Eastern Connecticut - 12, Farmingdale State - 8
Farmingdale, N.Y. - Tied 4-4 at the break, Eastern Connecticut outscored Farmingdale State 8-4 in the second half as the Warriors earned the 12-8 non-conference men's lacrosse victory this afternoon in Farmingdale, N.Y. The Rams suffered their first loss of the season and now stand at 2-1.
With 4:25 left to play in the first and the game tied at 1-1, FSC senior midfielder Mike Curry (Melville, N.Y.) tallied an unassisted goal to put the Rams ahead by one.
Only 12 seconds into the second quarter, FSC took a two-score edge on a goal by sophomore attack Christian Ferruzza (Bethpage, N.Y.) off the pass from Justin Napolitano (Ronkonkoma, N.Y.). Farmingdale State increased the lead to 4-1 as freshman midfielder Zach Rudolph (Mount Sinai, N.Y.) scored with 10:09 remaining.
Eastern Connecticut (2-1) recorded the final three goals of the second quarter to even the score at 4-4 heading into halftime.
Rudolph's second goal of the game with 9:28 left in the third regained the lead for Farmingdale State, 5-4. The Warriors responded with five unanswered scores, including a pair by junior attack Matthew Rougeot (Cheshire, Conn.), to open up a 9-5 advantage.
With 2:23 remaining in the third quarter, FSC junior attack Tyler Rifice (Bohemia, N.Y.) cut the Eastern Connecticut lead to 9-6 with an unassisted goal.
After each team scored once to open the fourth, a goal by Eastern Connecticut's Samuel Watson (Trumbull, Conn.) put the Warriors on top, 11-7. The Rams and Warriors each tallied a goal over final 6:55 as Eastern Connecticut went on for the 12-8 victory.
Rifice finished the afternoon with a team-high three points on two goals and one assist, while Rudolph scored twice. Junior defender Nick Perrone (Northport, N.Y.) picked up a game-high eight ground balls and Napolitano caused a game-high six turnovers for FSC.
Rougeot tallied four goals, had one assist, five ground balls and caused four turnovers for Eastern Connecticut.
Farmingdale State senior goalkeeper Brendan Schade (Holbrook, N.Y.) stopped seven shots, while junior Chris Gorman (Shrewsbury, Mass.) had 14 saves for the Warriors.
The Rams next will play host to Western Connecticut in a non-conference game on Wednesday, March 8th at 4:00 p.m.
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