The Elizabethtown College men’s lacrosse team suffered a tough loss this past Saturday, April 5 against conference rival Lebanon Valley College. The 7-5 loss came at home as Etown looked to win their first Commonwealth Conference game. Five players scored goals in the game, four of which came in the second half, but the Dutchmen of LVC had a goal with less than a minute on the clock to put the game out of reach for the Blue Jays.
The opening 30 minutes produced very little in the way of offense, a common theme during Etown’s current four-game losing streak. Only once in the last four games have the Blue Jays or their opponents reached 10 goals. During the hard-fought game, few fireworks were seen in the first half, with the lone goal for Etown scored by first-year Jason Clough, as the teams were tied 1-1 going in for halftime.
LVC came out with a quick goal in the third quarter, but was later answered by a goal from sophomore Jordan Bowser, which was followed by another goal from sophomore Jimmy Waters. This gave the Jays their first and only lead of the game. The Dutchmen answered back with less than a minute left in the third quarter to tie the game at 3-3.
The start of the fourth quarter saw the Dutchmen of LVC score two goals on the Jays with about nine minutes remaining. Senior captain Craig Hunsberger brought the Jays within a goal, but the LVC team was too much for Etown to handle. The Dutchmen controlled the ball much of the later part of the fourth quarter.
With 6:13 minutes left in the game, an LVC goal was answered by junior Russ LeClair, who scored with just over four minutes left. But the game was pushed completely out of reach when LVC scored a goal with 59 seconds left on the clock.
The Blue Jays were able to get back to their winning with an 13-6 victory over Lycoming College yesterday.
This win over the Warriors not only ended a four-game losing streak, but also was the Blue Jays’ first Commonwealth Conference victory on the season.
Etown got on the board early on in the contest scoring the first two goals of the game on the backs of first-year Dan Bednarik and Clough.
The Warriors got a late goal in the period, but Etown answered back quickly with a goal from first-year Mike Specht. When the first quarter whistle ended, the Blue Jays had a 3-1 lead.
The Blue Jays controlled the second quarter as well, adding two more tallies on goals from Specht and his twin brother Nick. When the first half whistle sounded, the Blue Jays were ahead 5-1 entering the locker rooms.
The third quarter was more evenly matched as both teams found the back of the net once during the period.
While the third quarter was closed, the fourth ended up being anything but.
The Blue Jays poured on the offense in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Warriors in the period 7-4. First-year Joe Clark, who had not scored yet in the contest found the back of the net a remarkable five times. Clark leads the Blue Jays in scoring this season with 29 points on 15 goals and 14 assists.
Junior goalie Chris Wenger made 12 saves on the day with five coming in the second half.
The Blue Jays will be back on Wolf Field this Saturday to take on conference rival Messiah College on last time in the regular season before heading to the Landmark Conference. Saturday’s game will also honor Etown’s four seniors. Game time is set for 1 p.m.
