ROCHESTER, New York -- The Lake Erie men's lacrosse team battled Roberts Wesleyan on Wednesday afternoon, exiting with a 13-7 loss. Despite generating nearly the same number of shots as the Redhawks, the Storm struggled at the faceoff X, winning just 5 of 25, and were far less accurate with their shot attempts. Lake Erie put 18 of 33 shots on goal, while Roberts Wesleyan placed 30 of 40 on cage. In their home opener, the Redhawks took control early, jumping out to a 3-0 lead in the first six minutes and carrying an 8-3 advantage into halftime. Their biggest lead came at 12-4 in the fourth period, but the Storm closed strong to bring the final to 13-7. Lake Erie now sits at 1-8 with five conference games remaining.

The Storm's seven goals were scored by just three players. Billy Coughlin netted three, marking the seventh game of his career with at least three goals and bringing his team-leading season total to 16. John Collins and Joey Ellison each added two goals, while Naythan Zurowski dished out two assists.

Noah Beckett and Landon Ramsier combined for 17 saves, a season high for the team. Mark Sosnowski-Cooke led the way with four ground balls, while Joshua Hegbe won all five of Lake Erie's faceoff victories.

Looking Ahead

Despite the 1-8 record, the Storm still have plenty to play for, with the conference race remaining wide open. Next up is a road trip to Midland, Michigan, on Wednesday, April 1, where Lake Erie will take on Northwood.

After opening the season with losses to No. 11 Lewis and UIndy, Northwood has since gone 5-0. The Timberwolves have won two one-goal games during that stretch and are coming off a dominant 18-1 win over Malone. They also have two more contests before next week's matchup with the Storm, while Lake Erie will have a full week to rest.

Northwood is led offensively by sophomores Ryder Mulvey, who has 20 goals, and Andrew Rogers, who has 19. Rogers also leads the G-MAC in assists per game at 2.14, shots per game at 9.14, and points per game at 4.86.