TOWSON, Md. – The University of Scranton men's lacrosse team (4-6, 2-0 Landmark) rode a dominant second quarter to a 16-8 victory over the Goucher Gophers (6-4, 0-2 Landmark) on Thursday night at Beldon Field in Towson.
Scranton led 4-3 at the end of the first quarter and then outscored the Gophers by a 5-1 margin in the period to take a 9-4 lead into the locker room.
Freshman Myles McCutcheon (Ridgewood, N.J./Ridgewood) opened the scoring just 0:39 into the game and the Royals held a 3-1 lead before Goucher scored two late goals to even things at three apiece. Senior Matthew McAree (Manhasset, N.Y./Manhasset) joined the scoresheet with 2:28 left in the first and gave the visitors a 4-3 lead after one. From there, the Royals tallied the first four goals of the second quarter including two from McCutcheon and McAree added a goal in the final seconds that made it a 9-4 game at halftime.
In the third quarter, sophomore Kyle Holmes (Bridgewater, N.J./Bridgewater-Raritan) found the back of the net to begin a three-goal run and senior Alex Eglitis (Randolph, N.J./Randolph) capped the run with a goal at the 11:38 mark to open up a 12-4 advantage. McCutcheon added two more goals just 1:01 apart later in the quarter and the Royals took a decisive 14-5 advantage in the fourth when they were able to preserve the victory.
McCutcheon led Scranton offensively with his second consecutive five-goal game, while Eglitis and McAree added three points apiece on two goals and an assist.
Junior John O'Connor (Rocky Point, N.Y./Rocky Point) proved to be dominant on faceoffs for the Royals as he won 26-of-28 and collected a career-best 15 ground balls to go along with five ground balls and two caused turnovers from senior Andrew Lord (Havertown, Pa./Haverford).
In goal for Scranton, sophomore Declan Allen (Garden City, N.Y./Millbrook) recorded six saves.
James Dugan led Goucher with four goals.
The Royals return home to host Lycoming on Wednesday afternoon at Weiss Field with action slated to get underway at 4 p.m.
--ROYALS--
