NASHUA, N.H. – The New England College men's lacrosse team comeback would come up short as they were unable to beat to Rivier University in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) action on Saturday at Merrill Field in Nashua, New Hampshire.
 
THE BASICS
Score: New England College 11, Rivier University 16
Records: Pilgrims 3-4, 0-2 GNAC | Raiders 5-1, 2-0 GNAC
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Raiders would strike first at 12:12 in the conference clash as RU would work the ball around to create the perfect scoring opportunity for themselves. RU graduate midfielder Coby Mercier (Boscawen, N.H.) would rip a shot into the back of the net thanks to the quick thinking from graduate attacker Micheal Ference (Salem, N.H.) who dished the pass to Mercier. Two minutes later, the Raiders would find themselves up 2-0 after senior midfielder Sawyer Hall (Windham, N.H.) would set up freshman midfielder James DelPrete (Mount Sinai, N.Y.).
• Despite the 2-0 deficit that was inflicted by the Raiders, NEC managed to bounce back and get themselves on the scoreboard at 7:14. NEC junior midfielder Daniel Varga (Hampton, N.J.) took matters into his own hands scoring the goal after the 'Grims were faced with a man-down situation. Shortly after RU answered back by taking advantage of a man-up opportunity that would result in another goal on their end to put them back up by two, 3-1.
• Varga would answer the call yet again for NEC scoring the second consecutive goal on behalf of the 'Grims to give the team a fighting chance in the first quarter with 4:17 remaining. That didn't seem to phase the Raiders as they scored the final two goals of the quarter to maintain their lead by three, 5-2.
• At 12:08 of the second quarter NEC senior attacker Henri Pfeifle (Darien, Conn.) would work his way behind the net and located senior attacker Thomas Norton (Mansfield, Mass.) just outside of the crease for a 'Grims goal, 6-3 still favoring RU. After a 5-0 run produced by the Raiders, NEC answered with two consecutive goals that came from Norton would who proved to be making quite the impact for the 'Grims in the quarter displaying a valiant effort to make it a six goal deficit, 11-5. With seconds remaining on the clock, NEC found a way to come up with an answer as junior midfielder Nathan Hawkins (Salisbury, N.H.) found sophomore midfielder Brody McGonigle (Concord, N.H.) to not only just complete the clear but also score the final goal of the quarter to give the 'Grims some momentum going into halftime, 11-6 still favoring RU.
• The scoring efforts would slow down on both sides, but the Raiders would still have the upper hand over the 'Grims. At 10:33 RU came up with the first goal of the quarter on a man-up opportunity. NEC would retaliate a minute later as Varga was bestowed a scoring opportunity thanks to senior attacker Matt Daley (Plymouth, Mass.) getting the junior open. The two teams would trade another set of goals showing no signs that neither side was willing to back down. By the conclusion of the quarter RU would have the last laugh as the Raiders managed to score the final goal of the quarter to stretch their lead out to five, 14-8.
• NEC's defense in the fourth quarter stood stout only allowing two goals throughout the quarter that helped give the 'Grims the chance to make a comeback. Their defensive performance would help provide NEC with more scoring opportunities on the offensive end of the field as they buried three goals to put a dent into the deficit looking to be shortened. Unfortunately, time was not on the 'Grims side as they were unable to rally back resulting in a win for the Raiders of Rivier University, 16-11.

 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• NEC sophomore goalkeeper Logan Stroud (Belmont, N.H.) did all he could for the 'Grims in between the pipes collecting 21 stops.
• RU Graduate goalkeeper Sawyer Gagnon (Gorham, Maine) finished his day with 13 saves.
• Shots on the day were in favor of the Raiders, 62-36
• RU Ference was the clear star of the game that displayed his full skill set in the conference outing today scoring four goals while dishing out seven assists for 11 points.
• NEC Norton, Varga, and Pfeifle all recorded four points each respectively. Norton's efforts on the day earned himself his first hat trick of the season, scoring four goals.
• NEC was unable to make the most out of the man-up opportunities bestowed to them going 1-for-4 while the Raiders were 4-for-8.
• RU was nearly perfect on clears finishing 19-for-20 as NEC was 18-for-25.
• Face offs were another category that ended with an advantage for RU over the 'Grims, 16-10.

 
UP NEXT

• NEC is back on the field on Wednesday, March 26^th at 4:00 PM as they are traveling to Plattsburgh, N.Y. for a non-conference game against Plattsburgh State.
• RU will host Johnson and Wales University on Saturday, March 29^th at 11:00 AM.

 
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