The Massachusetts men’s lacrosse team lost 11-7 against No. 3 Richmond in an Atlantic 10 semifinal game on Thursday. Despite being down six in the third quarter, UMass (10-6, 3-3 A-10) made a strong push to keep its season alive.
With just over 10 minutes left in the third, Thomas Bagnall put the Gorillas within five after collecting a groundball and scoring, as the Spiders’ (12-1, 6-0 A-10) netminder was out of position. After Jack Pilling extended the Richmond lead back to six, Bagnall found the back of the net again. Thirty seconds following his second goal, the A-10 All-Rookie Team member completed his hat trick, making the score 9-5 at the end of the period.
Early on in the final quarter, fellow A-10 All-Rookie Team member Colin Coyle carried that momentum by scoring a third consecutive goal for UMass. Unfortunately for the Gorillas, that was the end of their run as the Spiders put up two more cushioning points before the final buzzer.
The A-10 Offensive Player of the Year, attacker Aidan O’Neil, started the conference tournament game off hot. O’Neil got Richmond on the board early after battling through his defender and beating the goaltender. Ten seconds later, the Massachusetts native scored a one-handed goal. Finally, the senior found Jack Ricciardi from behind the net to put the Spiders up 3-0 in the first four minutes of the game.
UMass struggled from the jump in faceoffs after starting FOGO T.J. Casey left with a knee injury in the second quarter and did not return. A-10 Rookie of the Year Vincent Gaylord won 11 of his 16 faceoffs for Richmond while Anthony DiCenso went 3-for-4. The Gorillas won just six faceoffs as a unit.
Jack Turowsky started the scoring for UMass, putting up the only point in the first period. Late in the second, the sophomore quickly wrapped around the net for his second goal of the game. Turowsky was hit hard after the shot and got rewarded with a man-up opportunity for the Gorillas. Dylan Johnson’s shot was saved, however, marking a missed opportunity for the No. 4 seed. Turowsky was the lone goal scorer in the first half for UMass.
Shortly after Turowsky’s second goal, O’Neil made another highlight play. With time ticking down in the first half, the two-time all-conference first team member tossed a long pass to Gavin Creo, who beat the goalie with just two seconds remaining. O’Neil finished the game with three goals and four assists, leading the Spiders in both categories.
Both goalies were impressive during the tournament game. For Richmond, Connor Knight made 13 saves and finished with a 65% save percentage. As for his counterpart, Owen Salanger kept the Gorillas in the game by making 17 saves. The A-10 Goalkeeper of the Year posted a 60.7% save percentage.
First-year head coach Kyle Smith and his squad can hold their heads high despite the loss. These two teams faced off earlier in the season, and UMass suffered a 21-7 defeat. This time around, despite injuries to Casey and Robbie Granara, the Gorillas stayed competitive. The UMass defense, spearheaded by A-10 First Team member Zach Auble, stopped all five man-up opportunities the Spiders had and kept the game considerably closer than the previous matchup.
While the Gorillas’ season has concluded, Richmond will appear in its fourteenth straight conference championship. The top-seeded Spiders play on Saturday, May 2 at noon against No. 3 seed Saint Joseph’s, as they’ll look to repeat as conference champions.
Maxwell Solomon can be reached at [email protected] and followed on X @Maxwell697909.
