March 24, 2007
BOX SCORE

BRYANT MEN UPSET NO. 1 LE MOYNE 10-9 IN OT
Bulldogs Snap Dolphin's 70-game Conference Win Streak

Sophomore Kevin Hoagland scored five goals including the game-winner in overtime to lead the Bryant men's lacrosse team to a 10-9 win over top-ranked Le Moyne Saturday.  www.dspics.com

SMITHFIELD, R.I.  - All streaks must come to an end eventually.  Sophomore Kevin Hoagland's (Glastonbury, Conn.) fifth goal of the game  with 1:50 left in overtime gave the ninth-ranked Bryant University men's lacrosse team a thrilling 10-9 win over top-ranked and defending national champion Le Moyne College before a crowd of more than 700 Saturday afternoon at the Bryant Turf Field Complex. 

The victory for Bryant was the program's first over Le Moyne in 13 tries and snaps the Dolphin's incredible 70-game Northeast-10 Conference win streak.  Le Moyne came into the game riding a 21 game win streak and 63 regular season unbeaten streak. 

"A great win for these kids and everything they've endured," said Bryant coach Mike Pressler after the game.  "They (Le Moyne) are the king of the hill in Division II.  That's a great, great team. I couldn't be more proud of our guys."

Bryant (3-2, 2-0 NE-10) trailed 9-6 after three quarters of play, but scored three times in the fourth to knot the score up at 9-9.  Jim Long (Durham, NH) scored twice to make it a one goal game. Then, after a Michael Kennedy (Port Jefferson Station, NY) point-blank save on Matt Emerson (Watertown, NY), the Bulldogs made a strong rush up field with sophomore Matt McAllister (East Quogue, NY) eventually finding Hoagland who ripped the tying goal past Dolphin goalie Jared Corcoran (Concord, NH) with 3:20 left in regulation. 

Le Moyne (3-1, 0-1 NE-10), which dominated the face-offs 17 to 22 on the afternoon, won another as Brian Griffin (Camillus, NY) helped kick-start one last rush for the Dolphins.  But Bryant's defense stood tall as sophomore defender Sean Pasley (Rexford, NY) stripped Le Moyne's Nick Gatto (Syracuse, NY) behind the Bryant net with a little over a minute left in regulation, giving Bryant a chance to win it in regulation. 

Bryant would never get a shot off as the Bulldogs, working the game clock down, turned the ball over and needed a big stop by Kennedy (12 saves) on Brad Wolken's (Baldwinsville, NY) last-second shot just as the buzzer sounded. 

In the extra period, Griffin again won another face-off for the Le Moyne, but following a Dolphin timeout, Kennedy stopped a hard shot by Le Moyne's Brian Cost (Camillus, NY) in the right slot, giving the Bulldogs another chance.

This time, Bryant was able to cash in. On the team's ensuing possession, sophomore Brian Kaufmann (Putnam Valley, NY) found a seam in front but his shot was saved by Corcoran.  A hustling Matt McKeefrey (Melville, NY) was able to save the ball before going out of bounds.  The sophomore attacker managed to dish it back to Kaufman who quickly whirled it back to Hoagland who one-time it past Corcoran for the winner. 

The game featured eight lead changes, including six in the first half as Bryant went into the locker room leading 6-5 at the break.  Le Moyne would come out in the third and dominated the early going, scoring four unanswered goals in a span of four minutes, the last by Griffin who ripped a low shot past Kennedy after winning the face-off to put Le Moyne up 9-6 and prompting Bryant to call a timeout to regroup.  

"They had that run at the start of the third quarter and that was a key point of the game for us," added Pressler.  "We settled down, called timeout and put in a better defense and got some stops."

"We hung in there and when you are playing a favorite and such a great team like Le Moyne, the longer the game stays close, the more uneasy they are.  It's no secret, in overtime you need a lot of luck and Kevin Hoagland made the play we needed the most." 

Mike McDonald (Latham, NY) led Le Moyne with five goals on the afternoon while Griffin finished with a pair.  Corcoran, who lost for just the second time in 53 career games (49-2), had 12 saves on 32 Bryant shots.    

Long finished with three goals for Bryant which will host Saint Michael's College next Saturday (1 p.m.).  Le Moyne will face Franklin Pierce Sunday.