April 16, 2008

Final Stats

Loudonville, N.Y. - The Saints scored a pair of goals in the final 1:40 of regulation to complete a furious comeback, but it was all for not as Canisius struck for the game winner in overtime as the Siena men's lacrosse team fell at the hands of the Golden Griffins 10-9 this afternoon in Buffalo, N.Y. The loss marked the Saints' fourth in conference play this season, all of which have come by a single goal.

Despite being without the services of starting goalie Brent Herbst and starting defenseman Kyle Vercruysse, Siena (7-6, 1-4) controlled the tempo for most of the first half against the conference's top team, although they were only able to harbor a 4-2 edge at the midway point. Matt Girsh accounted for three of the Saints' four first half goals, while James Mikel tallied the other.

The Saints dominated the first half, out-shooting Canisius (7-3, 6-0) 19-11, while scooping 20 groundballs to just 11 for the Griffs in the opening 30 minutes.

The second half, however, was a vastly different story. Canisius dominated the third period, outscoring the Green and Gold 5-0 to take their first lead of the game at 7-4 entering the final frame. The Griffs held an 11-2 shots edge in the period.

But in what was an exciting, seesaw battle throughout, the Saints mounted a furious comeback to begin the fourth.

Mike Lashomb netted a pair of scores just 38 seconds apart over the first 1:34 of the frame and Ryan Duggan capped the comeback moments later to even the score at 7-7.

The pendulum then swung back in Canisius' favor however as they responded with a pair of goals to reclaim a 9-7 lead on a Michael Benzinger tally with 8:38 remaining.

The score remained that way until the final two minutes when the Saints mounted yet another furious comeback campaign. Duggan posted his second goal of the period and 20th of the season at the 1:40 mark and Kenny Mazzone secured the equalizer 47 seconds later to stun the Griffs.

Canisius had one final chance to end the game in regulation but Siena goalie Tom Morr, making his first collegiate start, made a sprawling save with four seconds left to send the game to overtime.

In the extra session only one shot was taken by either team but it was the deciding one as Canisius' Alex Caldiero rifled home the game-winner with 1:35 left.

The win was the Golden Griffins program record seventh straight. Adam Jones led Canisius with five points including a hat trick, while MAAC assist leader Nick LoCoco added a pair of helpers and three total points.

Morr registered 10 saves in a losing effort for the Saints. Girsh and Duggan led the offensive corps with three points apiece.

The Saints return to action Saturday at Siena Turf Field for Senior Day against Manhattan in a game slated for 1 p.m. Prior to the game, the team will honor graduating seniors Tim Hannigan, J.P. Mulhall, James Mikel and Kevin Hogan in a pregame ceremony. The contest will also be televised locally on Time Warner Channel 3 and online at SienaSaints.com.