HIRAM, Oh. - The La Roche men's lacrosse team dropped a close match in their season opener Wednesday afternoon at Hiram, 8-9. Senior midfielder Brent Burkhouse (Pittsburgh, PA/Plum) scored the Redhawks first three goals and finished with a game-high four in total.
The Redhawks scored eight goals on just nine shots on goal and took a total of 18 shots. Hiram, in comparison, scored nine goals on 29 shots on goal and attempted a total of 53 shots. 6'3 Sophomore goalkeeper Chris Sylvis (Bethel Park, PA/Bethel Park) made 20 saves and played all 60 minutes in net for LRU. Sylvis made 20 or more saves in ten games last season.
Junior midfielder Shawn McDanel (Pittsburgh, PA/Baldwin) picked up a game-high 14 ground balls and contributed a goal and two caused turnovers. McDanel also won an impressive 14 of 18 faceoffs he was in. Senior attack Mitchell Bachman (Saxonburg, PA/Knoch) added two goals and a caused turnover. Junior midfielder Austen Lunt (Pittsburgh, PA/North Hills) contributed a game-high five assists.
After trailing by three goals midway through the third, the Terriers scored four unanswered (three in the fourth quarter) while holding the Redhawks scoreless to win their second game of the season.
Final: La Roche: 8, Hiram: 9
Records: La Roche (0-1), Hiram (2-0)
How it Happened
McDanel forced a turnover at the 7:44 mark of the first quarter. Less than a minute later, Lunt passed the ball to Burkhouse who scored the first goal of the game. Hiram's Hunter Jenkins scored the next two goals between the 3:38 and 1:48 marks of the first. Less than 20 seconds later, Burkhouse scored his second goal of the game off another assist from Lunt. The non-conference opponents were tied 2-2 after one.
To start the second, McDanel won his sixth straight faceoff and found Burkhouse for his third goal of the contest. The duo scored less than 10 seconds into the quarter. Hiram answered in the 10th minute to even the game once more. Each team scored two goals a piece over the next six minutes, McDanel and Bachman scored on two extra-man opportunities. Devin Wolford scored in the fourth minute less than 20 seconds after a Terrier. Despite being a man down, Bachman scored off an assist from Lunt with two minutes to go in the second. La Roche headed into the break ahead 7-5. The Redhawks scored an impressive five goals in the quarter.
Burkhouse picked up a off a Hiram turnover, cleared it and took it to the house to put LRU up 8-5 at the 7:58 mark. The host team then scored four unanswered goals (three in the fourth quarter) and ultimately won the contest. The Terriers game-winning goal came with less than 33 seconds to play. The Redhawks did not attempt a shot in the final quarter.
NEXT UP: Men's lacrosse heads to Cincinatti, OH this Saturday, February 29th to take on Mount Saint Joseph. Game-time is set for 3:00 p.m.