SALISBURY, Md. - The top-ranked Salisbury University men's lacrosse team defeated No. 5 Gettysburg College 10-6 here Saturday before 1,240 at Sea Gull Stadium.

Salisbury senior Matt Hickman led all goal-scorers with four goals including the eventual game-winner at the 6:09 mark in the third quarter off an assist from defenseman Chris Heier.

The Sea Gulls (11-0) have now won six straight against the Bullets (6-2) and hold a 16-5 series advantage. The win also extends Salisbury’s home winning streak to 52 straight along with its 58-game regular season streak since 2003.

The two teams played an even game throughout as SU held a slight advantage in shots (32-30) and groundballs (33-29). Gettysburg won 11-of-20 faceoffs and scored two extra-man goals. Salisbury led 5-3 at halftime after the two teams played to a 2-2 tie through one quarter.

The second man-up goal for Gettysburg happened early in the third quarter when Kevin Freehill (two goals) beat SU goalie Max Zarchin (eight saves) at the 10:54 mark to cut the SU lead to one, 5-4.

Salisbury answered with four straight goals to take a 9-4 lead early in the fourth quarter en route to victory. Senior Eric Bishop (one goal, one assist), Hickman and juniors Brett Yoder and Greg Titus scored during that run. Junior midfielder Kyle Burto passed out a game-high three assists.

All-American goalie Pat Vaughan made 10 saves in between the pipes for Gettysburg in the loss.

Salisbury will next host the University of Mary Washington on Wednesday, April 4, in a Capital Athletic Conference game.

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SALISBURY, Md. – No. 5 Gettysburg held top-ranked Salisbury to a season-low 10 goals, but could not muster the offense to pull off the upset in Saturday's 10-6 loss in non-conference action at Sea Gull Stadium. The Sea Gulls have now won 80 of their last 81 games dating to the middle of the 2003 season.

Salisbury (11-0), which had been averaging over 21 goals per game, got at least one point from 12 different players. Junior attackman Matt Hickman led all players with four goals on the day, and junior midfielder Kyle Burto handed out three assists. Senior goalie Max Zarchin made eight saves to pick up the win.

For the Bullets (6-2), senior midfielder Kevin Freehill (Baldwin, N.Y./Baldwin) led the offense with a pair of goals, and sophomore attackman Rob Triplett (McLean, Va./McLean) added two assists. Senior goalie Pat Vaughan (Cockeysville, Md./Loyola Blakefield) was credited with 10 saves.

Statistically, the game was nearly even. Salisbury held a 32-30 advantage in shots, had four more ground balls, two fewer failed clears and three fewer turnovers. Meanwhile, Gettysburg senior midfielder Jimmy Gates (Basking Ridge, N.J./Ridge) won 11-of-20 faceoffs against three different Sea Gulls.

The one area where either team had an appreciable advantage was in man-up opportunities. The Bullets converted on 2-of-6 attempts while holding Salisbury 0-for-3.

The team alternated goals in the first quarter, but it took nearly nine minutes for the Sea Gulls to strike first. Hickman scored at the 6:17 mark of the period with an assist going to junior midfielder Michael Lennon. Gettysburg freshman Joe Brody (Bethesda, Md./Walter Johnson) answered unassisted just 1:25 later. Sea Gulls freshman midfielder Mike Von Kamecke put his team out in front again at 3:03 before Freehill knotted it up again at 2-2 with 54 seconds left in the period.

Salisbury outscored the Bullets 3-1 in the second quarter, taking the lead for good on Hickman's second goal at 7:40. Gettysburg sophomore attackman Zach Pucci (Ridgewood, N.J./Ridgewood) struck for the visitors' first man-up goal a little more than two minutes later, but senior midfielder Matt Dasinger ended the first-half scoring to put his team up 5-3 heading into the break.

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2007-03-31