MANSFIELD, Conn. – The Clark University men's lacrosse team managed the shot clock to perfection, controlling the tempo from the outset and cruising to a 13-1 non-conference victory over Eastern Connecticut State University Wednesday evening at Rick McCarthy Field.
 
Clark (2-6) scored the first eight goals of the match before Eastern (3-5) finally broke through for its only goal on junior midfielder Payten Nevins' (Hamden) second goal of the year midway through the third quarter.
 
The Cougars entered play with a team faceoff percentage of just under 37 percent but dominated at the faceoff X, as seniors Mark Zito and Nathan Mintkwitz  combined to win 11 of 17 with each collecting four ground balls against an Eastern team which had won 44-of-66 (66.7) faceoffs in winning its last two games.
 
Clark maintained possession for a large portion of the game, patiently sharing the ball and winding down the shot clock before attacking the net. Eight players were credited with at least one Clark goal, with ten contributing at least one point.
 
Senior attack Benjamin Hollerbach  -- Clark's season scoring leader – was held without a shot by the Eastern defense but assisted on five goals despite entering play with only seven on the year. Hollerbach assisted on four of his team's first six goals that staked his team to a 6-0 halftime lead.
 
In addition to commanding the faceoff X, Clark outshot Eastern, 41-29 and held a +12 advantage in ground balls.
 
Making his first start of the year, junior Dylan Harloff  earned his first win in his first decision this year.  Harloff stopped 16 shots before giving way to sophomore Casey McCullough inside the final five minutes.
 
Junior All-Little East Conference long stick Domenic Scarano (Berlin) led Eastern with five ground balls and caused three turnovers, with junior defenseman Ryan Stocks (Longmeadow, MA) winning four ground balls.
 
Junior goalie Nick Collazo (Park Ridge, NJ) had a personal three-game winning streak ended. Collazo made eight saves before departing with eight minutes left.
 
Eastern returns to Little East Conference action Saturday, hosting Keene State College at 3 p.m. at Rick McCarthy Field.