WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. – With the score tied 7-7 at the half, the No. 20 ranked Wesleyan men's lacrosse team outscored No. 17 Williams 5-2 in the third quarter, which proved enough in a 13-10 Cardinal victory from Farley-Lamb Field on Saturday afternoon. Wesleyan (5-0, 2-0 NESCAC) continues their unbeaten run to start the season, going 5-0 for the first time since 2011, while snapping a three-game losing streak against the Ephs (2-2, 1-1 NESCAC).
 
The 13-10 final margin could have been very different if not for the performance turned in by goalkeeper Sam Jewett '25 who enjoyed a career day, making 10 of his career-high 16 saves in the second half including six in the fourth quarter alone. Jewett and the Cardinal defense allowed just three goals in the second half, despite being outshot 27-15 in that span.
 
While Jewett and the Cardinal defense made life difficult for the Williams offense, Jack Raba '23 was the Wesleyan offense in the second half, scoring or assisting on the final five goals Wesleyan scored on the day. He first dished to James Bailey '26 for a man-up goal early in the third quarter and followed with an unassisted tally 1:56 later, extending the Cardinal scoring run to 3-0 and handing Wesleyan a 10-7 lead.
 
Raba then found Alex Moynihan '24 a few minutes later and capped a five-goal spurt in just 7:03 of game action with a dime to Ben Burns '26 who completed his hat trick to make it 12-8 Wesleyan with 6:57 left in the third.
 
Following that Burns goal, the two sides combined for just three goals over the remainder of the game. Leading 12-9 entering the fourth, Wesleyan tacked on an insurance goal with 9:42 remaining as Raba recorded his fourth assist, connecting with Justin Hazard '23 to make it 13-9 Cardinals.
 
Williams answered back three minutes later, and the Cardinals were whistled for a penalty in the build-up, going a man-down with 6:21 left. Jackson TInari '26, however, won the ensuing face off on a Eph violation, denying the man-up opportunity.
 
After over a minute elapsed, the Ephs got the ball back but turned the ball over to the Cardinals thanks to a caused turnover from Joe Hurton '27. With time on their side, the Cardinals again milked the possession, with Williams taking the ball back over midfield with three minutes left.
 
On a must-score possession, Williams' Will Doran was denied by Jewett who then smothered the ground ball, but a loose turnover gave the Ephs another chance. After calling timeout, Williams again came up empty as Emmett Schillinger '25 forced a Doran turnover.
 
Wesleyan held the ball for another minute, but Williams again stayed in the game, taking the ball back with just over a minute left on the clock. After another timeout, the Ephs ran a quick offense but couldn't find the target on consecutive Gavin Timoney shots. With just over 30 seconds remaining, Ryan Nagle was denied by Jewett and after a good clearance attempt, Wesleyan had finished off a 13-10 Little Three road win.
 
Jewett continues to shine this season in the cage for Wesleyan, as his 16 saves against the Ephs gives him three games with 11+ saves in 2024 while he also has four games with a .500 save percentage or better this season.
 
Raba totaled a team-leading five points on one goal and four assists, giving him four straight games with at least four assists. For the season, Raba leads the NESCAC with 19 assists while his 28 points through five games are second-most in the league.
 
Burns finished with three goals, giving him a multi-goal game in all five contests this season, while his three ground balls are a career-high. Hazard added one goal and two assists for three points while Bailey, Moynihan, Will Miller '26, and Charlie Knapp '25 all totaled two-point games.
 
Schillinger posted a career-high three caused turnovers with two ground balls while Charlie Silver '25 added two caused turnovers and two ground balls. Charlie Hoban '25 led the Cardinals with five ground balls while Tinari went 75% on his face off opportunities, finishing 9-for-12.
 
After playing four of their first five games away from home, the Cardinals are in Middletown for their next four games, starting with a Wednesday night clash against Stevens at 7 PM from Citrin Field.