No. 1 Tufts Shuts Down Lasell Men's Lacrosse

NEWTON, MA- Defending NCAA Division III men's lacrosse champion, and NCAA preseason favorite, no. 1 ranked Tufts University left Lasell College today with a 23-5 triumph over the Lasers in a non-conference scuffle on Grellier Field.

The Jumbos were paced by D.J. Hessler (Monkton, MD) who led the team by scoring six goals with one assist, becoming Tufts men's lacrosse all-time leading scorer.  Hessler broke the Jumbos' previous record of 235 career points on his fifth goal of the game, scored at 11:38 of the third quarter, and finished the contest with 238 career points.

Six of the Jumbos starters scored in the game, with a true baker's dozen recording points. Sean Kirwan (Boonton Township, NJ) and Ryan Molloy (Setauket, NY) tallied four points each in the victory, followed by Kevin McCormick (Laytonsville, MD), Matt Witko (Chappaqua, NY), and Andrew Fiamengo (New Fairfield, CT) notching three apiece.

On the faceoff, Nick Rhoads (McLean, VA) was successful in 13 out of 22 total chances in the game, also collecting a team-high seven ground balls.

Three of Tufts goalkeepers saw time in the net, with the win being recorded by Steven Foglietta (Oceanside, NY) who started and played in the first half of the contest.  Foglietta let up three goals and made three saves.  Patton Watkins (Chattanooga, TN) and Tyler Page (San Francisco, CA) shared time in the second half of play, allowing one goal each, and making a combined eight saves.

This week's Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Player of the Week, Dylan Gray (Bayport, NY), led for Lasell with two points in the game, recorded solely on assists.  Gray also added three groundballs for the hosts.   Sean Speciale (Hillsborough, NJ), Adam Foss (Billerica, MA), Dan Clark (Scarborough, ME), Nick Sampson (Londonderry, NH) and GNAC Rookie of the Week Dylan Fernandes (Billerica, MA) each scored one goal for Lasell in the defeat.

Foss was also responsible for winning 15-of-24 faceoffs and collecting a game-high 13 ground balls, just one shy of tying with the all-time Lasell record for ground balls in a game.

GNAC Goalkeeper of the Week, Eric Walsh (Weymouth, MA), split time in net with Tyler Silliman (Windsor, CT).  Walsh turned aside six of the Jumbos attempts and Silliman made five stops against the visitors.

Foss started scoring in the 11^th minute of the first quarter, taking a feed from Gray to put Lasell ahead.  A McCormick goal settled the teams into a 1-1 tie two minutes later, but Lasell reacted with another goal by Sampson, at 7:11, to reinstate their lead.   Sam Diss (Ridgewood, NJ) leveled the score for the final time at 5:52 in the first, and Hessler put the Jumbos ahead for good just seven seconds later.  At the conclusion of the first 15 minutes, Tufts held just a slight 3-2 edge.

The second quarter belonged almost entirely to the Jumbos as they scored seven straight points before Clark ruined their run with a goal at 5:42.  Hessler finished the half with two more goals, giving Tufts a 13-3 cushion into halftime.

Fernandes connected to start the third quarter, but the rest of the scoring would fall entirely on Tufts, including Hessler's record setting goal at 11:38.  Tufts outscored Lasell 11-2 in the second half.

Tufts extra-man units produced on 4-of-7 chances in the contest, Lasell capitalized on 1-of-6.  Lasell did hold an 18-32 (56.25%) advantage in faceoff wins throughout the game and stayed nearly even in ground balls (38-39).  Tufts outshot Lasell 43-31.

Tufts holds a 2-0 record in the early going this season while the Lasers stands at 1-3. 

Lasell continues on a six game home-stand with their next contest on Saturday, March 19^th at 1:00 p.m. against Western Connecticut State University.