LANCASTER, Pa. – A 12-goal run and almost 30 minutes of scoreless lacrosse was enough for #9 Roanoke to slide past Franklin & Marshall College in the Diplomats' (1-1) home opener. The Maroons (4-0) produced seven players with a multiple goal effort, with Pat March's hat trick leading the way.

F&M's Sean Oliver completed his hat trick with 2:59 left in the first period, giving F&M an early 4-2 lead. March answered 23 seconds later with his first of the day, igniting the Maroon's offense. It was all Roanoke from there. Jay Troja knotted it at 4-4 before the end of the quarter.

Roanoke scored six goals in the first five minutes of the second quarter to blow the game open. Zach Thomas and Jeff Keating each scored back-to-back goals in that spate. Four different Maroons scored after that.

It wasn't until the 4:24 mark of the third quarter when F&M finally broke the drought. Mark Hild cashed in on the extra-man to make it 14-5.

The game was marred by 17 penalties, but neither team took advantage of the opportunities. Roanoke converted on three of eight chances, while F&M found the net twice in seven extra-man opportunities.

The Maroons' Jake Dorsey stood tall with 18 saves, including a number of dandies early in the second quarter. He worked 55 minutes before yielding his cage to Nick Peck.

Roanoke held an 18-13 edge in faceoffs and outworked F&M on loose balls, 44-33. The Maroons peppered the F&M net with 55 shots, compared to 40 in the other direction.

F&M freshmen Harrison Jones and Ryan Whooley each netted their first career goals in the loss. The Diplomats return to action on Wednesday at Cabrini.

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LANCASTER, Pa. -- Roanoke scored seven goals in the second period to pull away from Franklin & Marshall and win 21-10 on Sunday afternoon. The win improved the Maroons to 4-0 while dropping the Diplomats to 1-1 on the season. The win was the first against F&M in the series (1-1). The Maroons, ranked ninth in the nation, dropped a 10-9 decision to the Diplomats back in 1988. For Roanoke, it was the fourth-straight 20-goal game of the season, the longest since the 1993 season.

Roanoke, which is 4-0 for the first time since 2005, won the groundball battle, 44-33, and held a 55-40 advantage in shots. The men were successful on 19-of-27 clear attempts and won 18-of-31 face-offs on the afternoon. The game had 17 penalties. Roanoke converted on three of eight chances, while F&M scored twice in seven opportunities.

F&M's Sean Oliver scored three of the Diplomats' first four goals, completing a hat trick with 2:59 left in the first period and giving F&M an early 4-2 lead. Pat March answered 23 seconds later with his first of the day, igniting the Maroon's offense. Jay Troja knotted it at 4-4 before the end of the quarter.

It was all Roanoke from there, as the Maroons scored six goals in the first five minutes of the second quarter to blow the game open. Zach Thomas and Jeff Keating each scored back-to-back goals in that span, and four other Maroons found the net, and Roanoke went into the half with an 11-4 lead. They scored five of the next six goals to extend the lead, 15-5, heading into the final period.

The Maroons' Jake Dorsey made 18 saves, including a number of stops early in the second quarter.

Roanoke was led by March with three goals, which puts him three shy of 25th on the all-time scoring list (121 pts) and three shots from being sixth in career shots with 125. Matt Quinton, Keating, and Thomas added two goals and an assist to lead the Maroons. Thomas is now ninth on the all-time scoring list (188 pts).

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2009-03-01