MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME MEN’S LACROSSE

Second Round – Second Annual Maritime Cup

Sunday, March 15, 2015

Reinhart Field, Throggs Neck, N.Y.

FINAL:              MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME 10, SUNY-MARITIME 9 (DOUBLE OVERTIME)

THROGGS NECK, N.Y. --  Junior Reed McLean’s (Wilbraham, Mass.) man-up goal with 1:08 remaining in the second overtime lifted Massachusetts Maritime to a 10-9 college men’s lacrosse victory over SUNY-Maritime in the championship match of the Second Annual Maritime Cup played Sunday afternoon at Reinhart Field.

McLean’s golden goal came on a feed from senior Dylan Freudenberg (Islip, N.Y.) that gave the visiting Buccaneers their second straight Maritime Cup title and the best start (4-0) in program history.  In a contest that saw eight lead changes and six ties, Massachusetts Maritime came back from a two-goal third quarter deficit to take a 9-8 lead on sophomore Ryan McNeill’s (Burlington, Mass.) marker with 1:41 remaining in regulation, but the host Privateers (2-3) evened matters just 36 seconds later on a tally by sophomore Joe Fusco (Hopewell Junction, N.Y.).  McLean was stopped on a pair of point blank chances in the final five seconds of the fourth quarter, and both teams had two solid scoring changes each in the extra sessions that were denied prior to the game-winner.

The Buccaneers jumped out to a 2-1 cushion after the opening 15 minutes of play on goals by McNeill and McLean, but SUNY-Maritime overcame a 3-2 deficit with three unanswered scores, including two off the stick of senior Paul Grubb (Merrick, N.Y.) in the final 3:01 of the half, to take a 5-3 edge at the break.  Grubb completed his hat trick midway through the third stanza to give the Privateers a 6-4 advantage, but tallies by McLean and Freudenberg (man-up) in a 2:12 span evened matters once again at 6-6.  Freshman Nick Pellegrino’s (Melville, N.Y.) man-up goal gave the hosts the lead back at 8-7 with 10:55 remaining, but junior Anthony Kurylak’s (Exeter, N.H.) 12^th tally of the season with 5:33 to play squared the match for Massachusetts Maritime, setting up the frantic finish to regulation and McLean’s heroics in the second overtime period that enabled the Buccaneers to defend their Maritime Cup title less than 24 hours after claiming their fourth straight Admiral’s Cup victory over rival Maine Maritime in a 16-8 opening round triumph.

McLean, McNeill and Kurylak netted hat tricks and a single assist to finish with four points each in the win for Massachusetts Maritime, which also received a marker and two helpers from Freudenberg as well as single assists off the sticks of sophomores Steven Anderson (Crownsville, Md.), Kevin Collins (Hampden, Mass.) and Alec Plotnikiewicz (South Hadley, Mass.).  Grubb added a pair of assists to his hat trick to finish with five points in the setback for SUNY-Maritime, which also received a hat trick and helper from Pellegrino on the afternoon.  Freshman Julius Diaz (Freeport, N.Y.) tallied as well for the Privateers, who received a single assist off the stick of senior Robert Lalena (Bellmore, N.Y.).

Sophomore Jacob Brennan (North Reading, Mass.) came off the bench to record his first career victory in goal for Massachusetts Maritime with 11 saves in 31-plus minutes of play, as junior James Klose (Ellicott City, Md.) made 13 stops in 35-plus minutes of action for the visitors.  Freshman Brendan McNally (Long Beach, N.Y.) made 12 saves in the setback for SUNY-Maritime, as the Privateers outshot the Buccaneers by a 60-40 margin (33-22 on goal) for the contest.  The win was Massachusetts Maritime’s third in the last four meetings with SUNY-Maritime dating back to 2012.

Massachusetts Maritime hosts Plymouth State in a non-league outing on Tuesday evening at Clean Harbors Stadium beginning at 7:00 p.m., while SUNY-Maritime heads to Utica, N.Y. on Friday evening to take on SUNY-Polytechnic in a non-league match that also begins at 7:00 p.m.

(Photo courtesy Sean Engel, SUNY-Maritime Sports Information)