VILLANOVA, Pa. - The Manhattan College men's lacrosse team concluded its non-conference schedule on Saturday afternoon, as the Jaspers (5-6) paid a visit to Villanova (7-3). Despite a hat trick by James Synowiez (Owego, N.Y.), Manhattan came up on the short end of an 8-4 decision at Villanova Stadium.

The start time was moved up from 7:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. because of Villanova' appearance in the Final Four on Saturday night, and the earlier start may have resulted in each team getting out of the gate slowly. The contest was scoreless until midway through the first quarter, when Synowiez notched his first goal of the game, an unassisted tally. Villanova scored two goals in a 35-second span to take a 2-1 lead before Angelo Marrano (Rockville Centre, N.Y.) found the back of the net to tie the game with 57 seconds left in the first quarter.

Villanova took control of the game in the second quarter, outscoring the Jaspers 4-0 in the period. The Wildcats also held a 12-1 edge in shots and a 16-5 advantage in ground balls during the second quarter. Villanova took a 3-2 lead on Tim Driscoll's second goal of the game at the 13:08 mark, and the Wildcats scored three more times during the stanza to take a 6-2 halftime lead.

Synowiez posted a man-up tally two minutes into the third quarter to pull the Jaspers within 6-3 before Mike Brennan's goal brought Villanova's lead back to four goals at 7-3. Each team scored once in the fourth quarter to seal the Wildcats' 8-4 victory.

Synowiez scored three times on a team-high five shots, while Marrano collected a team-best four ground balls and went 6-3 on faceoffs to go along with his goal. Kyle Ochwat (Farmingdale, N.Y.) also corralled four ground balls for the Jaspers. In goal, John Geagan (Seaford, N.Y.) (3-6) took the loss after facing 40 Villanova shots, including 22 shots on goal, and making 14 saves.

Driscoll tallied a pair of goals to pace the Villanova offense. Mike Brennan had a goal and an assist, while Chris MacDonald distributed two assists. Matthew Fritts fired seven shots, as the Wildcats outshot the Jaspers 40-16 in the contest. Villanova also held a 32-20 advantage on the ground. Brian Karalunas collected a game-high six ground balls and forced two turnovers. Andrew DeLorento (7-3) made three saves in net and picked up the win.

The Jaspers return to Philadelphia next Saturday, when they resume MAAC play with a 1:00 p.m. matchup at Saint Joseph's (4-6, 2-2 MAAC).

2009-04-05