Pleasantville, N.Y. - A dominant third quarter by Pace University proved to be the difference in St. Thomas Aquinas College's 20-10 men's lacrosse defeat on Tuesday afternoon at Northwell Stadium in Westchester County.
STAC falls to 1-4 on the season, while Pace improves to 4-1.
Max Benoit and Cam Wallace led the Spartans' offense with a pair of hat tricks each on the afternoon, while Christian Rodriguez, Nicola Greer, Liam Noseworthy and Ethan Urbanski talled a goal apiece for the maroon and gold. Goalie Hayden Gaudette (L) got the start between the pipes for STAC and stopped 12 of 29 shots faced in 45 minutes of action, before being replaced by teammate Jaden Heltzel for the final 15 minutes. Heltzel turned aside 6 of 9 shots fired his way.
Meanwhile, Pace was led by Will Danowski, who tallied four goals, while Colin Reese added three goals. In addition, Nick Naccarato scored twice, with teammates Jake Cenci, Matt Baldino, Trevor Lamoureux, Declan Sanders, Cody McClean, Nicholas Walano, Jack Mullery, Shae Linegar, Zach Goetze, Ian Wick and Cole Stevens adding to the totals on the scoresheet with a goal apiece for the host Setters. Goalie Jack Kern (W) stopped 5 of 10 shots faced over the first three quarters of action to earn the win, before being spelled by both Hunter Willcox and Jimmy Caputo for the final stanza of the match. Willcox allowed two goal on two shots shots in a little over nine and a half minutes of action, while Caputo also turned gave up two goals on two shots in a little over five minutes of play.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Pace jumped out early, scoring the first two goals of the game and taking a 4-1 lead after the first quarter. St. Thomas Aquinas got on the board midway through the quarter when Cam Wallace scored unassisted, but the Setters responded with two more late goals to extend their advantage.
The maroon and gold showed some life in the second quarter. Goals from Ethan Urbanski and Max Benoit cut the deficit to 6-3, but Pace closed the half with three straight goals to take a 9-3 lead into the break.
St. Thomas Aquinas briefly gained momentum early in the third when Benoit scored off an assist from Nicola Greer, but the hosts quickly answered and then took control. The Setters erupted for eight third-quarter goals, stretching the lead to 17-5 entering the final frame.
The Spartans finished strong in the fourth quarter, scoring five goals, including tallies from Cam Wallace, Liam Noseworthy, Max Benoit, Christian Rodriguez, and Nicola Greer. Despite the late push, Pace held on for the victory.
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE:
- Pace outshot STAC 64-25 (38-15 on goal) for the match.
- Nicola Greer tallied a team-high five shots, with two going on goal for St. Thomas Aquinas.
- Greer and teammate Hayden Gaudette each gathered six of the Spartans 47 ground balls.
- Stone McGregor, Ethan Urbanski and Karonhiakehson Jacobs caused two Setters' turnovers apiece on the afternoon.
- STAC won 14 of 24 faceoffs, with Vinny Rosario winning 9 of 20 draws and Austin Palen winning 5 of 14 battle in the circle.
UP NEXT
STAC visits Virginia State University on Saturday, March 14 for an 11:00 a.m. matchup at Rogers Stadium in Ettrick, Virginia.