Men’s Lacrosse Unable to Beat Bryant

After postponing their match against Bryant due to inclement weather, the men’s lacrosse team traveled to Smithfield, R.I. on Feb. 16, where the Bison were unable to secure their second victory of the year. Although the game ended with a 12-9 upset, Thomas Flibotte ’16 and David Dickson ’15 both recorded hat tricks that almost revived a first-quarter struggle.

The game began in favor of the Orange and Blue, with Dickson picking up the first goal of the match during the Bison’s first offensive possession. However, the Bulldogs retaliated with four important goals that would help secure a lead for the rest of the game. Although Brock Ghelfi ’16 was able to find the back of the net before the end of the first quarter, Bryant created a bigger deficit by scoring two goals within minutes of the second quarter. Before going into the second half, Kyle Shanahan ’16 recorded his second goal of the season and put the Bison only two behind at half.

Unfortunately, the Orange and Blue did not find the burst of energy they were hoping to in the locker room, and Bryant outscored the Bison 4-2 in the third quarter. Although Dickson was able to put two more goals away in the fourth quarter, the comeback was not strong enough to put the Bison on top. Opportunities were not the issue, as the Orange and Blue out-shot Bryant 43-31, but a great 16-save effort by the Bulldog goalie kept the Bison from shining on the scoreboard.

“We have to turn at least five of those 16 saves into goals for us and it will be a different game,” Flibotte said.

The Orange and Blue were able to score more than against Delaware in their first match up, so the team is hoping to continue putting more points on the board and finding strategic ways to do so in its upcoming game against Navy.

“We need to just stick to our game plan and find good match ups. We are also going to have to be a little smarter about out shot selection and take advantage of opportunities in tight,” Dickson said.

If the Bison are able to do so tomorrow back inside the walls of Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium, a first win in Patriot League looks promising.