Championship Final: Dickinson 11, Washington College 6
(Chestertown, Md.) – The #13-ranked Dickinson College men's lacrosse team outscored top-seed, #18-ranked Washington College 4-0 in the second and third quarters, and added five in the fourth to post an 11-6 victory on Sunday. The Red Devils capture their second straight Centennial Conference title, earning an automatic bid the NCAA Division III Playoffs.
The teams each scored twice in the first quarter, trading goals for a 2-2 tie at the end of one. Dominic Serio struck first, putting Washington up, 1-0, at the 10:39 mark.
The Devils answered with back-to-back goals as Brian Cannon (Reisterstown, Md./Loyola-Blakefield) dodged and found the net with 5:30 to play in the quarter. Junior Christian Beitel (Newtown, Conn./Newtown) finished an assist from Ward Gruppo (Fairfield, Conn./Fairfield Prep) just over a minute later to give Dickinson a 2-1 advantage with 4:15 on the clock.
Bennett Cord scored off the ensuing face-off to even the score, 2-2. The Devils pulled in front again to start the second period as first-year Tyler White (Philadelphia, Pa./Penn Charter) scored off an assist from Richard Craft (Newtown Square, Pa./Episcopal) with 11:44 to play in the half.
The Devils capitalized on a man-up opportunity at the 6:59 mark. Cannon struck from a hard angle, putting the Devils in front, 4-2, with an assist from classmate Brian Gleason (Darien, Conn./Darien).
Another Shoremen penalty on the face-off led to another man-up situation and another tally for the Devils. Cannon fed Sam Greenberg (Owings Mills, Md./McDonogh) to give Dickinson a 5-2 lead with 5:39 remaining in the half.
Washington found themselves man-down once more, but the Devils took a shot off the face-off that went wide and gave possession to the Shoremen. They were able to kill-off the penalty and then went two-men up as back-to-back holding calls gave Washington a 5-on-3 advantage.
The man-down unit held for the Devils, keeping the score 5-2 as the teams headed into halftime.
The third quarter saw very little action other than penalties and turnovers. The Devils netted the only goal of the quarter with just 22 seconds on the clock. Nick Leon (Chevy Chase, Md./Gonzaga) ripped a shot into the cage off an assist from Matt Cherry (Bryn Mawr, Pa./Radnor).
The Devils stretched the lead to 7-2, early in the fourth quarter. Greenberg scored his second of the day with another assist from Cannon at the 14:19 mark.
The Shoremen finally put another goal on the board, scoring for first time since the four minute mark of the first quarter. Hunter Nowicki finished an assist from Bennett Cord with 12:31 on the clock. The Devils responded almost immediately as B.J. West (Summit, N.J./Summit) fed Greenberg for a hat-trick at the 12:12 mark, stretching the lead to 8-3.
Cord struck again at the 9:24 mark to cut the deficit to 8-4, but Leon answered with another extra-man goal at the 7:05 mark, adding to his conference lead for man-up goals, with an assist from Cherry. Greenberg struck again, right off the ensuing face-off, taking a feed from Chip Murray (New Canaan, Conn./New Canann) to put the Devils up, 10-4, with 6:59 remaining in the game.
Bobby Kingsley (Bethesda, Md./St. Albans) added another for the Devils, netting an assist from Cannon for an 11-4, Dickinson lead.
Washington scored to cut the margin to 11-5 on a tally from face-off man Kodie Englehart. The Shoremen appeared to score again, but were called for a crease violation. Back-to-back Washington penalties gave the Devils a pair of extra-man opportunities. The Shoremen held on the first and then tallied a shorthanded goal as Englehart scored again, while drawing a penalty on the Red Devils.
The Devils held on man-down and cleared to look and run out the clock. Washington brought an extra attacker on the force a turnover, leading to an off-sides penalty. Washington was able to force a turnover but the clock would run out, giving the Red Devils their second straight Centennial Conference title.
Junior goaltender Greg Hanley (Laurel Hollow, N.Y./Cold Spring Harbor) made 12 saves and controlled four ground balls. Classmate Peter Zouck (Baltimore, Md./Gilman) turned in an outstanding performance to anchor the defense, controlling six ground balls and causing three turnovers.
The Red Devils held the Shoremen scoreless for over 36 minutes, from the four minute mark of the first quarter. Sophomore Draper Donley (Lutherville, Md./St. Paul's) caused three turnovers and picked-up five ground balls on the day.
Brandon Palladino (Basking Ridge, N.J./Ridge) was solid in the midfield while Murray won 11-of-19 face-offs and controlled seven ground balls.
Greenberg tallied four goals while Cannon scored twice and dished out three assists to lead the attack. Leon tallied twice while the Devils scored on 4-of-9 extra-man opportunities. The Red Devils held the Shoremen scoreless on five extra-man attempts for the game.
Peter Stewart made 12 saves for Washington as the Shoremen fall to 11-5 overall. The Red Devils earn the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, improving to 14-3 on the season. They will await the pairings, which are expected to be announced Sunday night.