Dana

Leyden keys second-half charge in 11-8 UNE win

Senior Dan Leyden is red-hot on the attack with 10 goals in his last two games


NEWTON, Mass. -- Senior Dan Leyden (Northfield, Mass.) scored five second-half goals to help the University of New England overcome a 5-3 halftime deficit on its way to an 11-8 victory over Lasell College in a non-conference men's lacrosse game played Thursday afternoon.

UNE won for the second time in three days to improve to 2-1, while the Lasers dropped to 1-4 on the young season.

Leading by two at the break, Lasell expanded its advantage to 6-3 on the third goal of the match by senior Ryan Koerner (Floral Park, N.Y.). 

The Nor'easters -- behind three scores by Leyden and a pair from sophomore Michael Woods (Kittery Point, Maine) -- scored five unanswered goals to close the period and take an 8-6 lead.

First-year Dylan Thomas (Pleasantville, N.Y.) and Leyden scored insurance goals for UNE to open the final frame, giving the visitors a 10-6 cushion.

Leyden's six-goal performance gives him 10 tallies in the last two matches.  Woods finished with a hat-trick, while sophomore Luke DiFiore (Gloucester, Mass.) and senior Mike Nawrocki (Baldwin, Md.) each recorded two assists.

Senior Andy Briggs (Scituate, R.I.) made eight saves for UNE, which held a sizeable 49-34 lead in shots.  The Nor'easters took advantage of 13 Lasell penalties to convert four man-up goals.

UNE will look for three straight wins Saturday when it plays a road contest at Salem State College (2:00 p.m.).