trailed again as the Mountain Hawks picked up another big Patriot League win, 11-8, on Saturday afternoon. Senior Lucas Spence led the offense with three goals and an assist, good for his second straight hat trick since his return to the lineup. Junior Conor Gaffney continued his stellar play facing off, winning 18-of-23 with 11 groundballs to improve his season percentage to 70.6. With the victory, Lehigh improves to 3-3, 2-0 in Patriot League play while handing the Black Knights just their second loss of the season. Army is now 4-2, 1-1 in league play.
"This was 100 percent a team win," said Lehigh head coach Kevin Cassese. "We got really good defensive play. Our offense showed up big early and they showed up big again late. The work that Conor Gaffney and the wings did was huge for us today. James made some timely saves in the goal. That's what you need in order to do to beat a team like Army. They are incredibly competitive and they're as tough as they come. If you don't take care of the details, you don't have a shot. I thought our guys did a really good job of taking care of the details today."
Along with Spence's four points, three others scored two goals apiece – junior Andrew Eichelberger, freshman Cole Kirst and freshman Tommy Schelling. It marked the first-career multi-goal games by both Kirst and Schelling. Seniors Mickey Fitzpatrick and Alexander Tumminello each had a goal and assist.
Defensively, senior Craig Chick tallied four groundballs and four caused turnovers. Classmate Eddie Bouhall had four groundballs and a caused turnover while shutting down Army attackman Brendan Nichtern. After entering the game with 24 points (12 goals, 12 assists) through five games, Nichtern had just a goal and assist. The assist came on an unsettled situation in which Bouhall wasn't covering him.
Lehigh's win marked its second straight victory over a ranked opponent, one Saturday after a 10-8 win at No. 16/19 Colgate. It marked the first time since 2015 that the Mountain Hawks have won consecutive games vs. ranked foes.
The Black Knights opened a 1-0 lead less than a minute in, but the Mountain Hawks had quite the response. It began with a Tumminello score and included goals from Spence, Fitzpatrick, then Spence again to give Lehigh a 4-1 lead after a quarter of play.
Lehigh held Army to just three first-quarter shots, shutting out the Black Knights for 19:35 in total. The Black Knights got back on the board with three straight second-quarter goals, at the 9:43, 6:11 and 3:59 marks. Schelling had a big answer, however, with just three seconds left in the half, to put the Mountain Hawks up 5-4 after 30 minutes of play.
Army scored an unsettled goal off a faceoff just 30 seconds into the third quarter, but Schelling again had an answer. His career-high second of the game came just 35 seconds later as Lehigh regained a 7-5 lead. That sparked a 4-0 run, with goals coming from Kirst, Eichelberger then Kirst again, putting the Mountain Hawks up 9-5 heading to the fourth.
The Black Knights got as close as 10-8 with 6:02 remaining, but Lehigh's defense continued to stand tall, and Spence iced the victory at the 2:01 with an unassisted goal that put Lehigh up 11-8, which proved to be the final.
Final shots were 38-35 in favor of Lehigh while the Mountain Hawks held a 45-29 edge in groundballs. Army turned the ball over 21 times compared to 18 for Lehigh. Sophomore James Spence made 10 saves across Army's AJ Barretto, who made 15.
The Mountain Hawks have a quick turnaround as they travel to No. 20 Rutgers on Tuesday. Opening faceoff is set for 7 p.m. televised nationally on the Big Ten Network.
"We are excited for this next one at Rutgers," said Cassese. "An incredible venue with High point Solutions Stadium. We have so many New Jersey guys on our roster that it will be a lot of fun to go play a game in their home state. For us, we're just looking to take another step forward. Use this opportunity as a big top 20 litmus test and see if we can get a little better each time out."
Like Lehigh men's lacrosse on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
"This was 100 percent a team win," said Lehigh head coach Kevin Cassese. "We got really good defensive play. Our offense showed up big early and they showed up big again late. The work that Conor Gaffney and the wings did was huge for us today. James made some timely saves in the goal. That's what you need in order to do to beat a team like Army. They are incredibly competitive and they're as tough as they come. If you don't take care of the details, you don't have a shot. I thought our guys did a really good job of taking care of the details today."
Along with Spence's four points, three others scored two goals apiece – junior Andrew Eichelberger, freshman Cole Kirst and freshman Tommy Schelling. It marked the first-career multi-goal games by both Kirst and Schelling. Seniors Mickey Fitzpatrick and Alexander Tumminello each had a goal and assist.
