Men’s Lacrosse falters in two-game weekend road trip against Berry College (Ga.) and Oglethorpe College (Ga.)
ATLANTA, Ga. - The University of Dallas men's lacrosse team (4-8) began their two-game "Peach State" road voyage with a hard-to-swallow scoreless effort versus Berry College (Ga.), where on Sunday afternoon the Crusaders were out-matched by the Vikings, 17-0.
Less than 24 hours later, the Crusaders had a shot at redemption in the form of Oglethorpe University (Ga.), but Dallas couldn't solve the Stormy Petrels, either, suffering a 9-7 defeat.
Saturday, Apr. 16: Dallas 0, Berry College 17 Boxscore
Dallas forced Berry College's goalkeeper into making seven saves on 14 shots on goal, but the Crusaders weren't able to net a goal, thanks in part to stymie defense by the Vikings, whom ended Dallas'
Freshman midfielder Joey Mullen (Ridgewood, N.J./Ridgewood H.S.) led the Crusaders with six shots, with three being on goal, while junior midfielder Chris Kerner (Stevensville, Md.) won 9-of-19 from the face-off circle.
Defensively, junior 'keeper Blaise Dufrain (Manassas, Va./Seton High School) was bombarded with 59 shots, and was able to notch 24 saves.
Meanwhile, sophomore defender Sam Carter (Chicago, Ill./Northridge Prep) snatched a team-high eight ground balls of Dallas' 32.
Sunday, Apr. 17: Dallas 7, Oglethorpe College 9 Boxscore
In the final game of the weekend, the Crusaders quickly fell behind Oglethorpe, with the Stormy Petrels netting a goal on goalkeeper Blaise Dufrain 54-seconds into the contest.
Behind 2-0, freshman attack Tony Lemos (Dana Point, Calif./JSerra H.S.) put Dallas on the scoreboard with an assist from Stephen Joseph (Orange County, Calif./JSerra H.S.) in a man-up situation at the 3:12 mark of the 1st period.
After Oglethorpe produced the only score of the 2nd period -- midway through the second frame -- freshman midfielder Joey Mullen pulled the Crusaders back to within a single score of evening the game, as he registered an unassisted man-up tally at the 12:28 mark of the 3rd period.
Dallas seized control of the lead nearly half way into the 3rd period, taking a 4-3 advantage over Oglethorpe after two scores from Lemos, which gave him a hat-trick.
Ensuing was some back-and-forth between the two teams, and with 2:05 remaining in the 3rd period, the score was tied 5-5. Unfortunately for the Crusaders, Oglethorpe rattled off three straight unanswered goals to open the 4th period.
Mullen snapped Dallas' skid by netting his second goal of the afternoon, with 4:56 remaining in the game, trimming the Stormy Petrels' lead to two, 8-6.
It wasn't meant to be for the Crusaders, however, as each team tacked on another goal apiece before the final horn sounded -- freshman midfielder John Owen (Mount Jackson, Va.) put home Dallas' last score in the 9-7 defeat.
Next Opponent:
Dallas will put a bow on their inaugural season with a two-game road trip, in which they'll battle Aurora University (Ill.) on Friday, Apr. 22, at 4:00 p.m., prior to 'duking it out' in a rematch with Concordia University (Wis.) on Saturday.