MLAX: Lasers Win Thrilling Opener 16-15 Over Norwich

Northfield, VT - The Lasell men's lacrosse team opened their season on Sunday with a road matchup against the Cadets of Norwich University. 

In an exciting back-and-forth affair, the Lasers who came in at #2 in the preseason GNAC South Division poll faced the Cadets of Norwich who came in at #2 in the preseason GNAC North Division poll. The Lasers struck first in the game seeing Nate Campbell notch his first goal of the season followed by Freshman Jack Condon's first collegiate goal putting them up 2-0. After Norwich battled back scoring the next three goals and regaining the lead, the Lasers ended the quarter scoring goals from Will McCarthy and Carson Tucker giving them a 4-3 edge. 

In the second quarter, both teams continued to score at a high clip. Across the next six minutes, the Lasers found the goal three more times to Norwich's one score, with Francis Pino and Ryan Stone getting in on the action. This put them up 7-4 temporarily but Norwich scored three of the next four goals and narrowed the lead down to 1, 8-7 going into halftime. 

Coming out of the break the Lasers tacked on a goal in the early going with another strike from Jack Condon. Shortly after though the Cadets found another run rattling off three goals in three minutes and going up 10-9. Lasell would once again respond by ripping off three goals to finish out the quarter taking a 12-10 advantage into the final 10 minutes. 

Norwich drew the game even in the fourth after two goals in the opening minutes. The Lasers would then take a one-goal lead twice, with Norwich matching each of those times and the game was tied at 14-14 with under four minutes to play. Norwich scored again with three minutes left taking the lead back for the first time since 10-9 in the third. Up against the clock, the Lasers found the equalizer just under the two-minute mark from Jack Condon who continued his dominance on offense for the Lasers. With the game even at 15-15, each team looked to find the net late to secure the victory. With time winding down and the Lasers holding possession in the offensive third, Jason Martin found Will McCarthy who ripped a shot that found the net just before the buzzer sounded. The late-game heroics resulted in the Laser 16-15 win and notched the first game in the win column on the 2025 campaign. 

Jack Condon shined in his debut for the Lasers netting 6 goals and adding 2 assists. His performance also earned him GNAC Rookie of the Week honors. Ryan Stone and Nate Campbell also each had hat tricks on the day scoring 3 goals each. Matthew Carbone dominated the ground balls, securing a game-high 13. 

Up Next - The Lasers will host their first home game on Saturday on Grellier Field at 1 PM versus the Raiders of Rivier University.