MANCHESTER, N.H. – Junior
Colin Mulvey (Reading, Mass.) and sophomore
Maverick Lyon (Albany, Ore.) each registered a hat trick to lead the third-seeded Saint Anselm College men's lacrosse team to a 16-6 victory over sixth-seeded Bentley University in the First Round of the 2024 NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship. The Hawks advance to the NCAA Championship's Quarterfinal Round for the second straight season. Freshman goaltender
Finn Granara (Reading, Mass.) made seven saves for Saint Anselm in the win.
UP NEXT:
- Saint Anselm travels to Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. to take on the North Region's No. 2 seed, Mercy University, in the NCAA Quarterfinals on Sunday, May 12th at 1:00 p.m.
2024 NCAA Division II Men's Lacrosse First Round
Score: No. 6 (3 seed) Saint Anselm 16, No. 14 (6 seed) Bentley 6
Records: No. 6 (3 seed) Saint Anselm 11-4; No. 14 (6 seed) Bentley 9-6
Location: Manchester, N.H. (Grappone Stadium)
Date: Wednesday, May 8, 2024
Attendance: 305
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Fifth-year faceoff man Craig Yannone (Lynnfield, Mass.) won the game's opening faceoff for Saint Anselm, leading to a shot on goal by senior Jake Davis (Franklin, Mass.) that was saved by Bentley goaltender Jackson Tinsley.
- On that same possession, Mulvey wrapped around the right side of the cage and fired a shot that went top shelf to give the Hawks the early 1-0 lead.
- Bentley got their first possession of the afternoon by forcing a turnover followed by a successful clear. After getting into an offensive set, Will Adams scored in a similar fashion to Mulvey's goal with a high shot attempt after coming from behind the net to tie the score.
- Just 17 seconds later, the Falcons caught the Hawks out of position in the back end. Long stick midfielder Alex Parton received a pass from David Gagnon and was set up for a breakaway. Parton placed a shot into the top corner to make it 2-1, Bentley, with 10:53 remaining in the first quarter.
- A few moments later, senior Noah Larsen (Northborough, Mass.) hit the post with a shot for Saint Anselm. Tying the score shortly after that was Mulvey with his second goal. This time the junior attacker came around the left side of the cage and found the back of the net to tie it at 2-2 with senior Nick Larsen (Northborough, Mass.) picking up the assist.
- At the 5:29 mark of the opening quarter, Granara made his first save of the game by denying a long range missile from Bentley's Nicholas Thorn-Guillaro to keep it level. After clearing, Davis let one fly from deep and scored to make it 3-2, Saint Anselm.
- Less than a minute later, Mulvey completed his hat trick to double the Hawks' advantage. Mulvey popped out from behind the cage and received a pass from Lyon before beating the goalie high.
- With under three minutes to go in the first, Bentley was given an extra-man opportunity. During the 30-second penalty, Conor Segreti rifled a shot just underneath the cross-bar to trim the deficit back down to a goal.
- However, the Hawks scored just six seconds before quarter's end to take a 5-3 lead into the second. Senior Jonathan Holland (Derry, N.H.) forced a turnover by the Falcons and the Hawks quickly cleared. They got the ball to Noah Larsen, who put together a series of moves to create an opening before diving and finishing with a backhanded shot attempt to beat the buzzer.
- Holland caused another turnover with a big hit that jarred the ball loose and gave Saint Anselm possession early in the second quarter. That led to another clear by the Hawks and on the offensive end, fifth-year Jack Andrews (Cumberland, R.I.) got on the scoresheet with his signature high-bouncing shot that made it a 6-3 game.
- Midway through the second quarter, Bentley turned Saint Anselm over near midfield and once again caught the Hawks out of position. The Falcons threw it ahead and Thorn-Guillaro set up Adams for his second goal right on the doorstep, which brought Saint Anselm's lead back down to two scores.
- Gagnon then came around from X and notched a goal for the Falcons that made it 6-5, but the Hawks would get the last laugh, scoring three times in the final 3:30 of the first half.
- Scoring the first of those three was sophomore Chris Claflin (Newton, Mass.). The midfielder got the ball up top and dodged to his right before putting it back on his left hand and ripping low to high to make it 7-5.
- Lyon then scored with a left-handed laser to make it a three-goal game and junior Joe Lombardi (Holliston, Mass.) launched a shot into the top left corner with 38 seconds remaining in the half. His snipe made it 9-5 at the halftime break.
- Granara made a pair of stops early in the third quarter, which allowed his team to increase their lead with a couple more scores. Nick Larsen drove down the right side and bounced in a shot for the first goal of the period, and after another caused turnover by Holland, Lyon drove to the cage and picked up his second goal to make it 11-5, Saint Anselm.
- Nick Harvath managed to get one back for Bentley with six minutes left in the third, but Davis sounded the goal horn for Saint Anselm once again with a left-handed rip that made it 12-6, Hawks, going into the final quarter of play.
- Saint Anselm's defense made things even more difficult for Bentley over the final 15 minutes. The Hawks did not concede a goal and only allowed one shot on target, while the Falcons turned it over four times in the fourth.
- Nick Larsen and Noah Larsen each scored inside the final 10 minutes for the Hawks, as did Lyon to secure his hat trick. Putting the exclamation point on the win was graduate student Jake Athanas (Manchester-by-the-Sea, Mass.), who scored his first goal of the season with nine seconds left on the clock to give Saint Anselm an even 10-goal margin of victory.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Saint Anselm nearly doubled Bentley in shot attempts, 46-24, and also held a 22-13 edge in shots on goal.
- The Hawks dominated all afternoon from the faceoff X, winning 20 out of 26 draws. Leading the charge was sophomore Quinn Gannon (Scituate, Mass.), who went a perfect 10-for-10, while Yannone won eight out of 12. Gannon has a perfect 100 percent win rate on faceoffs in the last two games, which he had previously never done in any game in his career.
- In the turnover category, Bentley committed 14 turnovers in the game compared to 21 Saint Anselm giveaways. The Falcons' defense caused nine of those turnovers, while the Hawks' defense caused eight.
- Saint Anselm held a large advantage in ground balls, leading that area, 41-27. The Hawks also went 19-for-21 on clear attempts, while the Falcons went 22-for-25.
- On extra-man opportunities, the Hawks did not score on two chances, while the Falcons did convert on their lone opportunity.
- Mulvey and Lyon led Saint Anselm with three goals each, while Lyon added an assist. Nick Larsen also had a four-point game with two scores and two helpers, while Davis and Noah Larsen both scored twice as well. Four other Hawks had one goal in the game.
- On the defensive side, Holland led the team with a game-high three caused turnovers. The senior long pole now has 19 caused turnovers on the year.
- Adams led Bentley with a pair of scores and Gagnon finished with a goal and an assist.
- Granara ended his afternoon with seven saves in the cage for Saint Anselm and allowed just six goals. Tinsley made six stops between the pipes and let in 16 goals for Bentley.
- Davis now leads the Hawks with 30 goals and 50 points on the season. Mulvey is second on the squad with 25 goals, while Noah Larsen and Nick Larsen are right behind with 24 and 23 goals, respectively. Nick Larsen's 24 assists are also a team-best.
- This marked the 33rd all-time meeting between these two programs and the first in the NCAA Tournament. Saint Anselm is now 13-20 overall against Bentley.
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