Sea Gulls close regular season with 11-9 win over Mustangs

The No. 3 Salisbury University men's lacrosse team closed out its regular season with an 11-9 victory at No. 2 Stevenson University in Mustang Stadium on Saturday night.

Senior midfielder Greg Korvin put Salisbury on the board with the game's first goal, picking up a ground ball off a save of his initial shot and putting the ball in the back of the cage at the 12:18 mark of the first quarter.

The Mustangs scored two straight in a 16-second period to take a, 2-1, lead, but junior attackman Mike Kane would tie the score with 5:48 left in the quarter with a shot on the crease on an assist from senior attackman Luke Phipps.

Glen Tompkins regained the lead for Stevenson, 3-2, before two-straight Sea Gull man-up goals to end the quarter gave Salisbury a 4-3 lead heading into the second.

With the extra-man chance, Phipps found senior attackman Rhett DePol on the crease for the score. After the score, two more Mustang penalties gave the Gulls a six-on-three advantage, as senior midfielder Donovan Lange capitalized with a shot from the right wing, giving Salisbury the lead.

Three-straight Mustang goals to start the second quarter put Salisbury in a, 6-4, hole, but the Sea Gulls were able to tie the score before halftime.

Sophomore midfielder Thomas Cirillo drove down the middle and shot low for the score to bring the Gulls back to within one.

With nine seconds left in the half, senior midfielder Brandon Kendrick ripped a low shot from the left wing to knot the score, 6-6, at the break.

At the half, Stevenson led in shots, 22-15, but Salisbury led in ground balls, 21-19, and faceoffs, 7-of-13.

Kane started the second half with his second goal, collecting the ground ball off a save and redirecting the ball back into the cage.

Starting with Kane's score, the teams traded two goals each in the third quarter, with Lange adding his second for Salisbury, to enter the fourth tied, 8-8.

The Sea Gulls took control of the final quarter, as penalties continued to hinder the Mustangs, scoring three-straight man-up goals to take an 11-8 lead.

At the 13:23 mark of the fourth, Phipps gave Salisbury the lead, taking a pass from Lange and ripping a shot from the right wing.

He than returned the favor, feeding Lange the ball for a goal from 20 yards out to gain a two-score cushion.

Phipps then capped the win on another Lange assist, finding the cage, again, from the right wing.

Lange finished the game with a team-high three goals, while Phipps added team highs in assists (four) and points (six).

The Mustangs added their final score, but Salisbury's defense stood tall, with senior goalkeeper Alex Taylor making key saves in the final minutes.

Taylor earned the win, making 13 saves and playing all 60 minutes.



Salisbury now looks forward to the Capital Athletic Conference tournament; the Sea Gulls will host a semifinal game next weekend, having earned a first-round bye as the tournament's No. 1 seed. The Gulls will play the winner of a first-round game between No. 4-seeded Frostburg State University and No. 5-seeded St. Mary's College of Maryland.