The #9-ranked Dickinson men's lacrosse team made a great run, looking to rally from a five-goal deficit in the fourth quarter but fell to #7-ranked and defending national champion Salisbury University.
The Seagulls jumped out early and held off a great run by the Red Devils as they advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship with a 9-7 win on Wednesday night.
Senior Dylan Maher (Ridgefield, Conn./Ridgefield) scored a pair of goals to become the program's all-time leading goal-scorer with 141 in his career.
Salisbury gained the early advantage, scoring the only two goals of the opening quarter. The Seagulls struck early in the second and capitalized on an extra-man opportunity to stretch the margin to 4-0, with 4:44 remaining in the half.
The Red Devils answered on a man-up of their own as first-year Connor Ringwalt (Springfield, Pa./Episcopal Academy) scored on a beautiful behind the head shot off an assist from Tyler Strods (Skaneateles, N.Y./Skaneateles) to put Dickinson on the board.
The hosts struck with just over a minute to play to take a 5-1 lead into the break. The Red Devils came out strong, scoring back-to-back goals to make the score, 5-3, with 11:46 remaining in the third quarter.
Junior Jack O'Connell (Sands Point, N.Y./Westminster) fed an assist to Brodie Phillips (Charlottesville, Va./St. Anne's Belfield) and then scored off a feed from Maher to give the Devils some early momentum.
Austin Short answered for Salisbury before Maher swept a brilliant shot, hockey-style, into the cage to tie the school record for career goals and cutting the deficit to a pair once again.
Salisbury closed out the third with a pair of goals and struck early in the fourth to lead, 9-4, with 11:15 to play. The Red Devils kept their composure and chipped away at the lead, scoring three straight goals.
Phillips found Strods on the doorstep on a well-executed clear and Strods paid it forward, finding Maher at the 3:32 mark for an extra-man tally.
Tucker Carney (Wallingford, Pa./Strath Haven) found the net to make the score 9-7 with 2:55 on the clock. The Red Devils won the face-off and would have chances in the final minutes but the Seagulls would hold on.
The Red Devils held the advantage on face-offs with Bobby Hartwick (Brookeville, Md./Georgetown Prep) winning 7-of-9 and claiming four ground balls while Ryan Campbell (Rumson, N.J./Rumson-Fairhaven) won six on the night.
Junior Nate Usich (Avon, Conn./Avon Old Farms) had another strong game in the midfield, controlling five ground balls and forcing a pair of turnovers. Sophomore Cole Pellicano (Arnold, Md./Broadneck) had another great outing as well, making 10 saves.
Maher led the attack with two goals and one assist, finishing sixth all-time with 171 points in his career. Strods added a goal and two assists while Phillips went 1-1 on the day.
Salisbury improves to 19-3 overall while the Red Devils finish 17-4 on the season, breaking school records for goals, assists and points in a season.