CLINTON, N.Y. – Having to fight off a gamely Hamilton side as well as heavy snowfall, the No. 17 nationally ranked Wesleyan men's lacrosse team overcame both obstacles and earned a hard fought 10-8 NESCAC victory over Hamilton on Sunday afternoon. Wesleyan (6-2, 2-2 NESCAC) picks up a much-needed league win while the Continentals (4-4, 1-4 NESCAC) dropped what was their first home game in three weeks.
In a game that saw shot totals, saves, turnovers and clears nearly identical between the two sides, the Cardinals' domination in faceoffs and extra man opportunities certainly played a leading role in the final outcome. Wesleyan was utterly dominant in the X as
Tyler Campbell '25 (8-for-9) and
Kevin Talbot '24 (7-for-12) combined to go 15-for-21 (71.4 percent) on faceoffs, continuing to give Wesleyan extra possessions in this tight back-and-forth contest. In addition, Wesleyan committed only two penalties while Hamilton was whistled for seven and those EMO chances weren't wasted as the Cardinals went 4-for-7 on the man advantage while the Continentals were 0-for-2.
Having to navigate frigid temperatures and heavy snow, neither side had much success on offense in the early going as
Justin Hazard '23 netted the game's first goal 6:40 into play. Hamilton answered right back with consecutive goals just 26 seconds apart to take the lead for the first time. However, Wesleyan netted a pair of late goals in the first quarter as
Spencer Robbins '22 scored on the man-up while
Matt Gill '23, who assisted on Robbins' goal, came up with an unassisted marker with just seven seconds left in the quarter to make it 3-2 Wesleyan after one.
Two more man-up goals followed to open the second quarter as
Jake Sexton '22 and Gill each put away EMO goals as Wesleyan's 4-0 run (three of which coming on the man-advantage) made it 5-2 midway through the second quarter. Hamilton managed two goals before halftime as the Continentals played penalty-free for the remainder of the first half and got goals from Troy Pollock and Christian Byrne to make it 5-4 Wesleyan at halftime.
Wesleyan stretched their lead coming out of the break, scoring three unanswered goals in the third quarter to hold their biggest lead of the game at 8-4 midway through the third. Gill completed his hat trick 3:22 into the quarter while Robbins finished a
Sam Jean '23 feed before he found Sexton to cap the 3-0 Cardinal run.
Hamilton cut the Cardinal lead down to two goals early in the fourth quarter before Sexton came up with a big man-up goal to break up the Continental momentum and make it 9-6 Wesleyan. As the snow continued to fall, the Continentals made it interesting down the stretch as two goals just 1:37 apart made it a one-goal game with 4:19 remaining.
On the biggest faceoff of the game, Wesleyan's dominance continued to pay dividends as Talbot won on a violation and the Cardinals scored on the ensuing possession as
CK Giancola '24 buried a feed from Jean to rebuild a two-goal cushion with 3:48 left.
Colin Hanley '22, who was incredible yet again for the Cardinals with 14 saves in this one, came up with a big save on Tim Sommer with three minutes left on the clock. And then again, with Hamilton pushing the pace, Hanley made another denial, this time on Byrne, as Wesleyan retook possession again to all but seal the victory.
Hanley, who still hasn't held a save percentage below 50 percent in any of his eight starts this season, continues to shine as he posted 14 saves with just eight goals allowed for a .636 save percentage (second-best single-game mark of the season). Coming off a career-high 26 saves against Bowdoin last weekend, Hanley has double-digit saves in two straight and in 4-of-8 games so far in 2022.
Gill refound his scoring touch with a game-high five points (three goals, two assists) as he leads the team with 46 points in eight games. Sexton finished with three goals and one assist while Jean chipped in a career-high three assists. Robbins tallied three points (two goals, one assist) as well as seven ground balls to lead the team.
Both Campbell and Talbot continue to shine at the X as Campbell is 67.6 percent (75-for-111) on the season while Talbot is 66.7 percent (68-for-102).
Wesleyan has a huge week ahead as the Cardinals welcome Little 3 rival Amherst for a Wednesday night showdown at 6 PM from Citrin Field. Then on Saturday, the Cardinals play host to Middlebury for a 1 PM contest that will serve as Senior Day for Wesleyan's Class of 2022.
