Seeking retribution after a disappointing season thus far, the Binghamton men’s lacrosse team looked to earn a victory in its last game of the season during a home match on Friday night. Taking on a Stony Brook team, which is currently ranked No. 1 in the America East (AE) standings, the competition from the Seawolves (7-7, 5-1 AE) proved too much to overcome, and the Bearcats (4-11, 1-5 AE) ended the season with a loss to SBU, 15-9.
“I don’t think we played as well as we could have tonight,” said BU head coach Kevin McKeown. “It’s a little bit disappointing for our seniors who have to end it this way.”
BU began the game on the defensive end, blocking shots from Stony Brook until the Seawolves were able to post a goal just four minutes into the game. Senior attack Thomas McAndrew responded quickly with a goal for the Bearcats, with the shot assisted by senior midfielder Stephen Petrelli. However, the Seawolves sealed the quarter with an additional two goals, putting the score at 3-1 and cementing a lead that the Bearcats were unable to overcome for the remainder of the game.
During the second quarter, the Seawolves lengthened their advantage by tallying six more goals. The Bearcats, for their part, recorded two scores, one from senior midfielder Joe Grossi and another unassisted from Petrelli. The Seawolves’ strong offensive attack forced Binghamton to primarily focus on its defensive play, however. In the first half of play alone, redshirt sophomore goalie Kevin Carbone put up eight saves to help ward off additional SBU goals.
With the score at 9-3 at the beginning of the second period, it was clear the Bearcats still held some optimism for the remainder of the game. The team came onto the field strong and netted a shot in the first minute of play, courtesy of Grossi. From here, BU was able to answer almost every goal the Seawolves put up during the third quarter, but could ill afford to exchange points. McAndrew posted two unassisted goals to fuel the 12-7 score as the quarter drew to a close.
As the game continued, the play appeared to become increasingly aggressive. By the fourth quarter, the Bearcats, still looking to make a comeback, seemed more competitive than before. Three unanswered goals from Stony Brook pushed the score to 15-7. In the final minutes of play, BU was able to put up two consecutive goals, but the effort was not enough. The game ended at 15-9 in favor of the Seawolves.
“I think if we had the ball a little bit more, we might have had some more opportunities, but I think the better team won tonight,” McKeown said.
The end of Friday’s match marked the end of the season for men’s lacrosse as well. Having finished sixth in the seven-team AE Conference, the Bearcats failed to qualify for the postseason tournament. For seniors such as Petrelli, Grossi and McAndrew, this means that Friday’s match was also the last of their Binghamton careers.
“I don’t know if our consistency was there, throughout the year, but I give our seniors credit,” McKeown said. “We had a tough start to the season and we were able to pull it together a little bit at the midway point and go close to 500 from there on out, so it’s obviously not what we want but it was comforting to see that and hopefully we can take some lessons from this moving to the future.”