The No. 17 Massachusetts men’s lacrosse team struggled defensively against High Point in a 15-7 defeat. The loss is the second of the season for the Minutemen (7-2, 0-1 Atlantic 10), and the first since their season opener against Army. The matchup at Vert Stadium served as each team’s initial conference game.
Robbie Granara fired a rocket from the right slot to put the Gorillas up 3-2 with just under 10 minutes remaining in the second quarter. Then, the Panthers (2-5, 1-0 A-10) offense started rolling. Ryan Hynes tied the game up after wrapping around the net and scoring following a High Point timeout.
Next, freshman Magnus Falkiewicz got his first collegiate goal, giving the Panthers the lead. Twenty-five seconds later, Carson Robins found the top left pocket of the goal for a score. Hynes and Robins scored three more goals, which allowed High Point to enter halftime with an 8-3 lead.
Granara appeared motivated to give UMass some momentum, beating his defender for his second goal of the game early in the third period. Yet, just 12 seconds later, Luca Accardo responded by finding an open Owen Bunten immediately after a faceoff win to counter the Gorillas’ goal. Charles Kurtz assisted Granara for his hat-trick goal to cut the Panther lead to four, but High Point’s offense rattled off three unanswered goals to end the quarter.
Bunten got the game going with his twelfth goal of the season, his third consecutive game with at least one score. With 53 seconds remaining in the opening period, Kurtz bounced a shot past the goalie to tie the game at one goal apiece.
The Panthers held the advantage across nearly every statistic, most impressively faceoffs. Accardo won 22 of his 25 faceoffs, tying the senior’s career high in wins. In total, UMass won just three faceoffs to High Point’s 23.
Aside from dominating the ‘X’, Accardo also started the second period as well as anyone possibly could. After winning a faceoff, the Preseason All-American Honorable Mention ran all the way down the field and finished a goal just six seconds into the quarter, leaving the Gorilla defenders stunned.
With the game all but over late in the final period, Justin Wixted added insult to injury by scoring two impressive goals as the final points on the board. The first saw the Pennsylvania native use a flurry of moves to evade his defender and beat the goalie by going top shelf. Less than two minutes later, Wixted showcased his accuracy with a precise shot that found the back of the net. The junior attack finished with a hat trick.
On the bright side for UMass, Thomas Bagnall displayed his physical nature on his lone goal of the game. The 5-foot-11 freshman battled past a Panther defender and skillfully scored despite getting knocked to the ground mid-shot. It was the Canadian native’s eighth goal of his campaign.
Owen Salanger struggled in net, allowing a season-high 15 goals. The keeper also saved 15 shots, setting the second-lowest save percentage of his season. On the other side, Zack Overend stopped 13 shots and allowed seven goals. His 65% save percentage is his highest of the year.
The result snapped two streaks, with a five-game losing skid for High Point and a seven-game win streak for UMass both coming to an end.
Next on the schedule for the Gorillas will be No. 2 Richmond as they continue their conference play. The Minutemen will host the matchup at noon on Saturday, March 21. The game will be available to watch on NESN.
Maxwell Solomon can be reached at [email protected] and followed on X @Maxwell697909.
