Wilcox Scores Game-Winner in OT as No.10/13 Men's Lacrosse Overcomes Deficit to Shock Rollins
Box Score WINTER PARK, Fla. (Mar. 10, 2015) – Powered by a game-winning goal less than 40 seconds into overtime from sophomore Nick Wilcox (Hamburg, N.Y./Hamburg), the No. 10/13 Mercy College men's lacrosse team overcame a three-goal fourth quarter deficit to earn a 9-8 victory over Rollins College on Tuesday night.
The Mavericks (4-1) have now played five consecutive one-goal games to start the season and have now won two in a row, while the Tars (3-5) drop their second consecutive overtime game to a ranked team.
Senior Jesse Wood (Binghamton, N.Y./Seton Catholic Central) and sophomore Daniel Speicher (Seaford, N.Y./Seaford) each recorded two goals with Wood also adding an assist. Junior Robert Rossi (North Massapequa, N.Y./Adelphi) ended the contest with a goal and two assists. Graduate student Kevin Glueckert (Bethpage, N.Y./Albany) finished with a goal and four ground balls, while Wilcox, junior Connor McLachlan (Albany, N.Y./Guilderland) and senior Zach Haun (Buffalo, N.Y./West Seneca East Senior) recorded the Mavericks other goals. Wood led the team with six ground balls and junior Kyle Stockton (Medford, N.Y./Patchogue-Medford) chipped in two assists. Freshman Michael Schneider (West Babylon, N.Y./West Babylon) made nine saves in net to improve to 2-0 on the year.
As was the case on Sunday at Saint Leo, Mercy got off to a slow start out of the gates as they fell behind 4-0 with four minutes left in the first quarter. Wood would get the Mavericks on the board with a goal just before the horn sounded to cut the deficit to 4-1 after one quarter of play.
McLachlan broke through with his first goal of the season less than a minute into the second to get Mercy closer at 4-2. The two teams remained scoreless for nearly the remainder of the period before Rollins tacked on a goal at the 1:07 mark to make it 5-2. Wood came through with his second of the day a second just before halftime to make it 5-3 in favor of the Tars heading into halftime.
The Mavericks got within one, 5-4, as Haun found the back of the net off a feed from Rossi with 13:31 left in the third. Rollins responded with two unanswered before Glueckert notched his second goal of the season with 6:46 left in the frame to make it 7-5 Rollins after three.
The Tars opened up the fourth quarter with a goal at the 10:45 mark to make it 8-5. Neither team would score for the next seven minutes and it looked like the Mavericks hopes at a Florida sweep were fading away. However, Mercy's late game heroics would not run out as Speicher broke through with back-to-back goals less than a minute apart to make it 8-7 with 2:59 left in regulation. Rossi, who was named the ECC Player of the Week earlier this week, would live up to the accolade as he put one past the goalkeeper with 1:17 left to tie the game up at 8-8.
The Mavericks won the ensuing faceoff and got a man-up opportunity but would not be able to capitalize, sending the game into overtime.
Glueckert won the opening faceoff of the extra frame and senior Christian Reinauer (Sparta, N.J./Sparta) picked up the groundball leading to a pair of early shots that went high and wide. However, Wilcox would not be denied as he took a pass from Speicher with 3:21 left in the period and put it in the net for his sixth of the season to complete an improbable comeback and send the Mavericks back home with a Florida sweep.
Mercy held a 47-39 edge in shots and a 26-25 advantage in ground balls. The Mavericks were able to win 12-of-18 faceoffs led by Glueckert who went 10-of-14 in the circle. Mercy was also able to win despite committing 22 turnovers compared to 12 for the home team.
Head Coach Jordan Levine and the Mavericks return to New York and will host Southern New Hampshire on Tuesday, March 17th at 3 p.m.
