Ettrick, Va. - Thirteen different players tallied goals for the St. Thomas Aquinas College Men's Lacrosse team in a 21-2 rout of Virginia State University on Saturday afternoon at Rogers Stadium.
STAC moves to 2-4 on the year, while Virginia State slips to 1-5.
Cam Wallace, Christian Rodriguez and Abe Wallace tallied hat tricks in the match for the Spartans, with Liam Noseworthy and Nicholas Kostewicz picking up two goals apiece. Teammates Nathan Smith, Lou Takacs, Gage Parnell, James Guild, Max Benoit, Nathan Thomas, Jeremy Poggi and Jesse Kovaleski each finding the back of the net to add to the totals on the scoreboard. In the cage, Hayden Gaudette (W) stopped 5 of 6 shots faces in first half action, before being relieved by Jaden Heltzel for the final 30 minutes. Heltzel turned aside 4 of 5 shots fired his way.
For Virginia State, Andre Bigham scored a pair of goals in the second and fourth quarters. Jace Wiggins (L) allowed 18 goals on 32 total shots in just over 52 minutes of action. Arjun Warrier saw time for the Trojans in the fourth quarter, making one save on four shots in just under eight minutes of play.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
St. Thomas Aquinas opened the scoring midway through the first quarter when Nathan Thomas finished a feed from Nicholas Kostewicz to give the Spartans a 1-0 lead. From there, the offense began to find its rhythm in the second quarter. Cam Wallace scored twice in a 15-second span and later assisted Abe Wallace as the Spartans surged ahead. By halftime, St. Thomas Aquinas had built an 8-1 advantage, with Virginia State's lone first-half goal coming from Andre Bigham.
The Spartans put the game firmly out of reach in the third quarter, erupting for eight goals. Abe Wallace, Liam Noseworthy, and Cam Wallace continued to pace the offense, while Jeremy Poggi, Nicholas Kostewicz, and Christian Rodriguez also found the back of the net. Two man-up goals during the period helped stretch the lead to 16-1 entering the final quarter.
Virginia State added its second goal early in the fourth on a man-up strike from Andre Bigham, but St. Thomas Aquinas quickly answered. The Spartans closed the game with five more goals, including a hat trick for Christian Rodriguez, sealing the 21–2 victory.
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE:
- STAC outshot Virginia State 54-28 (36-11 on goal) for the match.
- Cam Wallace and Lou Takacs tallied a team-high six shots apiece, with Wallace putting five on goal and Takacs finding the cage three times for St. Thomas Aquinas.
- Vinny Rosario and Austin Palen each gathered seven of the Spartans 47 ground balls.
- Ethan Urbanski caused four Trojans' turnovers on the afternoon.
- STAC won 23 of 27 faceoffs, with Vinny Rosario winning 12 of 14 draws and Austin Palen winning 10 of 12 battles in the circle.
UP NEXT:
STAC hosts D'Youville University on Saturday, March 21 at Spartan Field. Opening faceoff between the Spartans and Saints is scheduled for 2:30 p.m.