MANCHESTER, N.H. – The Saint Anselm College men's lacrosse team opened its 2021 season with a 17-10 victory over Southern New Hampshire University on Wednesday at Penmen Stadium.

Ranked No. 19 in NCAA Division II according to the most recent United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association National Coaches' Poll, Saint Anselm moves to 1-0 on the season while the Penmen fall to 1-1. The Hawks improved to 1-0 in the Northeast-10 Conference and have won the last four games over Southern New Hampshire (1-1 NE10) in the all-time series.

Senior Matt Ward (Shrewsbury, Mass.) led the way with five goals for Saint Anselm, posting a career-high three caused turnovers on defense in a well-rounded effort. Sophomore Jack Andrews (Cumberland, R.I.) contributed with four goals off the bench and senior Griffin Shoemaker (Shirley, Mass.) was responsible for two goals and two assists.

Defensively, Andrew Bonavita (Longmeadow, Mass.) logged five ground balls and sophomore Ryan Slattery (North Andover, Mass.) chipped in with three caused turnovers.

The Hawks jumped out to the early 5-1 lead in the first period, thanks to the production of five goal scorers. Logging 12 of the first quarter's 16 shots, the Hawks dictated the tempo of the period by reeling in 14 ground balls off a game-high 10 Penmen miscues in the first 15 minutes alone.

Southern New Hampshire potted three of the game's next four goals, shrinking the Saint Anselm advantage to 6-4 and ultimately keeping themselves to within two goals at halftime, 8-6. Despite the hefty shot advantage through the opening half (24-to-12), the Hawks were unable to pull away from the hosts.

Ahead by just a 10-8 margin near the midpoint of the third quarter, Saint Anselm pulled away with seven of the game's final nine tallies to create a game-high lead of 17-9 in the game's final five minutes.

Senior CJ Hart (Reading, Mass.) earned the victory in goal for Saint Anselm, making eight saves on 18 shots to win his fifth career game. Penmen backstop Oscar Kozikowski made 16 saves in a losing effort, conceding 17 goals on 33 shots.

Southern New Hampshire was led by a four-goal performance by Stephen Dubois. Saint Anselm held statistical advantages in shots (48-to-34) and ground balls (43-to-34), but the Penmen won 18 of the game's 28 face-offs.