Saturday, February 19
Geneva, N.Y.
12 p.m.
Lehigh University
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13
at
14
Hobart
2-0
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Lehigh
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Hobart
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Photo by: Justin Lafleur
No. 13 Mountain Hawks Drop Back-and-Forth Thriller at Hobart, 14-13
2/19/2022 6:15:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse
GENEVA, N.Y. – In a game which saw neither team lead by more than one until exactly a minute remaining in the third quarter, the No. 13 Lehigh men's lacrosse team nearly erased a four-goal deficit in the final five minutes of regulation, but ultimately fell at Hobart, 14-13 on Saturday. The Statesmen used a 6-1 run to turn a 9-8 Mountain Hawks' lead into a 14-10 Hobart advantage. Lehigh scored goals at 4:33, 1:44 and 0:58, and had a glittering chance in the final seconds, but Hobart goaltender Kevin Holtby made his 14th and most important save of the afternoon to secure his team the victory.
Sophomore Scott Cole led the offense with career highs in goals (4) and points (5). Senior Tommy Schelling added two goals and two assists, junior Christian Mule' and sophomore Quinn Armstrong each scored twice, while senior Matt Marker tied a career-high two points via a goal and assist. First year Dakota Eierman scored his first-career goal late in the fourth quarter, while dishing an assist as well.
Ultimately, 17 Lehigh turnovers really hurt, including 15 over the first three quarters.
"We've got to be cleaner," said Cassese. "We went to the penalty box way too much today. You do that against a good offensive team, they're going to eventually find a way to score. At the end of the day, they did a good job neutralizing the middle of the field. We didn't do a great job handling their ride. I thought we'd do that a little bit better, so I give them credit for that."
"I thought [Hobart] did a great job trying to neutralize Mikey in the middle," said Cassese. "They did a great job in between the lines today. At the end of the day, I think that was the difference."
No team led by more than one in the first half. Lehigh used a mini two-goal surge – bridging the end of the first quarter and beginning of the second – to take its first lead at 3-2. The goals were scored by Cole (as time expired in the first) and Mule' (at 13:36 of the second).
Final shots were 47-45 in favor of Lehigh while the Statesmen held a 25-23 edge in groundballs. Graduate student James Spence finished with nine saves. Sisselberger was 14-of-28 facing off.
The Mountain Hawks head home next Saturday (Feb. 26) to host No. 17 Cornell in their home opener. Gametime is set for 1 p.m. on ESPN+.
Like Lehigh men's lacrosse on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
Sophomore Scott Cole led the offense with career highs in goals (4) and points (5). Senior Tommy Schelling added two goals and two assists, junior Christian Mule' and sophomore Quinn Armstrong each scored twice, while senior Matt Marker tied a career-high two points via a goal and assist. First year Dakota Eierman scored his first-career goal late in the fourth quarter, while dishing an assist as well.
"I thought it was a really competitive game," said Lehigh head coach Kevin Cassese. "Definitely want to tip my cap to Hobart. I thought they did a great job today. They played really well. I thought our guys battled hard. [Hobart] got up four in the fourth quarter and it could have gone one of two ways. Our guys could have just wilted, but I'm proud of our guys for battling back. They definitely showed some courage in doing that."Some of our top highlights from this afternoon up at Hobart 📹⤵️ pic.twitter.com/gjJ6hUB6x6
— Lehigh Lacrosse (@LehighLacrosse) February 19, 2022
Ultimately, 17 Lehigh turnovers really hurt, including 15 over the first three quarters.
"We've got to be cleaner," said Cassese. "We went to the penalty box way too much today. You do that against a good offensive team, they're going to eventually find a way to score. At the end of the day, they did a good job neutralizing the middle of the field. We didn't do a great job handling their ride. I thought we'd do that a little bit better, so I give them credit for that."
Hobart won 6-of-9 faceoffs in the third quarter, but senior Mike Sisselberger bounced back to win three of the last five, and in one of the losses, he immediately caused a turnover to gain possession.Hear from @CoachCassese following today's defeat at Hobart pic.twitter.com/TbBV348kjc
— Lehigh Lacrosse (@LehighLacrosse) February 19, 2022
"I thought [Hobart] did a great job trying to neutralize Mikey in the middle," said Cassese. "They did a great job in between the lines today. At the end of the day, I think that was the difference."
No team led by more than one in the first half. Lehigh used a mini two-goal surge – bridging the end of the first quarter and beginning of the second – to take its first lead at 3-2. The goals were scored by Cole (as time expired in the first) and Mule' (at 13:36 of the second).
The Statesmen immediately answered with two in a row, but from there, the next seven were alternated. The Mountain Hawks began the third with an Andrew Mapstone man-up tally just 10 seconds in, then a few minutes later after a Hobart goal, Schelling scored back-to-back transition goals from nearly the same spot to put Lehigh up, 8-7 with 8:55 left in the third.
A Marker man-up goal with 5:35 on the third-quarter clock put the Mountain Hawks ahead, 9-8, but that's when the Statesmen staged their run. After Hobart scored six of the next seven goals, Lehigh made one last attempt. Eierman got the rally started with the first of his career at 4:33. Cole scored at 1:44 and Armstrong added his second at 0:58. The Mountain Hawks then had a chance in the final seconds, but Eierman's great look in front was saved.
Final shots were 47-45 in favor of Lehigh while the Statesmen held a 25-23 edge in groundballs. Graduate student James Spence finished with nine saves. Sisselberger was 14-of-28 facing off.
The Mountain Hawks head home next Saturday (Feb. 26) to host No. 17 Cornell in their home opener. Gametime is set for 1 p.m. on ESPN+.
Like Lehigh men's lacrosse on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
Team Stats
LEH
HOB
Shots
47
45
Turnovers
16
16
Caused Turnovers
5
6
Faceoffs Won
14
14
Extra-Man Opps
4
6
Ground Balls
23
25
Game Leaders
Players
G
4
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
0
CT
0
G
2
A
1
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
2
CT
1
G
2
A
1
FO
-
Pen
1-60
GB
2
CT
0
G
2
A
2
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
0
CT
0
Players Mentioned
A/M
/ Men's LacrosseA/M
/ Men's Lacrosse
M
/ Men's Lacrosse
A
/ Men's Lacrosse
A
/ Men's LacrosseA
/ Men's LacrosseA
/ Men's Lacrosse
FO/M
/ Men's Lacrosse
G
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