THROGGS NECK, NY – On Saturday, the Maritime College men's lacrosse team began its Skyline Conference schedule by welcoming rival Merchant Marine to Reinhart Field. The game was tied 6-6 at halftime, but the Mariners (5-4, 2-0 Skyline) pulled away in the second half to knock off the Privateers (2-7, 0-1 Skyline) by a 13-7 margin.
Maritime struck first almost immediately, getting a man-up goal from
Joseph Fazio (Massapequa, NY) just 32 seconds into the contest.
Nick LiPuma (Bayport, NY) then scored at the 13:20 mark to put the Privateers ahead 2-0. Merchant Marine responded with four straight tallies to go up 4-2 before
Luke Caliendo (North Babylon, NY) found the back of the net twice to level it at 4-4. After the Mariners regained a 6-4 edge, Maritime got scores from
Ryan Brice (Wall, NJ) and LiPuma to make it a 6-6 game at halftime.
A goal by Michael Emerick with 5:16 left in the third quarter gave Merchant Marine an 8-6 lead, but
Nicholas Uzakewicz (Hauppauge, NY) scored 15 seconds later to bring the Privateers within one, 8-7. However, the Mariners would outscore Maritime 5-0 the rest of the way to notch a 13-7 victory and claim the Hagedorn Cup for the first time since 2018.
Caliendo and LiPuma
paced the Privateers with two goals apiece.
Joseph Bruno (East Islip, NY) and
Nick Spista (White Plains, NY) each picked up six ground balls, while
Ryan Giambone (Coram, NY) had a game-high seven ground balls to go along with four caused turnovers. In addition to securing four ground balls,
Michael Monahan (Ronkonkoma, NY) (2-6) was credited with 13 saves.
Owen Behr, Owen Barcus and Emerick combined for 10 of Merchant Marine's 13 goals. Behr scored four times, while Barcus finished with three goals and three assists. He added four ground balls. Emerick also tallied three goals for the Mariners. Michael Valentine caused turnovers and goalkeeper Julian Garcia (5-4) gathered six ground balls. He also made 16 saves while holding Maritime scoreless over the final 20 minutes.
The Privateers wrap up a three-game homestand on Wednesday night with a 7 p.m. matchup against Manhattanville (2-8, 1-0 Skyline). Maritime defeated the Valiants 19-8 in the semifinals of last season's Skyline Tournament.
