St. Mary’s College of Maryland’s men’s lacrosse team overcame a halftime deficit to win 10-9 against the University of Mary Washington in a non-conference game on Wednesday night. St. Mary’s College entered the second half with a 6-4 deficit but used a strong offensive effort to take control of the game, including three unanswered goals to build a three-goal lead with just under eight minutes left. Mary Washington fought back, scoring two goals in quick succession to narrow the deficit, but St. Mary’s held on to secure the victory.
Senior Mitch Boudreau played a crucial role in St. Mary’s College’s victory, setting a school single-season record for ground balls with eight pickups. Boudreau entered the game with 125 ground balls and needed six more to break the previous record of 130. He now has 133 for the season so far.
The game started with Mary Washington taking an early 3-0 lead within the first five minutes, hoping to break a three-game losing streak against St. Mary’s College. St. Mary’s responded with a goal from sophomore midfielder Nate Hochrein to put them on the scoreboard, but Mary Washington outscored the hosts 2-1 to end the first quarter with a 5-2 advantage.
St. Mary’s College came back in the second quarter with goals from first-year attackman Ryan Roth and sophomore midfielder Jake Levey, but Mary Washington maintained their lead and ended the first half with a 6-4 advantage. However, St. Mary’s College came out strong in the third quarter, scoring two goals to tie the game at 6-6 heading into the final quarter.
The two sides traded goals in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter before St. Mary’s College took control, scoring three unanswered goals to take a 10-7 lead with just under eight minutes left. Mary Washington responded with two goals to bring the game within one, but St. Mary’s College’s defense held strong to secure the win.
St. Mary’s College gained a 43-35 shot advantage and a 31-28 edge in ground balls, while Mary Washington picked up 12 face-off wins to St. Mary’s College’s 11 victories. St. Mary’s College’s defense caused 10 of Mary Washington’s 22 turnovers and killed three of the Eagles’ four extra-man opportunities, including a 6-on-4 EMO in the second quarter.
Several St. Mary’s College players had notable performances in the game, including Joshua Martel, who recorded his seventh hat trick of the season and added two ground balls. Johnny McGrain handed out a career-tying three assists and scored his 17th goal of the season, while Hochrein finished with a career-matching two goals for the second time this season. Sophomore defensive midfielder Quinnten Hatfield caused a career-best three turnovers while scooping up two ground balls, and senior Ben Robertson made 10 saves for his fifth double-digit save performance.
Mary Washington’s Dave Votapek scored three goals for the Eagles, while Jackson Davis had three assists. Riley Green made 16 saves in Mary Washington’s third straight loss, including seven stops in the third quarter.
St. Mary’s College will next face off against La Roche (0-11, 0-4 UEC) on April 29 at home in St. Mary’s City, Md. in a Senior Day matchup at JLR Stadium.