WILMINGTON, Delaware -- The Lake Erie men's lacrosse team put up a strong fight over the weekend but fell to Wilmington 13-6 in a hard-fought battle. Despite the final score, the game felt much closer, as the Storm offense was highly active and even outshot the Wildcats. With the loss, Lake Erie moves to 4-6 overall but remains 4-2 in G-MAC play, holding onto fourth place in the standings.
Game Recap
Lake Erie came out firing with three early shots on goal, but none found the net, and Wilmington quickly jumped ahead 3-0. The Storm responded with resilience, as freshman John Collins continued his stellar season by scoring back-to-back goals to bring his team within one. However, Wilmington added a buzzer-beater to close the first quarter, extending their lead to 4-2.
The second period started slowly for Lake Erie, and it wasn't until 2:17 before halftime that sophomore Will Whitlock found the net for his first goal of the season. Joey Ellison followed with a late goal just before the break, giving the Storm their fourth of the night. However, Wilmington countered with four goals of their own in the period, pushing their advantage to 8-4 at halftime.
The Storm came out strong in the third, as Billy Coughlin netted his 10th goal of the season to cut the deficit. The Wildcats responded with a goal of their own, but Collins completed his hat-trick with 34 seconds left in the period, setting up a potential comeback with the Storm trailing 9-6 entering the final quarter.
Unfortunately for Lake Erie, the fourth quarter was all Wilmington, as the Wildcats closed the game on a 4-0 scoring run to secure the victory.
Player Notes
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John Collins recorded his second hat-trick of the season, bringing his total to 14 goals—second on the team behind Joey Ellison (17).
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Midfielder Will Whitlock scored his first goal of the year after netting three as a freshman last season.
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Billy Coughlin, Zephaniah Scott, Tim Woods, and Joey Ellison each registered an assist. Coughlin leads the team with 11, followed by Woods (8) and Scott (4).
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Lasse Litfin led the team with six ground balls, followed by Billy Coughlin (5). Sean Gavin, Joshua Tucker, and Naythan Zurowski each collected four.
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Defensively, Nicolas Shankland and Joshua Hegbe were disruptive, causing three turnovers each, while Lasse Litfin forced two.
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Joshua Hegbe won six of his 14 face-offs, while Joey Ellison added another face-off win.
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Goalkeeper Gavin Conlan played the full game, recording 10 saves.
Team Notes
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Lake Erie outshot Wilmington 37-33, but the Wildcats had more shots on goal (23-15).
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The teams were nearly even in saves (Lake Erie 10, Wilmington 9), turnovers (Lake Erie 19, Wilmington 18), and ground balls (Lake Erie 37, Wilmington 33).
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The Storm had more clear attempts and extra-man opportunities and were more efficient in both, but they struggled at face-offs, winning just 7 of 21.
The Matchup
After winning the first-ever matchup against Wilmington in 2021, Lake Erie has now lost four straight to the Wildcats.
Looking Ahead
Lake Erie will have two full weeks off before hosting Malone on April 12 at 5 PM. The Storm hold a perfect 3-0 record against the Pioneers, including dominant 20-6 and 20-10 victories last season.
Malone enters the matchup at 5-6, with a 16-15 win over D'Youville (who defeated Lake Erie 9-6) but a tough 18-8 loss to Northwood (whom Lake Erie dominated 17-7). While the Storm rest, Malone will face Walsh and Seton Hill, two of the conference's top three teams. The Pioneers are led by senior Talon Heath, who tops the team in both goals (31) and assists (18).
