Box Score WENHAM, Mass.—If initial impressions prove accurate, the defensive side of the 2017 Eastern Connecticut State University men's lacrosse team may be much improved over a year ago.
After giving up ten goals in a season-opening victory over Gordon College (1-1) last year, the Warriors kicked off their 2017 season Saturday at Brigham Complex with a 9-3 non-conference triumph over a team which had racked up 22 goals in its season-opener three days earlier.
Featuring an opening starting lineup of nine veteran field players in front of junior goalie Chris Gorman (Shrewsbury, MA), Eastern held Gordon off the board for a stretch of 35 minutes in the middle quarters, successfully killing all seven of the host's extra-man opportunities and getting goals for seven different players and points from eight players.
In his winning starting debut, Gorman turned back 17 shots and was credited with six ground balls. He gave up two goals in the first 14 minutes of a game where Eastern trailed only after the first goal of the match, then kept the Fighting Scots scoreless as the Warriors built an 8-2 lead with 11 minutes left.
Senior midfielder Nick Biasetti (Brookfield), senior attack Tyler Aldieri (Newington) and freshman midfielder Ed Moran (West Haven) all recorded their first career points. Moran had two goals, Biasetti one and Aldieri an assist. Also contributing multiple points were senior attack Nick Fernandes (Fairfield) with a goal and two assists and junior attack Matthew Rougeot (Cheshire).
Senior faceoff specialist Jesse Schulze (Croton-on-Hudson, NY) won nine of 15 faceoffs, with senior attack Shawn Tierney (Norwell, MA) totaling seven ground balls and Schulze six.
The Warriors, coming off their 18th season of at least ten wins a year ago, capitalized on two of its five extra-man tries in the first half, with Tierney connecting with the man advantage for the team's first goal that tied things at 1-1 five minutes into play. After Biasetti struck for a man-down goal with three minutes left in the first quarter to make it 3-1, Moran tallied his initial college goal on another man advantage to make it 4-2 three minutes into the second quarter.
Eastern visits the U.S. Coast Guard Academy Wednesday at 7 p.m. A third-year program, Coast Guard swamped Lasell College, 12-5, in its 2017 opener Saturday.
