THROGGS NECK, N.Y. – The Maritime Men's Lacrosse team picked up a conference victory over the Mount St. Mary Knights on Wednesday afternoon by the score of 16-11 on Reinhart Field.
 
Maritime was led by sophomores Ian Danahy (West Nyack, N.Y./Clarkstown South) and Nick Pellegrino (Melville, N.Y./Half Hollow Hills East), as the pair both recorded five goals each in the win. Sophomore T.J. Ragusa (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh) scored two goals, as did classmate Julius Diaz (Freeport, N.Y./Freeport). Freshman Ian Ziemski (Bel Air, Md./C. Milton Wright) and Michael Petty (Port Washington, N.Y./Paul D. Schreiber) both added goals as well.
 
Ragusa led the team with two assists, while Pellegrino added one helper for a team-high six points. Ziemski, Petty, as well as juniors Chris Haun (Necsonset, N.Y./Sachem North) and Kevin Izzo (Cutchogue, N.Y./Mattituck) both added assists in the win.
 
Defensively, sophomore Brendan McNally (Long Beach, N.Y./Long Beach) got the start in goal for the Privateers and made 11 saves as the he allowed as many goals. Senior Jonathan Strezenec (Merrick, N.Y./Calhoun) led the defensive effort with three caused turnovers, while sophomore Joseph Hussey (Massapequa, N.Y./St. Anthony's) added two of his own.
 
Leading the team in ground balls was senior Matt Hayes (Baldwin, N.Y./Baldwin), who picked up 11 loose balls with many of those coming on his 22-of-30 faceoff victories. Danahy scooped up six ground balls, as did junior Jack Johnson (Annandale, Va./Annandale). Pellegrino added five, while Hussey chipped in with four. Senior Jordan Rose (Levittown, N.Y./Holy Trinity), along with Ragusa added three ground balls apiece.
 
Maritime started out of the gate sluggish, falling behind by a 5-0 score in the first 10 minutes of the first quarter. Ziemski ended the drought with an unassisted tally, but Mount St. Mary answered right back to regain its six-goal lead.
 
In the waning seconds of the first quarter, Ragusa scored his first of the afternoon to spark the Privateers.
 
As play opened up in the second quarter, Maritime continued its torrid stretch. Petty scored off a pass from Ziemski, followed by goals from Pellegrino and Diaz. Pellegrino scored twice more with a Diaz strike sandwiched in between to tie the game at six with 10:38 left in the second quarter.
 
Ragusa, Pellegrino, Diaz, and a man-up goal by Pellegrino propelled Maritime to a 10-6 lead with the second quarter winding down. The Halftime horn sounded, with the Privateers holding their four-goal advantage.
 
Mount St. Mary scored a man-down goal to open up the third quarter, but Danahy added a man-up tally in response. The Knights then scored the next two goals to close the gap back down to two at 11-9.
 
Danahy scored the next two goals off of passes from Haun and Ragusa to give the Privateers breathing room once again. After another Knight tally, Danahy added his fourth of the game, followed by the fifth from Pellegrino, and another goal from Danahy to give the Privateers a 16-10 lead. Mount St. Mary scored once in the final four minutes to cap off the scoring on the contest.
 
Final team stats saw the Privateers hold a 45-33 advantage in shots, with a 30-22 lead in shots on goal. The Privateers held a distinct advantage in ground balls at 55-20. Both teams were successful on their clear chances, as Maritime was near-perfect at 16-for-17, while Mount St. Mary was 20-for-24.
 
Maritime (6-5, 1-2 Skyline) will continue Skyline Conference play on Saturday morning, when the team plays host to the Farmingdale Rams for an 11 a.m. start on Reinhart Field.
 
Mount St. Mary (10-4, 1-3 Skyline) will head on the road for its final road game of the year, as the Dolphins will visit Montclair State for a 1 p.m. start in New Jersey.