April 2, 2005

GENEVA, N.Y.—Senior attackman Nate Hill (Hamburg/Hamburg, N.Y.) scored a game-high four points (3-1), but it wasn’t enough to lift the 12th-ranked Hobart College lacrosse team to victory, as visiting Fairfield University recorded an 11-8 win. The Stags improve to 6-2, while the Statesmen slip to 5-3.

April showers with a blustery bite soaked the AstroTurf of McCooey Field throughout the contest, making every pass an adventure and chilling players and fans alike to the bone. Despite the challenging conditions, Hobart got off to a fast start.

Senior midfielder Chris Scanlon (Corning West/Painted Post, N.Y.) and Hill netted back-to-back scores to give the Statesmen a 2-0 lead midway through the first quarter. The Stags evened the ledger with back-to-back extra-man goals by first-year attackman Matt Castele (Medina/Medina, N.Y.), the second at 3:22 of the opening frame.

Fairfield continued its run with two more unanswered scores, but the Statesmen responded with goals from junior attackman Mike Conklin (West Genesee/Syracuse, N.Y.) and first-year attackman Daryl Veltman (Salisbury School/Georgetown, Ontario) to knot the contest, 4-4, with 7:33 remaining in the first half.

The Stags seized the lead for good with the next three goals, in a span of just over three minutes. The first of those tallies—by first-year attackman Travis Nelson (Oswego/Oswego, N.Y.) set up by junior midfielder Josh Thornton (DeSmet Jesuit/St. Louis, Mo.)—was also an extra-man goal. Hobart began the week ranked fourth in the nation in man-down defense, and stopped eighth-ranked Syracuse on all three of its man-up tries on Tuesday.

Thornton led Fairfield with three points on two goals and an assist.

First-year midfielder Sean Murphy (Bishop Timon/Buffalo, N.Y.) finished a feed from Conklin to send the Statesmen into the break down 7-5.

Despite two second half goals from Hill and a strong showing at the faceoff X by first-year Dan Spinella (New Hartford/New Hartford, N.Y.), Hobart never got closer than its two-goal halftime deficit. Spinella took over the Statesmen faceoffs just before halftime and finished the game with an 8-3 record and three ground balls. Hobart junior defenseman Matt Murphy (Haverford/Havertown, Pa.) picked up a game- and career-high eight ground balls.

Fairfield sophomore goalie Michael Kruger (Calvert Hall College/Ellicott City, Md.), who managed just one save in each of the first three quarters, helped the Stags secure the win with six fourth quarter saves.

Hobart is back in action at 1 p.m., on April 9, at Penn State in an ECAC Lacrosse League contest.