The Middlebury men's lacrosse team breezed by #18 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Wednesday afternoon's home opener on Youngman Field at Alumni Stadium.

HIGHLIGHTS

• The Engineers notched the first goal 2:47 into the contest. Tyler Ruffini dodged down the alley and hit a trailing Cooper Manzi on the doorstep, who flicked an underhanded bid into the right panel for the 1-0 edge.
• The Panthers parried with a three-goal run capped by Ged Gengras, who gained a step on his defender and spiked a bouncer into the back of the net to build a 3-1 advantage.
• Gavin Romweber ticked the fourth tally with 1:14 gone in the second stanza. The rookie scooped a missed shot behind the goal and spun away from an RPI defender, faking low before rustling the nylon.
• The teams tallied a pair of markers over the ensuing 8:25. The second Engineer marker cut the deficit to 6-3 with 5:19 to go when Easton Morse connected with Ruffini across the crease for a low finish.
• Middlebury bridged the intermission with four consecutive tallies, growing the lead to seven (10-3) on a player-up tally from Nick Marvin with 6:04 gone in the third session. The Panther used a swim dodge to discard a defender before tucking a quick shot into the left side.
• RPI sandwiched a Gengras finish with goals from Sean Smith and Manzi, trimming the margin to six at 11-5. The Panthers responded with a 3-0 run spanning nearly 13 minutes to make it a nine-goal game, punctuated when Ryan Colella rumbled down on a solo clear and found an open net for a player-down finish.
• The sides split the final four markers to finalize the 16-7 decision.

NOTES

• Romweber paced the squad in goals (three), points (four) and ground balls (10) in the win. The rookie has opened his debut season with consecutive hat tricks.
• Drew Dummer and Colella each caused a trio of turnovers. Dummer moved into third in program history in career caused miscues (62), breaking a tie with Eric Rogers '18.
• Noah Filipelli enjoyed a strong effort at the dot, winning 11 of his 15 reps and scooping nine ground balls.
• Hayden Kern made eight saves to earn his 40th career triumph between the pipes.
• The programs met for the 28th matchup, with Middlebury holding an 18-10 advantage in the all-time series.
• The team's nine-goal margin of victory is the largest against the Engineers since a 13-4 win on the road in 2006.

The Panthers continue their two-game home stint against Connecticut College on Saturday, March 7, with the opening faceoff set for 1:00 p.m. The contest serves as the team's Face Off Against Cancer game.