The St. Mary’s College of Maryland men’s lacrosse team powered past SUNY Oneonta with a commanding 14-7 non-conference victory Saturday afternoon at Jamie L. Roberts Stadium in St. Mary’s City, Md. Junior attackmen Gavin McKay and Declan Horton led the offensive surge, combining for nine goals and four assists to help the Seahawks snap back into the win column and improve to 5-3 overall. The Red Dragons dropped to 3-4.
The game unfolded with early momentum swings before St. Mary’s College seized control. McKay and Horton struck quickly, scoring 27 seconds apart to build a 2-0 lead at the 9:47 mark of the first quarter. SUNY Oneonta responded with three consecutive goals to edge ahead 3-2 with 4:26 left in the opening period. The Seahawks answered decisively, erupting for nine unanswered goals to surge to an 11-3 advantage with 5:28 remaining in the second quarter. Aidan Boyle netted a goal for Oneonta to trim the halftime deficit to 11-4.
A/M 6′ 0″ Junior Credit: Reid Silverman / St. Mary's College of Maryland
The Red Dragons gained ground in the third quarter, outscoring the hosts 3-1 to narrow the margin to 12-7 with 5:56 left in the frame. The fourth quarter remained scoreless until the final minutes, when juniors Braeden Colegrove and Quinn McLaughlin tallied goals 60 seconds apart to seal the 14-7 final.
St. Mary’s College dominated key statistical categories. The Seahawks held a 50-28 edge in shots and a 29-13 advantage in ground balls, with senior Matteo Ciccarello collecting eight ground balls and winning 16-of-23 faceoffs for a team total of 16-of-25 won. Ciccarello anchored the midfield effort throughout. Defensively, the Seahawks limited Oneonta while sophomore goalie Ty Spencer made six saves. The Red Dragons successfully killed all three of St. Mary’s extra-man opportunities.
McKay delivered a standout performance, netting a career-best six goals to go with two ground balls. Horton matched his career highs with seven points (three goals, four assists) and equaled his season-best three goals for the third time this year. Senior captain Joshua Martel contributed two goals, one assist, two ground balls, and one caused turnover. Senior defenseman Joe Szymanski paced the back line with five ground balls and one caused turnover.
For SUNY Oneonta, Mark Restivo recorded 14 saves in goal, while Boyle led the offense with three goals.
This victory followed a recent pattern of strong showings from McKay, who has been a consistent offensive force for the Seahawks in recent games. The team now prepares for a quick turnaround with back-to-back contests. The Seahawks host SUNY Geneseo (2-3) on March 17 at 4 p.m. at JLR Stadium in St. Mary’s City, followed by a road trip to face Eastern (1-7) on March 21 at 1 p.m. in St. Davids, Pa.
