MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – Trailing 12-9 with 13 minutes left in regulation, the No. 13 Wesleyan men's lacrosse team tied the score at 13-13 with 1:17 remaining, then after staving off two extra man opportunities from No. 7 Stevens,
Matt Morrow '27 netted the game-winning goal in overtime to secure a 14-13 win over the Ducks on Wednesday afternoon from Citrin Field. Wesleyan (5-1) are winners of five straight while knocking off previously unbeaten Stevens (5-1) in the process.
In a true battle between two national powers, the two sides were locked in a back-and-forth dual that featured six ties and seven lead changes, with Wesleyan overcoming three-goal deficits in both the first and second halves to prevail in the end.
The first half played out in two wildly different quarters. The first quarter was controlled by the goalies as
Conor Selfridge '26 and Michael Jannotte each made four saves on the combined 11 shots on goal between the two sides.
Thomas Girimonti '28 got the Cardinals on the board with 1:15 remaining in the period as Stevens took a 2-1 lead into a second quarter dominated by offense.
A wild second quarter saw 12 total goals scored, seven from Wesleyan and five from Stevens as the breakneck pace saw the Cardinals take an 8-7 lead into halftime. The Ducks scored three of the first four goals in the period, taking a 5-2 lead, before Wesleyan answered with three unanswered including back-to-back goals from
Will Miller '26. After the two sides traded goals, it was Morrow who scored an equalizer with 25 seconds left then Girimonti looped around the cage and fired a shot into the upper right corner of the cage to give Wesleyan a one-goal halftime lead.
Gavin Lechner '27 scored the opening goal of the third quarter, but Stevens roared back with four straight, seizing a 11-9 lead heading into the fourth.
In the fourth, Will Labartino put the Ducks up 12-9, but again, Wesleyan came back to tie at 12 apiece with just over four minutes remaining. Turnovers plagued Stevens in the fourth, with the Ducks committing nine turnovers compared to 0 for the Cardinals in the final 15 minute period. That +9 turnover margin advantage for Wesleyan reflected in the shots as the Cardinals outshot Stevens 21-5 in the fourth quarter alone.
All that pressure led to a thrilling finish as
Charlie Hill '28 went end-to-end to score a pole goal, kicking off a 3-0 run with Girimonti scoring as well as
James Bailey '26. Chris Ciccarello answered with a go-ahead goal for Stevens with 3:13 left, then Morrow found the back of the net with a shot from the right wing.
The drama continued to unfold as Stevens won the ensuing faceoff after the Morrow equalizer, then drew a penalty with resulted in an EMO in the final minute of regulation. The Cardinals, however, proved up to the task and held the Ducks without a shot on the man-up before Ryan Jack saw his attempt with five seconds left turned aside by
Silas Hamblett '28, sending the game into overtime.
Stevens was then awarded the ball with no face off to start the extra session before Wesleyan took another penalty, this time a one-minute illegal body checking call. With another potential game-winning EMO, Stevens could do nothing against the Wesleyan defense, seeing just one shot attempt blocked before the shot clock expired.
After a successful clear, Wesleyan took their time on attack, before Miller eventually pinged a Crossfield pass to Morrow at the near post. He made one defender miss before firing in the game-winning goal inside the right post, sending the Cardinal bench into hysterics.
That game-winner clinched the first hat trick in Morrow's career as he added two assists for a career-best five-point game. Miller (four goals, two assists) and Bailey (two goals, four assists) each finished with a season-high six points. Girimonti also netted a hat trick while Hill's goal is the first of his career.
Wesleyan finished with a 61-36 edge in shots while the Cardinals committed a season-low 11 turnovers. Face offs also played a big role in the outcome as the Cardinals went 19-for-30 while the three face off specialists to see the field -
Jackson Tinari '26 (8-for-12),
Jack Doherty '28 (6-for-10), and
Jack Stanislaw '27 (5-for-8) – all finished at least 50% for the game.
Hamblett entered in the third quarter and finished with three saves and three goals allowed as the sophomore goalkeeper picked up his first career win.
Wesleyan has another huge Top 10 showdown on Saturday as the Cardinals welcome No. 2 Bowdoin to Middletown for a 1 PM start on Smith Field.
