The Yale Bulldogs needed no reminder of the level of play Villanova can produce on any given day. The Wildcats scored early-season upsets over the Bulldogs both in 2018 and 2019, adding fuel to the fire for Andy Shay and his team to break the streak on Saturday.
Led by Matt Brandau, Matt Gaudet and Thomas Bragg, Yale brought its offense to Philadelphia in an 18-12 victory over Villanova. Five players recorded a hat trick or better to pace a balanced Bulldogs offense.
Brandau finished with three goals and three assists, while Gaudet scored four times and added an assist and Bragg tallied four goals and two assists.
Yale jumped out to an early 5-1 lead on a Gaudet goal, but Villanova responded with six of eight goals to tie the game at 7-7 in the second quarter. Colin Crowley (seven points) and Corey McManus (four points) led the rally, and Connor Kirst (five points) kept Villanova in the game through halftime.
Tied 11-11 midway through the third quarter, Yale scored seven straight goals from five different players to pull away from the Wildcats for good. TD Ierlan won 23 of 31 faceoffs to lead the Bulldogs.
UVA Handles Lehigh at Klockner
Virginia entered the season knowing it faced a challenge in week one against Loyola last week. But arguably just as big for the Cavaliers was a meeting with another Patriot League foe — Lehigh — on Saturday afternoon at Klockner.
The Virginia offense, led by Michael Kraus, Ian Laviano, Matt Moore and Dox Aitken, orchestrated another strong performance against a stout Lehigh defense. Aided by a strong first quarter, the Cavaliers held off the Mountain Hawks for the 12-8 victory.
The four-headed monster combined for nine of the 12 Virginia goals, with Kraus leading the way with four goals and an assist, while Moore dropped three goals and two assists.
Kraus had a first-quarter hat trick to help the Cavaliers jump out to a 6-1 lead. Lehigh cut the deficit to 7-4 at the half, but got no closer in the second half.
Maryland Surges Back to Down Penn
Up by six goals in the third quarter, Penn had all the momentum and looked close to cruising to a win at College Park.
But, just like last week against Richmond, the Maryland had other plans. The Terps scored eight consecutive goals to claw back for the 17-15 victory in a thriller. Freshman Daniel Maltz had five goals to lead Maryland, including four of the final six goals.
In addition, Jared Bernhardt had four goals and two assists. For Penn, Sean Lulley tallied four goals and two assists and Sam Handley scored three goals and two assists.
More on this game from Justin Fitzgerald.
Duke Defeats Denver
Duke’s season-opening loss to Air Force already seems like a distant memory.
The 12th-ranked Blue Devils (2-1) went west Saturday and accomplished a rare feat, defeating Denver 15-13 at Peter Barton Stadium. It was just the 10th home loss since 2010 for the eighth-ranked Pioneers (1-1), who squandered a six-goal effort by Jack Hannah.
Owen Caputo, Joey Manown and Dyson Williams scored three goals apiece for Duke, which jumped out to an 8-2 lead midway through the second quarter and did not look back.
Denver showed some life late. Hannah’s fifth goal came with four seconds left in the third quarter and ignited a three-goal run that pulled the Pioneers within three at 13-10.
The Blue Devils answered with two of the next three goals to put the game away.
Denver scored twice in the last 30 seconds for the final margin.
— Matt DaSilva
Loyola Smothers Hopkins Despite Epstein’s Limited Return
Kevin Lindley scored four goals, Sam Shafer made 15 saves and No. 17 Loyola continued its recent dominance of the Charles Street rivalry, defeating No. 7 Johns Hopkins 10-7 at Ridley Athletic Complex.
The Greyhounds (1-1), who have won three straight games in the series and six of the last seven, smothered an undermanned Hopkins offense that received only limited minutes from star attackman Joey Epstein, who dressed for the first time this season but was clearly still bothered by the knee injury that kept him out of the Blue Jays’ opener against Towson.
Epstein started, but did not take a shot, finishing with a stat line of two ground balls and two turnovers.
Loyola led 4-3, then went on a 6-1 run spanning 20 minutes, 47 seconds. The Greyhounds killed consecutive fourth-quarter penalties, after which long pole Ryan McNulty scored in transition to give them a 10-4 advantage with 11:37 remaining.
Hopkins (1-1) scored twice in 35 seconds to pull within four and got a late goal from Forry Smith (three goals), but could not complete the comeback.
The Greyhounds were bolstered by a 12-for-20 performance from faceoff specialist Bailey Savio.
— Matt DaSilva
UMass upsets Ohio State
Nick Myers hinted at the toughness of a UMass team it faced this weekend in our Gameday Guide.
“When you play UMass, the will of your team will be tested,” he said after meeting the Minutemen last year.
It was a bit of foreshadowing, but he wasn’t wrong. Ohio State and UMass battled it out in a defensive game at the Shoe on Saturday afternoon — one that saw the Minutemen score the final five goals en route to a 9-7 upset win over the Buckeyes.
Gabriel Procyk, who scored the eventual game-winner with 7:08 left, led the way with three goals.
Neither team led by more than a goal until Ohio State got to 6-4 in the third quarter. Jackson Reid added another to the lead with 2:28 left in the third.
Kevin Tobin scored in the waning second of the third, and Procyk and Jeff Trainor each tallied two goals in the fourth goal, to complete the comeback with a five-goal rally.
Army Dominates Rutgers
Army has been known for its stingy defense for the better part of the last decade, but the early stages of the 2020 season have been about its offensive firepower.
After blowout wins over UMass and NJIT, the Black Knights faced off with another quality opponent in Rutgers. Still, it was the same outcome — Army pounced on the Scarlet Knights early, fueling the 15-4 victory.
Freshman Jacob Morin led Army with five goals. The Black Knights have outscored opponents 51-9 so far this season.
Michael Sowers is Historic
Michael Sowers began his senior season on a historic note. He dropped four goals and seven assists in 20-9 win over Monmouth — tying a single-game record for points set by, of course, himself.
Sowers had nine points in the first half, and stood a great save by Monmouth goalie Noah Lade in the fourth quarter away from breaking the record.
UNC Offense Soars Again
It’s only been three games, but North Carolina’s offense has the makings of being one of the best in the ACC.
The Tar Heels added to the early season hot streak with a 24-8 victory over Lafayette. Chris Gray (3G, 4A) and Nicky Solomon (2G, 5A) led North Carolina’s offense, while Tanner Cook and Alex Trippi added four goals apiece.
Penn State Uses Big First Half to Blow Out St. Joe's
After struggling out of the gates against Villanova and Lafayette, Penn State made an early statement against Saint Joseph’s en route to a 19-4 victory at Panzer Stadium.
Mac O’Keefe had all of his six points in the first half which saw the Nittany Lions lead 9-1 at the break. Ament, not asked to carry the load in the second half, finished with a goal and six assists.
Big Red Runs Past Albany
Cornell traveled to Albany on Saturday for what looked to be a marquee matchup of the weekend. The Big Red, however, quickly had the Great Danes chasing en route to a 19-10 dominating win on the road.
Jonathan Donville had five goals to pace the Cornell offense, and Jeff Teat (five points) and Cooper Telesco (four goals) helped keep the game out of reach for Albany.
The Big Red battled through a tight first half with a 7-3 lead, but closed the door in the third quarter. Donville and Telesco each had hat tricks in a 9-1 third quarter that gave Cornell plenty of breathing room.
Notre Dame Opens with Win over Cleveland State
Notre Dame got its 2020 season started on a strong note, jumping out to an early lead and cruising to a 17-7 win over Cleveland State.
Bryan Costabile had four goals for the Irish, but freshman and U.S. U19 training team member Pat Kavanagh dropped three goals and four assists to lead the offense.
Mount Tops Towson
Mount St. Mary's used a four-goal, third-quarter surge to down Towson 11-10 at Johnny Unitas Stadium. It's the first win in the series since 1975, when Towson had to forfeit because of an ineligible player.
Matt Haggerty had four goals for Mount St. Mary's, while Brendan McCarthy scored twice in the third-quarter rally.
Navy Cruises Past Furman, Meade Returns
Navy showcased its offense in a 19-3 victory over Furman on a crisp Saturday at Navy Marines Corps Memorial Stadium. Fourteen different players scored for the Midshipmen in a game that featured the return of former coach Richie Meade to Annapolis for the first time since he was forced to resign in 2011.
Nike/US Lacrosse Top 20
No. 1 Penn State 19, Saint Joseph's 4
No. 2 Virginia 12, No. 18 Lehigh 8
No. 3 Yale 18, No. 20 Villanova 12
No. 4 Maryland 17, No. 9 Penn 15
No. 5 Notre Dame 17, Cleveland State 7
No. 6 Syracuse 17, Binghamton 4
No. 17 Loyola 10, No. 7 Johns Hopkins 7
No. 12 Duke 15, No. 8 Denver 13
No. 10 North Carolina 24, Lafayette 8
No. 11 Cornell 19, Albany 10
UMass 9, No. 13 Ohio State 7
No. 14 Army 15, No. 16 Rutgers 4
No. 15 Air Force 9, Utah 8
No. 19 Georgetown 14, UMBC 8
Other Scores
Bellarmine 13, St. Bonaventure 5
Boston U 13, UMass Lowell 5
Brown 11, Quinnipiac 7
Bucknell 14, Sacred Heart 11
Dartmouth 13, Merrimack 11
Delaware 13, NJIT 1
Fairfield 18, Stony Brook 16
High Point 16, Drexel 15
Hobart 26, Siena 9
Hofstra 12, Michigan 9
Holy Cross 10, Vermont 9
Jacksonville 11, Marquette 9
Manhattan 10, VMI 8
Mount St. Mary's 11, Towson 10
Navy 19, Furman 3
Princeton 20, Monmouth 9
Providence 16, Bryant 9
Robert Morris 22, Canisius 10
St. John's 13, Hartford 11
Wagner 9, LIU 8 (OT)