NORTON, Mass. — Junior attacker Charlie Goodrich (Fairfield, Conn.) tallied a career-high four points with a game-high three goals and one assist to lead the Wheaton College (Mass.) men's lacrosse team to a 11-5 victory over the University of New England in the falling snow this afternoon at Nordin Field in Norton, Mass. in the season opener for both squads.
Wheaton has now won five consecutive non-conference season openers dating back to 2019. The Lyons improve to 1-0 on the season, while the Nor'easters fall to 0-1.
Wheaton outshot their opponent 33-25, which included a strong 10-4 shot advantage in the opening quarter. The Lyons were able to capitalize on extra-man opportunities twice, going 2-for-3 on the man-up advantage, while holding UNE to 0-for-2 on extra-man opportunities. The home team forced its opponents into 16 turnovers, including eight Nor'easter miscues in the fourth quarter. Wheaton was held to 14 turnovers. The Lyons tallied a plus-six advantage in ground balls, scooping up 19 ground balls and limiting the Nor'easters to 13 ground balls.
The Lyons were led by a balanced-attack with six multi-point scorers who tallied at least two points in the opener. Junior midfielder Charlie Racine (Oradell N.J.) recorded three points with two goals, one assist, while winning one faceoff and recovering two ground balls. Junior midfielder Mike McLaughlin (Stoughton, Mass.) also tallied three points with one goal, a match-high two assists, along with a ground ball. First-year midfielder Lucas Melhorn (South Portland, Maine) recorded three points with two goals, one assist, and two ground balls in his first collegiate action. Junior midfielder Jack Board (Westborough, Mass.) added two goals with a pair of ground balls. Sophomore attacker Emmett Edwards (Sunderland, Vt.) posted two points with one goal and one assist. Senior defender Jacob Wharton (Worcester, Mass.) led the defensive unit with a team-high three ground balls and a game-high three caused turnovers.
Senior attacker Sam McGregor (Dedham, Mass.) led the Nor'easters with two points, which included a team-high two goals to go along with two ground balls. Senior attacker Andrew Lawrence (North Yarmouth, Maine) also tied a team-high two points with one goal, one assist, and a ground ball. Sophomore midfielder Shea Fogarty (Melrose, Mass.) added one goal and scooped up one ground ball, while senior attacker Collin Jackson (Essex, Mass.) tacked on a goal.
Wheaton exploded to score six of their 11 total goals during the first quarter. The Lyons got out to a red-hot start as Racine netted two goals during the first three minutes of the first period. The hosts then added individual goals by Goodrich, Melhorn, and McLaughlin to take a 5-0 lead with 3:24 in the first quarter. The Nor'easters then struck nine seconds later to get on the scoreboard when Jackson found the back of the net to make the score 5-1. Wheaton took advantage of a UNE penalty, as Board scored with 2:05 remaining in the first quarter to extend the lead 6-1.
The strong offense that Wheaton displayed in the first quarter transferred quickly into the second quarter, as the hosts added three additional goals, with one goal each between Board, Edwards, and Melhorn to make the score 9-1 with 8:29 on the clock in the second quarter. After the four-goal scoring run by Wheaton, the Nor'easters were able to respond when Shea Fogarty found the back of the net to make the score 9-2 with 3:15 left in the second period. The Lyons added their tenth goal of the match under 30 seconds later when first-year attacker Theo Stamatel (Plainville, Mass.) tallied his first collegiate point when he connected on a pass to Goodrich with 2:48 in the second quarter to lead 10-2. The Lyons eight-point lead was tied for the largest margin in the game. The Nor'easters closed out the second quarter with two late goals scored by McGregor and Lawrence to put the score 10-4 at intermission.
After combining for 14 goals in the first half, which included seven goals scored in each of the first two quarters, the last 30 minutes turned into a defensive battle. After going scoreless during the first 10 minutes of the third period, the Lyons responded first when Racine found Goodrich on the extra-man opportunity to give Wheaton a 11-4 cushion with 4:58 in the third. The Nor'easters added the final goal of the quarter by McGregor from Lawrence, which was also the last goal of the game with 2:49 remaining in the third quarter.
Following just two combined goals in the third quarter (one from each side), both teams were held scoreless in the fourth quarter. Both goalkeepers were stellar in the fourth quarter and did not let any shots get past them, despite an 11-5 shot advantage for the Lyons in the final period. Junior goalkeeper Evan Hazard (Milford, Mass.) for the Nor'easters recorded eight of his 12 saves in the game in the fourth quarter, while junior goalkeeper Connor Almstrom (Cumberland R.I.) was excellent for Wheaton throughout and pitched a shutout in the fourth period to help lead the Lyons to the 11-5 victory.
During his debut as a Lyon, Almstrom finished with 12 saves and five goals allowed in net. He also recorded his 21st game with double-digit saves during his career, which includes his two previous seasons at New England College. For the Nor'easters, Hazard stopped 12 shots and surrendered 11 goals.
Wheaton returns to action on Saturday, February 24 when it travels to Wenham, Mass. to take on Gordon College at 3:00 p.m., while the Nor'easters host Saint Joseph's College (Maine) on Wednesday at 4:00 p.m. in Biddeford, Maine.
