FREDERICK, Md. – The Hood College men's lacrosse team's season came to an end as it celebrated the 10 graduating players before the game, falling 8-7 in overtime to Eastern University.
Inside the Box Score
Deegan Workman (Chattanooga, Tenn./Soddy Daisy) scored two goals and was given an assist.
Nino Rizzolino (Easton, Pa./Easton Area) picked up five ground balls and
Preston Workman (Chattanooga, Tenn./Soddy Daisy) caused three turnovers.
Lucas Strand (Robbinsville, N.J./Robbinsville) went 11-15 in the faceoff circle.
Calvin Morris (Lancaster, Pa./Lancaster Catholic) made a career-high 19 saves in the loss.
How it Happened
In a win-and-in scenario for both 3-3 conference teams, the Blazers came out on fire when
David Lubrano (Middletown, Del./Appoquinimink) ripped a shot home on their first possession. After that goal though, it was a purely defensive battle, with Morris making stop after stop in net to give
Hood as many chances as possible. That work paid off in the end, as a save with less than 30 seconds left was shuffled up to
Matthew Mitcheltree (Bowie, Md./St. Vincent Pallotti) all alone to find the back of the net with under 10 seconds to give Hood a 2-0 lead after the first quarter.
The start of the second quarter was more dominance by the Blazers, with three different players scoring to give the home team a 5-0 lead with just over four minutes left in the half. Eastern was not going to go down quietly though, as the Eagles scored twice in the final 1:11 to potentially shift the momentum and cut Hood's lead to 5-2 at halftime.
Despite the late goal from Eastern, Workman decided to wrest the momentum back for the Blazers with his second of the game less than a minute into the third quarter, and despite an Eagles goal a few minutes later,
Regan Tesche (Avondale, Pa./Salesianum School) would restore Hood's four-goal lead with less than 90 seconds in the quarter.
After more than 10 minutes of solid defense in the final quarter, the wear and tear of the game started affecting the home team when Eastern got within three with 2:40 to play. A full-time two-minute penalty on the Blazers would make things even worse as the Eagles scored twice to get within one with 33 seconds. A faceoff win immediately after looked like it would seal the win for Hood, but an ill-timed shot missed the cage and was run out by Eastern to get possession, and it would find the tying goal with six seconds remaining.
Overtime seemed destined to end on the first possession when the Eagles won the opening faceoff, and although their first shot was blocked away, they were able to keep possession and found the back of the net to end the Blazers' season.
Analysis
Eastern outshot Hood 59-32.
The Blazers committed 27 turnovers compared to just 18 for the Eagles.
Hood had a 12-5 advantage in faceoffs.
Notes
The Blazers finish the season 8-7 (3-4).
Up Next
Hood will return for the 2027 season.
