BOSTON, Mass. – The Roger Williams University Men's Lacrosse team conceded three early goals to Emmanuel on Saturday afternoon on Clemente Field, rebounding for a 16-6 win, with a 5-1 second quarter sparking the win.
The Hawks controlled the pace of play, taking 51 total shots to the Saints' 24. The Hawks also won the shot on goal battle, 26-14. The Hawks went 18-for-23 on clear attempts, while Emmanuel converted 17 of their 22 opportunities. Roger Williams also took the ground balls battle 35-26.
Scoring was paced by Carter Shelton (Castle Rock, Colo.), who had three goals and two assists for five points. Caleb McKeown (Plymouth, Mass.), Brady Lee (Mattapoisett, Mass.), and Nick Katsaros (West Hartford, Conn.) each had four points, with McKeown scoring four goals, while Lee had a goal and three assists, with Katsaros recording a pair of each.
On the defensive end, Kyle Zirn (Chester, N.H.) had five caused turnovers, with seven ground balls on the day, with five Hawks recording at least two caused turnovers in the tilt. David Rizzo (Methuen, Mass.) went 16-for-22 in faceoffs, while Logan Dudley (Jericho, Vt.) picked up the win, splitting time with Aaron D'Aversa (Sea Cliff, N.Y.) to combine for eight saves.
Cole Cloney had four points with two goals and a pair of assists, while Brandon Shuman had two goals for Emmanuel. Christopher Hamblett had three caused turnovers with three ground balls, while Ty Carroll had nine ground balls. Colby Enos made 10 saves while allowing 16 goals.
Emmanuel was the first to strike, 1:35 into the contest, as Cloney tallied the goal. Shuman followed to put the Saints up 2-0, just 4:57 into the contest. After taking advantage of a man-up opportunity, taking a 3-0 lead with 9:05 remaining in the opening quarter, the Hawks offense tallied two goals over the final 2":05 in the opening period to cut the deficit to one.
The Hawks continued their run, extending it to a 7-0 run over a stretch of 15:02, taking a 7-3 lead with 4:03 remaining in the half. Cloney responded for the Saints, cutting the deficit to four.
Kyle Schmitz scored and was able to cut the Emmanuel deficit to two, but Lee and McKeown answered, expanding the RWU lead back to four. After Shuman potted a goal with 9:22 remaining in the third, Roger Williams was able to hold the Saints at bay and saw Shelton score his second of the game with 1:16 left in the third quarter. The Hawks then posted a 6-0 score in the final frame, shutting down the Emmanuel offense, while taking the win.
Roger Williams (2-6, 0-0 CNE) will open Conference of New England (CNE) play on Wednesday, Mar. 25 at 7:00 pm. The Hawks will then travel to take on Endicott on Saturday, Mar. 28 at 12:00 pm to round out the week.
