Mercy Men's Lacrosse Stuns #7 NYIT 16-11
The Mercy College men's lacrosse team made history on
Wednesday afternoon, beating a ranked opponent for the first time,
upending NYIT 16-11. NYIT is ranked #7 in the latest USLIA Division
II coaches poll. Mercy is now 2-0 overall, and 1-0 in the East
Coast Conference. NYIT is 0-2, and now 0-1 in the ECC. Currently,
the ECC has three teams ranked in the top seven in the country.
NYIT has won three national championships in the last eight
years, most recently in 2008. Mercy College is a second year
program, playing just the 17th game in school history
today.
“I am the happiest for the players,” said
second-year head coach Steve
Manitta. “They have bought into what we are
trying to do. To beat NYIT is amazing. They are so well respected
in all of lacrosse, not just Division II.”
The 16 goals scored are the most in the school's brief
history.
The Mavericks jumped to a quick 2-0 lead in the first quarter,
on goals from freshman Quadear
Mike (East Syracuse, N.Y./East Syracuse Minoa) and
junior Sal Spinelli (East Islip, N.Y./East Islip HS/Suffolk
CC). The Bears were able to cause several Mercy
turnovers on clears, and capitalized, finishing the first quarter
with a flurry of three goals, punctuated by back-to-back goals from
Cory Triola.
To open the second quarter, NYIT scored on a goal from Jason
Smith, taking a 4-2 lead. Mercy then rattled off three consecutive
goals, including an unassisted, man down goal from junior
Craig Blom (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y./Comsewogue/Suffolk
C.C.). On that play, the NYIT penalty had just
expired, but the defender was not able to rejoin the play prior to
the goal being scored.
The lead was tenuous, with NYIT displaying veteran poise. In
just a span of 24 seconds, goals from Joe Herman and Chris Lubin
gave NYIT the lead back at 6-5 with 7:18 to go in the half.
Senior Nick
Fitzgerald (Yorktown Heights, N.Y./Yorktown) found the
back of the net with 4:46 to go with an unassisted goal, and Mercy
took a 7-6 lead into the half.
The third quarter began with a man-up situation for Mercy, as
NYIT took a slashing penalty as the second quarter expired. Just 27
seconds in, freshman Jesse Wood
(Binghamton, N.Y./Seton Catholic) found classmate
Mike Rae (Bethpage, N.Y./Bethpage) for the
man-up goal. Wood was not done, as minutes later he found junior
Sean Wallin (Mountain Lakes, N.J./Mountain
Lakes) who followed with his only goal of the game,
and Mercy led by two. Sophomore Mike
Marzocca (North Babylon, N.Y./North Babylon) continued
the run, scoring the first of his three second-half goals, and
Mercy now led by three, 9-6.
NYIT responded with a pair of goals, including one from Ryan
Amengal. It was the only goal of the game for the Preseason
All-American.
Minutes later in the high-scoring affair, Mike and Spinelli
scored just 29 seconds apart, followed by another Spinelli marker,
and Mercy led 12-8 with 3:49 to play in the game.
NYIT rattled off two more goals in the waning minutes of the
third, including Lubin's third of the day, and Mercy led
12-10.
Entering the fourth and final period, Mercy seized control of
the game, and held possession. Marzocca and freshman Patrick Hodapp (Oak Ridge, N.J./Jefferson)
scored early unassisted goals, to put Mercy up 14-10. But the Bears
continued to push. With about 7:45 to play, NYIT had perhaps their
best chance to get back in the game. In a span of about eight
seconds, sophomore Maverick goalie T. J.
DiCarlo (Farmingdale, N.Y./Farmingdale) made three
saves from point-blank range, the third of which came as he leapt
across the goal to thwart a Tyler Chin shot. For the game, DiCarlo
made 14 saves, including six in the last 15 minutes.
“In the fourth quarter, I was so focused,” DiCarlo
would say. “You just react, that is all you have as a
goalie.”
Wood followed with his sole goal of the contest at the 5:54
mark. Marzocca followed, and Mercy led 16-10 with 3:47 remaining in
the game. Sean Rimmer tallied one final goal for NYIT, and Mercy
won 16-11.
For the game, Wood led the offense with one goal and five
assists. “I was getting the ball behind (the goal), keeping
my eyes up,” Wood stated. “The crease guys did a great
job coming to the ball, getting open, and I was able to find them
with my passes.”
Mike added a pair of goals and two assists, as Spinelli and
Marzocca each added three goals.
Mercy returns to action on Saturday, March 5, at Chestnut Hill.
The game will faceoff at 1:00 p.m.
