Loyola Greyhound

Issue date: 3/27/07 Section: Sports

P.T. Ricci picks up a ground ball and heads down field against UMass on Saturday. After the Greyhounds took a 9-5 lead late in the third quarter, the Minutemen made one last charge to draw within 10-8. But the Hounds went to a zone defense, and UMass couldn't get a clear shot on Alex Peaty.

Primed for a third-quarter breakout, similar to the one against St. John's last week, the Loyola men's lacrosse team's momentum was sucked away in the opening minutes of the second half. Massachusetts cut their deficit to one at the 12:41 mark and then knotted the game up just three minutes later.

That was the Hounds' wake-up call.

Senior Ryan Rabidou found classmate Greg Leonard cutting down the alley for a score, and three minutes later the Hounds got a gift when a UMass shot clanked off the pole. Loyola quickly turned the lucky bounce into a fast-break goal as junior Paul Richards fired a shot from just outside the crease. In rhythm, sophomore Jake Wilcox capped off the 3-0 run in the waning moments of the quarter, extending the Greyhounds' lead to 8-5.

That was the good news for Loyola (2-5, 3-0 ECAC), who edged out the Minutemen, 10-8, for their fourth straight victory on Saturday. But revenge is supposed to taste a little sweeter than a two-goal nail-biter.

With last year's 14-9 loss to UMass still festering in their minds, the Hounds didn't need any extra motivation in the rematch. However, they soon found out the Minutemen are made of something tougher than their 2-5 record indicates.

Loyola played sloppy for stretches, with UMass shifting the momentum after a second-half surge, but sophomore goaltender Alex Peaty and the dwindling game clock kept the Greyhounds afloat.

"We had some lapses, but that happens in every game," Peaty said. "A good team can come back from those lapses and that's what we did today."

The Minutemen peppered Peaty with an astounding 47 shots, and although only half were near the goal, his career-high 15 saves stopped UMass from landing an upset.

"Thank goodness Alex is in the goal," head coach Charley Toomey said. "He was terrific in the nets. Every time we broke down defensively, he backed us up. UMass came out with a lot of energy."

Continued...

Page 1 of 2 next >

Article Tools