The St. Mary’s College of Maryland men’s lacrosse team suffered its first defeat of the 2026 season on Saturday, February 14, falling 15-11 to the No. 14-ranked University of Lynchburg Hornets in Lynchburg, Virginia. The Seahawks, now 1-1 overall, showed resilience against a nationally ranked opponent in their non-conference road contest, but Lynchburg’s offensive depth and possession advantages proved decisive.
Junior attacker Gavin McKay (Urbana, Md./Urbana) led St. Mary’s with a game-high three goals, while junior midfielder Declan Horton (University Park, Md./DeMatha) contributed four points on two goals and two assists. Senior midfielder Nick Machiran (Ellicott City, Md./Mount Hebron) scored twice, and sophomore attackman Owen Wynot (Kent Island, Md./Kent Island) added one goal and one assist.
The game unfolded in competitive quarters. Lynchburg opened with a 2-0 lead, but the Seahawks surged ahead with four consecutive goals—including McKay’s hat trick—to take a 4-2 advantage with 11:09 left in the second quarter. The Hornets responded with five straight scores, including two from Riley Hastings, to lead 7-4 at halftime.
The third quarter saw high-scoring action, with nine total goals. Lynchburg outscored St. Mary’s 5-4 in the frame to extend its margin to 12-8 entering the fourth. The Seahawks mounted a comeback early in the final period, closing to within 13-11 on a 3-1 run, highlighted by two goals from Liam Holman for Lynchburg. Holman later scored again with 1:37 remaining to push the lead to 15-11. St. Mary’s won the ensuing faceoff and generated three shots, but one was blocked, another went wide, and goalie Eric Allen made the final save to secure the victory.
Lynchburg dominated key statistical categories, outshooting St. Mary’s 47-37 and holding a plus-five turnover margin (18-23). The Hornets also won the ground ball battle 42-33 and claimed faceoff superiority, with Riley Frankel going 15-of-28. St. Mary’s converted 2-of-9 extra-man opportunities, while Lynchburg went 1-for-3.
For the Seahawks, senior Matteo Ciccarello (Crofton, Md./Arundel) won 13-of-26 faceoffs and led the team with eight ground balls. Sophomore goalie Ty Spencer (Hanover, Md./Indian Creek) posted career highs with 13 saves and six ground balls. Junior defenseman Mike Williams (Odenton, Md./Arundel) recorded a career-best two caused turnovers.
Lynchburg received balanced scoring from three players with three goals each: Liam Holman (three goals, three assists for six points), Riley Hastings, and Spencer Vandenberg. Allen finished with nine saves and three ground balls.
The loss came against a preseason-ranked Hornets squad (No. 13 USILA Coaches Poll, No. 14 Inside Lacrosse Media Poll, No. 12 USA Lacrosse Magazine) in their season opener. St. Mary’s opened the year with a win before this road challenge.
The Seahawks return to action at home on Friday, February 20, hosting Cairn University (0-0) at 4 p.m. in Jamie L. Roberts Stadium in St. Mary’s City, Maryland. This marks their United East Conference opener and home debut.
This early-season matchup highlights the competitive non-conference schedule for St. Mary’s, a Southern Maryland institution competing in Division III lacrosse. The program continues to build momentum with local talent from areas like Urbana, University Park, Ellicott City, Kent Island, Crofton, Hanover, and Odenton contributing key performances.