Release courtesy of Dickinson Athletic Communications
CARLISLE, Pa. - The sixth-ranked Dickinson men's lacrosse was determined not see their fantastic 2023 campaign come to an end in the Third Round of the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season on the home field Sunday afternoon. This time the Ducks of Stevens Institute of Technology held a slim 9-8 lead with six minutes until the trio of James Isaacson, Charlie Baughan and Skyler Schluter ripped off four goals in less then a two-minute span to claim a 12-10 win at Biddle Field earning a spot in next weekend's NCAA Quarterfinals.
The home side had the first two shots of the game with Isaacson missing the mark once, before Ducks keeper Ryan Leahy had the answer for Isaacson two minutes in. Just over a minute later off a DC giveaway Jake Wright bested Chris Brandau. The two teams split the next six chances with each keeper being tasked with making two saves. With ten minutes off the clock Cole Schwartz jarred the ball free from Trevor Carroll leading to Schluter finding Owen Porter for the tally. Two minutes after that Brandau shutdown Matthew Pergola allowing for the Red and White to get the ball down the field quickly and end with a tally from Sascha Gannon giving the hosts a 2-1 edge through one.
An offering by Will Farrell went wide to kickoff the second, before Keegan Hughes scored on consecutive Stevens shots to hand the guests a 3-2 lead with 12:15 left. A save by Leahy against Schluter resulted in six straight rips for the Ducks, but only one asked anything of Brandau which he took care of. At the five minute mark DC got back on level terms when Schluter found Farrell for the finish. Just a minute-and-a-half later Pergola responded for Stevens to reclaim a 4-3 edge. After both Leahy and Brandau notched another stop a bad pass for Trevor Carroll let Evan Karetsos pick up the loose ball and storm down the other end of the field and deposit the rock to back of the cage making it 4-4. A faceoff win for the Ducks led to three visiting shots, but none of them beat Brandau. However, at the other end Sam Campbell would tally for the Red and White to grab a 5-4 advantage with 3:40 to go. Another win at the X for John McKee set the stage for Will Single to find Baughan for the finish making it 6-4 at halftime.
An early miscue from DC gave the Ducks the opportunity to bag two quick goals thanks to Jack Savarese and Kevin Crowley to knot the score 6-6 with 12:41 to go. Dickinson took advantage of a win at X from McKee as Sam Bunten pulled in the groundball, before finding Campbell who hit Schluter for the marker less than a minute later. Seven of the ensuing eight shots went to the Ducks with Brandau making two stops, until Shea Grant stuck one behind him to once again tie the game 7-7 inside the final six minutes of the period. The Red and White then flipped the script around with five consecutive shots of the their own as Mac Childs ripped the twine unassisted. Isaacson and Gannon would each ask a question of Leahy over the final two minutes, but he had the answer on both occasions.
For the fourth straight quarter it was the Ducks that tallied first with Crowley scoring just 47-seconds into the final period. Isaacson tried to immediately answer back, but Leahy was there to turn him away. Stevens had the next three opportunities, however two went wide and Brandau robbed Pergola to keep things locked at 8-8. After Schluter rang iron in behind Leahy, Nicolas Accardo found the groundball and got it ahead to Joseph Grippo who setup up Savarese for the ninth of the day. However, that woke up the "sleeping giant" as McKee won four consecutive draws resulting in markers by Isaacson, Baughan, and Schluter (2) in a 95-second span to hand the Devils a 12-9 advantage with just 3:54 left. Stevens would use a man-up opportunity with 3:31 remaining to net their tenth of the day through Savarese. The Ducks had three of the final four chances, but Brandau puncuated the victory with a stop of Pergoala at the 14:46 mark to end the game.
Red Devil Leaders
Goals - Schluter (3), Baughan (2)
Assists - Schluter (2)
Groundballs - McKee (17), Porter (6), Brandau and Schwartz (5)
Saves - Brandau (13)
Duck Leaders
Goals - Savarese (3), Crowley and Hughes (2)
Groundballs - Leahy (5), Accardo and Lesizza (4)
Saves - Leahy (11)
Milestone for Coach Webster
With the win today Red Devils Head Coach David Webster has reached 300 for his coaching career bring his record to 300-178. The Dickinson alum is in his 21st season at the head of the Devils Den and is 253-108 as the coach of his alma mater.
Next on the Field
Dickinson (17-3) will now advance to the NCAA Quarterfinals for a rematch against Christopher Newport University on Saturday afternoon at 3pm in Salisbury, Maryland on the campus of Salisbury University. The Red Devils and Captains met earlier this season at the Mustang Classic with CNU escaping with a 13-12 win over the Red and White.