SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Led by four goals apiece from captains Zack Greer (Whitby, Ont.) and Kevin Hoagland (Glastonbury, Conn.), the Bryant University men's lacrosse team earned its ninth win of the season with a 14-4 victory over Bellarmine University at Bulldog Stadium Saturday afternoon.

Greer's seven points on the day paced the Bulldogs (9-5), while linemates Hoagland and fellow senior captain Bryan Kaufmann (Putnam Valley, N.Y.) (3 goals, 1 assist) chipped in four points apiece. Bryant would hold the Knights (6-7) to just one goal per frame while the Bulldogs stayed on the offensive for much of the contest.

"Looking back on our previous 13 games, I thought today was without question one of our best," said Bryant head coach Mike Pressler. "It was just a complete effort from everybody. We played well in every phase of the game and that was our goal from the beginning. It was good to get out there, get ahead early and get a win against a good team, especially a good offensive team."

It didn't take long for the Bulldog offense to get to scoring, as Greer turned a strong early Bryant possession into a 1-0 lead just 39 seconds into the game with an unassisted tally after curling around the right side of the cage for a low shot.

Bellarmine would even the score in the fourth minute off a Jarrett Davis goal, but that was as close as the Knights would get to the Bulldogs all afternoon.

Back-to-back goals from Kaufmann (unassisted) and Hoagland (assisted by Kaufmann) came within 37 seconds of each other for a two-goal Bulldog advantage less than five minutes into the contest, but from there the teams would play to a draw through the remainder of the first quarter.

Bellarmine's Jordan Wong notched his first goal of the season to start the scoring in the second frame, taking a spectacular pass from Alex Porter from out front and landing right on the doorstep of Bryant rookie netminder Jameson Love (Darien, Conn.) to cut the home lead to 3-2.

But it would take Max Weisenberg (Long Beach, N.Y.) and Greer 61 seconds to respond, as Weisenberg took Greer's pass from the right side just as he hit the top of the crease, bouncing the ball past Knights goalie Scott Bowles.

Greer and Rob Maiorano (Easton, Conn.) tallied goals just 12 seconds apart to give the Bulldogs a 6-2 lead before sophomore Gary Crowley (Scituate, Mass.) sent Bellarmine to the locker room down by five, 7-2, with his only goal of the game with just 10 ticks left on the clock.

"With a good team like this, you don't want to let them hang around into the second half," Pressler said. "I think with a 7-2 lead at halftime and by getting the first two goals of the third quarter, we really put the game away.

"But I've seen Bellarmine score in bunches and come back, and to hold this team to only four is just a great credit to Jameson Love and the entire defense."

After the break, Bellarmine came back with a new goalie, David Haas, but still couldn't keep the Bulldogs out of the net as Kaufmann came out with the first two goals of the third frame.

Davis scored a man-advantage goal with 5:52 to play in the third to make the score 9-3, but just 10 seconds later Hoagland notched his first of three-straight tallies to get back a seven-goal lead. The senior attacker scored his second of the trio with 3:39 to go in the frame after his ball dribbled past an unaware Bellarmine goaltender, and scored again to open the fourth quarter, again unassisted.

"Obviously when you're pulling goalies in and out, playing musical goaltenders if you will, that tells you they aren't happy with their play in goal," said Pressler of Bellarmine's numerous goalie changes. "They tried to keep us off-balance trading between a righty and a lefty, and I thought our guys adjusted to that very well."

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2009-04-18