vmi defense
Randall K. Wolf
13
VMI VMI 3-4, 0-1 MAAC
14
Winner LIU LIU 2-4, 1-0 MAAC
VMI VMI
3-4, 0-1 MAAC
13
Final
14
LIU LIU
2-4, 1-0 MAAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
VMI VMI 1 7 3 2 13
LIU LIU 5 1 4 4 14

Game Recap: Lacrosse |

Late Rally Falls Short in Loss at LIU

Box Score

BROOKVILLE, N.Y. – Down 14-12 with 4:42 to play, a late VMI lacrosse rally came up just short as the Sharks prevailed by a 14-13 tally Saturday afternoon at Bethpage Federal Credit Union Stadium to open Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference play in Brookville, New York.
 
The Keydets (3-4, 0-1) got off to a rough start and trailed 5-1 after one period, but followed up with a dominant second quarter in which they outscored the Sharks (2-4, 1-0) seven goals to one and went into the break with an 8-6 advantage.
 
The teams were evenly matched in the third quarter with the Sharks outpacing VMI by just one goal (4-3), but the Keydets held the slim 11-10 lead going into the final 15 minutes. Long Island got hot in the fourth period and outscored the Keydets, 4-2, including its two-goal lead with four minutes left.
 
VMI had a few looks to knot the score in the final minutes following a Simon Moore goal with 4:23 on the clock to trim the deficit to one but could not find the back of the net again as the host team escaped with the conference win.
 
Key Stats
*Wil Duffy led VMI with three goals on the day while Luke Rusterucci and Simon Moore both had two. Hartley Jordan, Luke Mryncza, AJ Stamos, Austin English, Thomas Williamson and Jack Rogers all scored one goal apiece
*Rusterucci logged three assists for a total of five points on the day while Jordan had two helpers
*Mark Regan scored six goals to lead LIU to victory while Brad Beck contributed four. Sean Boll put in two and Owen Stefanko and Emerson Tyler each had one
*VMI won the faceoff battle 17-13 and missed out on just one clearing attempt, going 16-17 for the afternoon. The Keydets also won the groundball battle, 35-34
*LIU goalie picked up the individual win with 11 saves on the day while VMI keeper Adam Norris tallied 13 saves in the loss
 
VMI head coach James Purpura
"I'm really proud of the effort today. It was not the result we wanted, but I'm proud our guys who fought to the end. Failure isn't fatal, but failing to change can be. For a second straight year we are the youngest team in the nation relying on many freshmen and sophomores to play significant minutes and , unfortunately, this is part of the learning process. We need to start games better. We can't keep spotting teams early leads. I was proud of guys for battling back and taking the lead, but we need to learn to finish the game. We had opportunities to tie it late but just didn't get it done. 
 
"I thought offensively we played well. We shared the ball and shot over 30 percent. Wil Duffy earned his first career hat trick. Luke Rusterucci continues to pace our offense with another five-point game. 
 
"Defensively, outside of the first few minutes, we settled in and played some good 6v6 defense led by goalie Adam Norris. They did a good job of clearing and riding today, as well. 
 
"A few youthful mistakes ultimately was enough for us not to get the result and we will continue to learn and make corrections from the tape."
 
 
 
 


 
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