The Binghamton men’s lacrosse team lost its sixth-straight road game on Saturday, falling 12-8 to No. 7 Albany. The loss to America East (AE)-leading Albany (9-2, 5-0 AE) dropped BU (4-7, 2-2 AE) to fifth in the AE and moved one spot out of qualifying for the championship tournament.
“The guys fought the whole game; they did great,” said BU head coach Scott Nelson. “We actually had the score at 9-7 and we had seven offensive possessions and we couldn’t put a goal in, so that was the difference in the game.”
The Bearcats started slowly, giving up three goals in the game’s first five minutes. BU regrouped after a timeout and got itself back in the game when senior midfielder Zach Scaduto put Binghamton on the board with just under six minutes left in the quarter. Senior attack Johnny Maher and sophomore attack Thomas McAndrew each scored to tie the game before the end of the first.
“It was very important for them to come back like that,” Nelson said about the early deficit. “It just shows what kind of guys we have.”
After back-to-back goals by Albany junior attack Bennett Drake to open the second quarter, Binghamton again found an answer. Scaduto tied the game when he finished a feed from Maher before Albany and Binghamton traded goals to knot the score at six. The Great Danes grabbed the momentum near the end of the half, finding the back of the net twice to gain an 8-6 advantage.
Despite a strong performance in the first half, the Bearcats’ offense faltered in the second. Although the Bearcats were able to hold the dynamic Albany offense to one goal in the third quarter, they only found the back of the net once themselves. BU answered quickly after a man-up goal from Drake to start the fourth and Scaduto completed his hat trick to trim the Great Danes’ lead to 10-8. But, the Bearcats failed to score the remainder of the contest.
“We needed to make more plays,” Nelson said. “We had a lot of great opportunities [in the second half], but we couldn’t finish.”
Binghamton’s defense has struggled in its last two road games, especially in the second half. The Bearcats allowed 12 second-half goals at Towson and seven in their loss at Hartford. Against Albany, BU tightened up its issues at the back. After allowing eight first-half goals the Bearcats were solid in the second, allowing four goals to an Albany offense that ranks 10th in the nation in goals per game.
“We cleared the ball well and we didn’t give them second-chance opportunities,” Nelson said.
Although the Binghamton offense scored just eight goals, BU’s best players once again led the way. Scaduto and Maher, both seniors, have combined to form an effective scoring duo that propels the offense.
“They’re just both dynamic,” Nelson said. “They’re really fun to watch and you can tell they both really love to play.”
Maher and Scaduto’s impressive performances, however, were overshadowed by BU’s struggles on the road. Binghamton, now 0-6 on the road, has averaged only 6.8 goals per game away from home. With two of BU’s last three games coming on the road, Nelson believes his team must increase its scoring output in order to win away from home.
“If you look at the [game film] we really got great opportunities,” Nelson said. “We just have to put the ball in the goal. It’s as simple as that.”
Binghamton is scheduled to return to action on Wednesday night against No. 9 Syracuse. Faceoff is set for 7 p.m. from the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York.