Cougars Come up Short Vs Mount St. Joseph
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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3 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 11 |
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2 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 10 |
Team Stats
Mount St. Joseph (NCAA D3)
| Game Statistics | Mount St. Joseph (NCAA D3) | Cleary (Mich.) |
|---|---|---|
| Shots | 54 | 32 |
| Ground Balls | 41 | 38 |
| Saves | 7 | 16 |
| Clears | 25-32 | 25-32 |
| Turnovers | 24 | 33 |
| Face Offs Won | 12 | 13 |
| Man Up | 1-5 | 0-3 |
(Brighton, MI)-- The Cleary Cougars men's lacrosse team held a lead for much of the 2nd quarter, and into the 3rd quarter, but were unable to hold on as they fell to the visiting Mount St. Joseph Lions on Friday afternoon at Legacy Center in Brighton. This game was originally scheduled to be played at Lake Trust Stadium, but was moved indoors due to the projected weather over the weekend.
Each team started off the game trading goals in the 1st quarter, as the Lions would take a 3-2 lead after 15 minutes of play. Cleary would get goals from Mike Smith (assisted by Danny Pudduck) and Zach Eakes (assisted by Joey VanGoethem) in the quarter. The 2nd quarter was almost all Cleary, as the Cougars tied the game right away after Danny Pudduck scored in the first minute of play. After MSJ scored to take the lead at 4-3, Cleary rattled off four straight to lead 7-4. Those goals were scored by Joey VanGoethem (assisted by Danny Pudduck), and Zach Eakes twice (one assist from Riley Finlay). MSJ would score twice in the final minutes to narrow the gap, including a goal with a second left on the clock to make it 7-6 Cougars going into the break.
The two teams would once again trade goals in the 3rd quarter, but the Lions would find themselves in the lead with just 15 minutes to go. Cleary's Zach Eakes scored (assisted from Riley Finlay), and Mike Smith scored (assisted from Danny Pudduck), but three straight MSJ goals put Cleary down. On their first possession of the 4th quarter, MSJ would score what would be the game-winning goal to put the Lions up 11-9. A late Cleary push resulted in a goal from Mike Smith (assisted by Riley Finlay) to cut the lead to one goal. Cleary would get the ensuing faceoff, and would get a shot on target, but MSJ's goalie would make the save, and the clock would expire without the tying goal finding the net.
Zach Eakes led the way with 4 goals, while Mike Smith added 3 goals. Riley Finlay and Danny Pudduck each had 1 goal and 3 assists for the Cougars. Adam Roper made 16 saves in net, but drops to 0-4 on the season.
Cleary is scheduled to travel to Angola, Indiana next Saturday, March 19, to take on the Trine University Thunder at 1:00 PM.
