The NCAA Division III men’s semifinals are set for Sunday. Let’s take a look at how the quarterfinal matchups went down.
MICHAEL SAVES YORK
Someone better buy Jack Michael dinner.
Without Michael, York might not still be alive. The goalie made two saves in overtime and 14 overall, and his last stop in the extra period made it possible for Will Harnick to assist Jacob Wilhelm for the game-winner about 90 seconds later.
Wilhelm had one goal and two assists and Jarrod Marenger scored three times in York’s 10-9 win over Christopher Newport.
York very nearly won it in regulation. With five seconds remaining in the NCAA Division III men’s quarterfinals on Saturday afternoon, Ben Mayer ripped a shot wide.
York looked to be in control early in the third quarter. The defense had allowed just two goals up to that point, and Ethan Greene’s goal 14 seconds into the period put the Spartans up 6-2. But Christopher Newport woke up with a 4-0 run thanks to goals from Brady Altobello, Dylan Rice, Brett Jackson and Miles Collins.
With the scored tied at 6, the teams traded goals. Mayer gave York an 8-7 lead with 11:12 left in the fourth quarter, but Rice and Alex Brendes scored consecutively for CNU, resulting in a 9-8 lead.
Harnick tied the score at 9 with 5:23 left in regulation. CNU won the next faceoff and got a look at the cage, but Brendes hit the post. The York defense hunkered down from there, with Hunter Imbriale and Ryan Kennedy causing turnovers on CNU’s last two possessions of regulation.
LAST-MINUTE RALLY LEADS UNION
With under one minute remaining, Union trailed Gettysburg by a goal. With the season hanging in the balance, Union turned to seniors Kieran McGovern and Keaton McCann.
McCann assisted McGovern for the tying score with 56 seconds left, then McGovern found McCann for the winner with nine seconds left, sending Union into the semifinals with a 14-13 win.
McCann finished with four goals and three assists, and McGovern had three goals and one assist.
As each team jockeyed for position, neither side held a lead greater than three goals. Kyle Howard put the Bullets up 13-12 with 1:28 left, but Matthew Paolatto won the next faceoff to set up the equalizer.
Paolatto won the next faceoff, too, setting up the winner.
SECOND AND THIRD QUARTERS LIFT RIT
The defending national champions are still standing.
RIT got four goals and one assist from Quinn Commandant, three goals from Luke Pilcher and two goals from four others in a 20-14 win over Bowdoin. An 11-1 run spanning the second and third quarters helped overcome a close first quarter and a fourth quarter that strongly favored the Polar Bears.
Bowdoin, making its first trip to the NCAA quarterfinals, led 3-1 early, but RIT fought back to take a 6-5 lead at the end of the first period on Joe Camp’s goal with 22 seconds left. The momentum then completely shifted.
RIT scored seven of the eight goals in the second quarter and scored the only four tallies of the fourth, completely distancing itself from Bowdoin. Leading 18-6 after three quarter, RIT had plenty of cushion to withstand an 8-3 fourth quarter from the Polar Bears.
QUARTET LEADS TUFTS
Mac Bredahl, Jack Boyden, Tommy Swank and Camden Kelleher did close to 100 percent of the damage for Tufts against Salisbury, scoring 16 of the team’s goals in a 17-10 win.
Bredahl had four goals and four assists, Bodyen had four goals and three assists, Swank had five goals and Kelleher had three goals and three assists. Kevin Christmas scored remaining goal for the Jumbos.
QUARTERFINAL RESULTS
RIT 20, Bowdoin 14
Tufts 17, Salisbury 10
Union 14, Gettysburg 13
York 10, Christopher Newport 9 (OT)
SEMIFINAL MATCHUPS
SUNDAY, 3 P.M. EASTERN
Union vs. York
RIT vs. Tufts