Manchester, N.H. (April 26) -- After battling back from a two-goal deficit to tie the game in the final minutes of regulation, the Saint Anselm men's lacrosse team fell to visiting Mercy by a 10-9 final in overtime in non-conference action at Melucci Field on Monday afternoon. The win snaps the Hawks four-game winning streak, the program's longest in the last 11 seasons.

Senior Ryan McDonald (Bow, N.H.) scored his team-leading 23rd goal of the season just 20 seconds into the game off an assist from classmate Jeff Dunkle (Exeter, N.H.) to give the Hawks an early 1-0 edge. The Mavericks answered back quickly though and tied the game with 9:19 left in the first before Dunkle helped the Hawks regain the advantage 2-1 midway through the half.

The Mavericks had different ideas though and leading scorer Mike Marzocca scored the final two goals of the opening quarter as the visitors led 3-2 after one period. Sean Wallin opened the second quarter with a man-up goal for the Mavericks and the 4-2 lead as the teams then traded goals back and forth through the remainder of the second and then the entire third quarter.

Entering the fourth quarter trailing by a 9-7 margin, Saint Anselm sophomore Colin Lacey (So. Hadley, Mass.) scored an unassisted goal at the 8:56 mark to get the Hawks to within one at 9-8 entering the final minutes of regulation. Saint Anselm got off a number of solid scoring chances, only to be stopped repeatedly by Mercy freshman goalie T.J. DiCarlo. DiCarlo came into the game ranked second in the nation in saves per game and did not disappoint, turning aside 27 shots in the win.

With 4:28 left, the Hawks finally broke through as freshman Daniel Sullivan (Rumford, R.I.) scored his second goal of the season, off the assist from Dan Stefanini (Hopkinton, Mass.), to tie the game at 9-9.

The two teams went back and forth in overtime, each with scoring opportunities. The extra period was turnover-plagued, as much of the game was, and the Mavericks took possession late in the first extra period. Wallin found Frank Henenlotter in front of the net, who fired a shot off the shoulder of Hawk netminder Dan Flynn (Wakefield, Mass.) and in for the game winner. Flynn made six saves in goal for the Hawks in the defeat after he replaced Saint Anselm starting goalie Pat Acone (Bow, N.H.) at halftime.

Lacey had a hat trick to lead the Hawks, while Dunkle and Matt O'Connell (Charlestown, Mass.) each had two assists. McDonald added two goals for the Hawks in the defeat, while senior Kevin DeBenedetto (Reading, Mass.) had 10 caused turnovers and 10 ground balls for the Hawks.

Henenlotter led the Mavericks with a four-goal showing, along with hat tricks from both Marzocca and Wallin.

With the win, the Mavericks now sit at 4-8, while Saint Anselm falls to 7-5 overall. The Hawks are back in action at home on Wednesday afternoon, hosting Bentley for a 4 p.m. start at Melucci Field.