Box Score

MILTON, Mass. -- Leading 9-8 late in the third quarter, the University of New England tallied the final four goals of the match to come away with a 13-8 The Commonwealth Coast Conference men's lacrosse win over Curry College on Tuesday afternoon at Walter M. Katz Field.

With the victory, the Nor'easters level their overall record at 7-7 -- a new program-best for single-season wins -- and improve to 3-4 in TCCC contests. Big Blue has been victorious in five of its last six outings.

After the Colonels (4-9, 1-7 TCCC) scored three of the initial four markers of the third period to pull within one (9-8), UNE senior Steve Smith (Walpole, Mass.) swung the momentum back in favor of the visitors on a goal with just five seconds left in the frame.

Classmate Michael Woods (Kittery Point, Maine) opened up the final quarter at the 13:51 mark with his second goal of the game, before sophomore Chris Garber (Cheshire, Conn.) and junior Dylan Thomas (Mount Pleasant, N.Y.) found the back of the cage a mere seven seconds apart to provide the closing margin with over 10 minutes left.

The Nor'easters finished with an 11-4 edge in shots during the stanza, and committed only three turnovers to help seal the deal. Over the 60 minutes, Big Blue owned a 47-30 cushion in shot attempts.

For UNE, sophomore Tyler Thomas (Mount Pleasant, N.Y.) led the way with three scores. Junior Michael Pennacchio (Peabody, Mass.) added a pair of goals, and Dylan Thomas finished with a team-high four points on two goals and two assists.

Curry senior Michael Snyder (Lee, Mass.) notched a match-best six points behind three goals and three assists to pace the hosts. Junior Russell Lanham (Silver Spring, Md.) also recorded three scores, while first-year Connor Arnold pitched in with two.

Big Blue junior goalie Nate Porter (Cohasset, Mass.) made 10 saves to earn the win. His counterpart, Colonels sophomore Timothy McGonagle (Concord, Mass.), posted 16 stops.

The teams traded goals for the first 16 minutes of the action (4-4), until UNE put two on the board in a span of 22 seconds to assume a two-goal advantage. The Nor'easters never trailed in the contest, and by halftime, led 8-5.

UNE is slated to entertain Wentworth Institute of Technology at the Big Blue Turf on Saturday (3 p.m.). Curry is off until next Tuesday, when it visits Anna Maria College (5 p.m.).


(Revised 4/13/11 1:30 p.m.)