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Loyola Men's Lacrosse News |
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March 10 , 2009 |
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Loyola 15, Bryant 11 Men's Lacrosse
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BALTIMORE - Seniors Shane Koppens paired three goals with a career-high six assists
and P.T. Ricci established career-highs with three points and 13 groundballs to
propel No. 14 Loyola to a 15-11 non-conference win over Bryant on Tuesday afternoon
at Diane Geppi-Aikens Field.
The Greyhounds (4-2) used 11 goals in the second half--including seven in the fourth
quarter--to secure the victory, which opened a four-game homestand.
Jimmy Daly, Collin Finnerty and Cooper MacDonnell all added two goals apiece as 10
Loyola players found the scoring column.
"This was a good effort against a quality opponent in Bryant," Loyola Head Coach
Charley Toomey. "We talked to our guys at halftime about having a better shot
selection in the second half and we were able to find some success as a result."
Finding itself down 6-4 at halftime, Loyola came out of the gates quickly in the
third, scoring three straight--all on Koppens' assists--to take a 7-6 advantage.
Just four minutes in, Ricci sent in his attempt from 15-yards out high into the net.
Then, sophomore middie Stephen Murray scored his first goal of the season on a
bounce shot. Freshman midfielder Mike Sawyer closed out the run to give Loyola its
first lead of the game.
A goal by Bryant (4-3) attackman Zach Greer--his first of the game--would briefly
halt the momentum. But Koppens would again have the answer, assisting on a goal to
Finnerty to give Loyola an 8-7 advantage.
Daly opened the fourth period with his second goal of the afternoon, an unassisted
score from 15 yards out. After a goal by Bryant's Kevin Hoagland, Koppens answered
with a putaway of his own, his first of the afternoon. On the ensuing possession
after the face-off, defender Steve Layne raced upfield for an unassisted goal, his
first of his career, to lift Loyola to a three-score advantage,11-8.
A putaway by Bryant's Matt Larson cut the lead to two,11-9, with 7:36 remaining, but
goals by MacDonnell and Koppens followed two minutes later. Bryant's Max Weisenberg
and Finnerty exchanged goals, and with 0:39 seconds left, Koppens would find the net
for the hat-trick. The goal marked his ninth point, breaking his previous high of
seven which he set back on April 12, 2008, in an 11-9 Loyola victory over
Georgetown.
Greer would close out the scoring with a late goal. All afternoon, Greer,the former
Duke All-American was harassed by Layne, Loyola's top close-defenseman. Entering
Tuesday's matchup averaging 4.66 goals-a-game, Greer was held to just two goals.
"Our leaders had an opportunity to make big some plays. Whether it's P.T. scooping
up groundballs, Shane's decision-making or Steve's defense, everyone stepped it up
in the second half," Toomey said.
Meanwhile, Loyola forced 27 Bryant turnovers while only committing 12 itself. Senior
goalkeeper Alex Peaty made his season debut by playing the enitre second half. He
made two saves.
A pair of unassisted goals by Bryant midfielder Bryant Amitrano put the Bulldogs up
2-0 eight minutes into the first.
Loyola would cut the lead in half off a Bryant turnover with 2:06 left in the first,
as senior midfielder Jake Willcox beat his defender and converted on a bounce shot
to put Loyola on the board. Despite outshooting the Bulldogs 11-5, Loyola entered
the second down, 2-1.
Amitrano would pick up the rare first-half hat-trick just 1:54 into the second,
sending his attempt high past Loyola goalie Jake Hagelin. On the ensuing face-off,
Bryant's Andrew Hennessey won the draw and raced downfield to score, and suddenly,
the Greyhounds faced a 4-1 deficit.
Loyola,though, responded with three unanswered goals over a six-minute span. First,
senior midfielder Tyler Gale found the net 5:17 into the period, as he trailed into
the middle of the defense and converted a Koppens feed. Just three minutes later,
MacDonnell dodged past his defender and sent his shot into the upper-right of the
cage.
To close out the spree, Daly found the net to knot the teams at 4 apiece. Bryant's
Bryan Kauffman, though, tallied a pair of goals under the last two minutes to take a
two-goal lead into the locker room.
Loyola outshot the Bulldogs 40-26, while Bryant won the groundball battle, 38-37.
The Greyhounds will return to action on Saturday when they host undefeated and No.
15 St. John's at 1 p.m.
Source: Loyola Athletic Communications
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