MIDDLETOWN, Conn. -- Wesleyan University (1-0), an NCAA Division III tournament semi-finalist in 2006 and currently ranked fourth in Division III, jumped out to a 4-1 lead with four consecutive first-period goals, held an 8-4 edge at halftime, then held off Endicott College (1-1) for its season-opening men's lacrosse win, 9-6. Endicott had inaugurated its year with a 10-6 win over then-ranked 17th Springfield to move up to 21st in the country. Endicott was an NCAA tournament participant in both 2006 and 2005, as was Wesleyan.

Endicott struck first by controlling the opening faceoff (Endicott won 14 of 19 faceoffs in the game thanks to sophomore John Ortolani) and running 1:36 off the clock in the Wesleyan zone before senior Josh Gilbert found the net with the first of his two goals. Gilbert also added a pair of assists for a four-point game, giving him six points on the year. Wesleyan evened the score on a run from behind the net by freshman Jon Killeen for his first career goal at 12:04. He also ended the game with a pair of markers as did senior Mike Hines. In a span of 5:13, the Cardinals ran off three more goals for their 4-1 lead.

Endicott's best run came at the beginning of the second period when senior Dan Ryan scored both his goals just 1:08 apart to make it a 4-3 margin with 13:29 left before intermission. Wesleyan again mounted a three-goal burst over 5:32 to improve the lead to a game's best four-goal advantage (7-3) at 5:24 of the second. Sophomore Peter Follansbee completed the series in front off a Hines feed and it proved to be the game-winner. Sophomore Nick Cosco for the Gulls and Hines for the Cardinals ended the second-period scoring for the 8-4 Wesleyan cushion.

The defenses settled in during the second half as the 12 first-half goals reduced to only three in the final 30 minutes. Senior defender Patrick Gaffney was a rock for Endicott with numerous strips and 10 ground balls in the game. The two teams combined to put only 10 shots on goal in the second half as both goalies - senior Charlie Congleton for Wesleyan and sophomore Sean Kearney for Endicott - finished with eight saves each.

With sophomore Brandon Dube netting his third goal of the year during a man-up situation at 5:20 of the third period and Gilbert adding his second goal at the 12:38 mark of the fourth, the score stood 8-6. That was the last shot Endicott would put on goal as the Cardinals did an outstanding job controlling the clock down the stretch while improving their all-time record vs. Endicott to 7-0.

Score by Period       1  2  3  4  Tot
-------------------------------------
Endicott College....  1  3  1  1 -  6
Wesleyan University.  4  4  0  1 -  9
 
Endicott College SCORING:
GOALS: Josh Gilbert 2; Dan Ryan 2; Nick Cosco 1; Brandon Dube 1.
ASSISTS: Josh Gilbert 2; Nick Cosco 1; Joe Gugino 1; Eddie O'Reilly 1.
 
Wesleyan University SCORING:
GOALS: Mike Hines 2; Jon Killeen 2; Peter Follansbee 1; Jason Ben-
       Eliyahu 1; Adam Kirk 1; Grayson Connors 1; Lonnie Blumenthal 1.
ASSISTS: Peter Follansbee 2; Jason Ben-Eliyahu 1; Mike Hines 1; Chris
         Jasinski 1; Adam Kirk 1.
 
SHOTS BY PERIOD       1  2  3  4  Tot
-------------------------------------
Endicott College....  4 10 10  8 - 32
Wesleyan University. 11  7  5  2 - 25
 
GROUND BALLS BY PRD   1  2  3  4  Tot
-------------------------------------
Endicott College.... 11 12 10 11 - 44
Wesleyan University. 11  5 11 11 - 38
 
FACE-OFFS BY PRD       1     2     3     4     Total
----------------------------------------------------
Endicott College....  5-6   6-8   1-2   2-3  - 14-19
Wesleyan University.  1-6   2-8   1-2   1-3  -  5-19
 
CLEARS BY PERIOD       1     2     3     4     Total
----------------------------------------------------
Endicott College....  3-7   3-3   3-3   6-6  - 15-19
Wesleyan University.  4-5   4-5   6-9   6-9  - 20-28
 
EXTRA-MAN OPPS         1     2     3     4     Total
----------------------------------------------------
Endicott College....  0-0   0-0   1-2   0-0  -  1-2
Wesleyan University.  0-0   1-1   0-2   0-0  -  1-3
 
SAVES BY PERIOD       1  2  3  4  Tot
-------------------------------------
Endicott College....  2  3  3  0 -  8
Wesleyan University.  2  2  3  1 -  8
 
PENALTIES - Endicott College 3/2:30; Wesleyan University 2/1:30.

2007-03-09