Defensively, senior Craig Chick tallied four groundballs and four caused turnovers. Classmate Eddie Bouhall had four groundballs and a caused turnover while shutting down Army attackman Brendan Nichtern. After entering the game with 24 points (12 goals, 12 assists) through five games, Nichtern had just a goal and assist. The assist came on an unsettled situation in which Bouhall wasn't covering him.
Lehigh's win marked its second straight victory over a ranked opponent, one Saturday after a 10-8 win at No. 16/19 Colgate. It marked the first time since 2015 that the Mountain Hawks have won consecutive games vs. ranked foes.
The Black Knights opened a 1-0 lead less than a minute in, but the Mountain Hawks had quite the response. It began with a Tumminello score and included goals from Spence, Fitzpatrick, then Spence again to give Lehigh a 4-1 lead after a quarter of play.
Fitzpatrick, too quick and shifty. His unassisted goal gives Lehigh a 3-1 edge mid first quarter. #PLTop3
— Lehigh Lacrosse (@LehighLacrosse) March 9, 2019
Watch: https://t.co/lniVr18ACD. pic.twitter.com/gBS0oCw3Wo
Lehigh held Army to just three first-quarter shots, shutting out the Black Knights for 19:35 in total. The Black Knights got back on the board with three straight second-quarter goals, at the 9:43, 6:11 and 3:59 marks. Schelling had a big answer, however, with just three seconds left in the half, to put the Mountain Hawks up 5-4 after 30 minutes of play.
BIG goal from Tommy Schelling in the final seconds of the first half to give the Mountain Hawks a 5-4 halftime edge.
— Lehigh Lacrosse (@LehighLacrosse) March 9, 2019
Watch: https://t.co/lniVr18ACD. pic.twitter.com/s1wigu0hr1
Army scored an unsettled goal off a faceoff just 30 seconds into the third quarter, but Schelling again had an answer. His career-high second of the game came just 35 seconds later as Lehigh regained a 7-5 lead. That sparked a 4-0 run, with goals coming from Kirst, Eichelberger then Kirst again, putting the Mountain Hawks up 9-5 heading to the fourth.
Rai with the groundball and pass, and Kirst somehow finds the angle to score. Make that four straight for Lehigh to take a 9-5 lead!
— Lehigh Lacrosse (@LehighLacrosse) March 9, 2019
Watch: https://t.co/lniVr18ACD. pic.twitter.com/H05ve7uGo0
The Black Knights got as close as 10-8 with 6:02 remaining, but Lehigh's defense continued to stand tall, and Spence iced the victory at the 2:01 with an unassisted goal that put Lehigh up 11-8, which proved to be the final.
Dagger?! Spence with his third goal, good his second straight hat trick and the Mountain Hawks lead 11-8!
— Lehigh Lacrosse (@LehighLacrosse) March 9, 2019
Watch: https://t.co/lniVr18ACD. pic.twitter.com/YoXaW61O9W
Final shots were 38-35 in favor of Lehigh while the Mountain Hawks held a 45-29 edge in groundballs. Army turned the ball over 21 times compared to 18 for Lehigh. Sophomore James Spence made 10 saves across Army's AJ Barretto, who made 15.
The Mountain Hawks have a quick turnaround as they travel to No. 20 Rutgers on Tuesday. Opening faceoff is set for 7 p.m. televised nationally on the Big Ten Network.
"We are excited for this next one at Rutgers," said Cassese. "An incredible venue with High point Solutions Stadium. We have so many New Jersey guys on our roster that it will be a lot of fun to go play a game in their home state. For us, we're just looking to take another step forward. Use this opportunity as a big top 20 litmus test and see if we can get a little better each time out."
Like Lehigh men's lacrosse on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
Team Stats
ARMY
LEHIGH
Shots
35
38
Turnovers
21
18
Caused Turnovers
6
12
Faceoffs Won
5
18
Extra-Man Opps
2
1
Ground Balls
29
45
Game Leaders
G
3
A
1
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
2
CT
0
G
2
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
1
CT
1
G
2
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
0
CT
0
G
2
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
4
CT
0
Players Mentioned
D
/ Men's Lacrosse
D/LSM
/ Men's LacrosseM
/ Men's Lacrosse
M
/ Men's Lacrosse
M/FO
/ Men's LacrosseA
/ Men's LacrosseA
/ Men's Lacrosse
G
/ Men's LacrosseA
/ Men's Lacrosse
M
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