PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – A spotlight showdown between two national powers came down to the final seconds as No. 8 RIT had just tied the score with 16 seconds left in regulation, only to see Jackson Tinari '26 of the No. 17 Wesleyan men's lacrosse team win the ensuing faceoff and race up field before passing to Joe Hurton '27 for the game-winning goal with six seconds left.
 
That Hurton game-winner capped a thrilling come-from-behind win for the Cardinals who trailed 9-7 leading into the fourth quarter. Wesleyan went on to outscore the Tigers 5-2 in the final period, with all five goals coming from midfield players, as the Cardinals prevailed on Sunday afternoon from Franklin Field in Philadelphia. Wesleyan (2-1) improves to 3-1 all-time against RIT (4-2) with the win while the Cardinals are winners of two straight following a season-opening defeat against Bates.
 
A back-and-forth battle in the first quarter saw the two sides trade goals in a frame that ended in a 3-3 tie. Ben Burns '26 scored in his return to the lineup while Thomas Girimonti '28 netted a pair in the first quarter to account for the Cardinal scoring. RIT used a 4-1 run between the first and second quarters to lead 6-4 at the half.
 
The Wesleyan offense generated some good looks in the third quarter, scoring three times on 15 shots, with RIT goalkeeper Alex Zborowski making six saves in the period. Burns, Knapp, and Paul Boghosian '28 all scored for Wesleyan, with Boghosian's goal being the first of his career.
 
Wesleyan made their run early in the fourth quarter, scoring three unanswered goals, all unassisted tallies from midfielders as James Bailey '26 scored 1:31 into the period before Charlie Knapp '26 scored to tie it the score at 9-9. Then Matt Morrow '27 netted a go-ahead goal with 8:50 left to give the Cardinals their first lead since the first quarter.
 
RIT scored less than two minutes later to bring the score level, only to see Knapp break loose and make it 11-10 Cardinals with his third goal of the day with 2:12 remaining.
 
Bailey nearly made it a two-goal lead only to see Zborowski come up with a save and then the Tigers worked the shot clock all the way down to the final seconds before Tyson Allison scored in heavy traffic in front of cage to tie it up with 16 seconds left.
 
The ensuing faceoff saw Tinari win the ball with space to run in the midfield. He looked to his left where Hurton was crashing towards the cage. Tinari hit the long stick midfielder with a perfect pass and Hurton did the rest, finishing low on Zborowski and sending the Wesleyan bench into hysterics.
 
RIT on the last faceoff on a violation but the Cardinal defense held strong and the Tigers couldn't get a shot off before the clock expired.
 
Wesleyan finished the game with a 48-41 edge in shots (28-17 in the second half). Girimonti led the Cardinals with four points (two goals, two assists) while Knapp recorded his second straight hat trick and Burns finished with three points (two goals, one assist). Conor Selfridge '26 made 14 saves to pick up the win in net.
 
The Cardinals have a quick turnaround before their next game as Wesleyan travels to Scranton for a Tuesday afternoon showdown