The #19 Middlebury men's lacrosse team opened Saturday's NCAA Second Round bout with nine unanswered goals on its way to a 13-8 win over #9 Dickinson from Bello Field in Medford, Massachusetts.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Logan White pushed the Panthers in front with 3:10 elapsed, muscling through a trio of Red Devil defenders before bouncing a bid into the back of the net.
- Not quite three minutes later, Cooper DeMallie posted up on the doorstep and one-timed a feed from James Farinacci into the center of the goal for a 2-0 head start.
- DeMallie fired a stepdown during a player-up situation and Will Ford uncorked a screamer into the right panel 53 seconds later to open up a 4-0 advantage at the 7:39 mark.
- With 9:29 gone, Ford found a gap in the Dickinson defensive zone and rustled the top-right corner for a 5-0 lead that held through to the quarter break.
- Middlebury maintained its momentum to the tune of four unanswered goals in the span of five minutes. Will Leahy connected with a player-up marker to spark the surge with 13:25 left in the half, while White logged an unaided tally 1:07 later. Ford capped the run with consecutive strikes to manufacture a nine-goal margin with 4:38 played in the second frame.
- The Red Devils began to whittle away at the deficit, netting three straight goals to close the frame. Landen Hyatt tucked a quick bouncer into the right panel with 9:10 to play, while Ben Monroe (5:55) and Ramsey Huggins (1:16) each joined the scoring column.
- Dickinson goalie Rocco Bognet made four saves to help blank the Panthers in the third quarter, while tacking on a pair of markers to trim the gap to 9-5 entering the fourth quarter. Luke Whalen connected with Preston Boyd less than two minutes into the quarter, while Huggins added his second strike with 2:42 to go.
- Middlebury broke the silent spell at the 12:56 mark in the final session. Ford found an unmarked Farinacci from point-blank range, who wristed a shot into the upper-left corner. White pinballed through traffic and tucked a sidewinder under the crossbar 1:19 later to restore a six-goal lead (11-5).
- With 9:16 showing, Huggins answered the two-goal spurt, splitting a double team and wrinkling the left panel while falling. Not to be outdone, DeMallie found room on the edge of the crease and snuck a between-the-legs bouncer past Bognet for a 12-6 contest with 8:05 expired.
- Huggins (5:05) and DeMallie (2:26) traded goals once more down the stretch, before a Whalen goal with 46 seconds remaining finalized the 13-8 triumph.
NOTES
- White powered the offensive output with a hat trick and a career-high five assists. The effort marked his fifth game with five or more points in the last six contests.
- Ford (4G, 1A) and DeMallie (4G) shared the team lead in goals.
- Noah Filippelli dominated the dot, winning 21 of his 25 faceoff attempts and scooping seven ground balls. The junior dug out his 100th career roller in the win.
- Justin DeLucia corralled six ground balls, good for his best single-game effort as a Panther.
- Hayden Kern made eight saves across the full 60 minutes in goal, surpassing 850 for his career (853).
- Head coach Dave Campbell earned his 200th victory at the program's helm.
- The navy and white improved to 3-0 in the all-time series against the Red Devils.
- Postgame Press Conference
With the win, Middlebury advances to Sunday's NCAA Third Round matchup against #1 Tufts. The opening faceoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCE
