Manchester, N.H. (March 7) -- Rallying from a 7-3 halftime deficit, the Saint Anselm men's lacrosse team came up just short in an 11-10 loss to No. 5 Adelphi on a warm Saturday afternoon at the Derryfield School. The Hawks had an opportunity to the tie the game in the final minutes before the Panthers held on for the victory.

Adelphi jumped on top 2-0 in the early going before the Hawks got on the board with a man-up goal from Steve Porter (Hopkinton, R.I.), assisted by Matt O'Connell (Charlestown, Mass.). The Panthers then rattled off five unanswered goals and had the game seemingly in hand at 7-1 with 7:39 left in the first half. The Hawks chipped away though and a pair of goals from Jeff Dunkle (Exeter, N.H.) made it a 7-3 Adelphi lead heading into the halftime break.

Saint Anselm pulled to within 9-6 with 7:49 left in the third period before the Panthers added two more goals and held an 11-6 edge with 2:38 left in the third. Ryan McDonald (Bow, N.H.) scored with 1:29 left and Chris Murphy (Winchester, Mass.) scored with one tenth of a second left in the period, off a rebound, to make it an 11-8 game heading into the final quarter.

The Hawks' defense held the Panthers scoreless in the final quarter, while Murphy took over the game for Saint Anselm. After a man-up goal with 11:57 left by Murphy, assisted by O'Connell, the Hawks pulled within one on an unassisted score by Murphy with 6:54 remaining. Saint Anselm had an opportunity to tie the game in the final minutes, but Adelphi held on for the victory.

Dan Flynn (Wakefield, Mass.) took the loss for the Hawks, going the distance and making seven saves. Zachary Bates turned aside nine shots in the victory.

Murphy led the Hawks with four goals and one assist, while O'Connell finished with a team-best four assists. Joe Vitale and Kevin Kemp each had hat tricks for Adelphi, while Eddie Ege had a game-high six assists.

Saint Anselm falls to 0-2 on the season, while Adelphi is now 3-1 overall with the victory.