May 1, 2005 

AMHERST, MA - The third-seeded Amherst College men's lacrosse team posted a 9-0 first-half shutout over visiting No. 6 seed Connecticut College en route to a 17-7 NESCAC Tournament Quarterfinal victory on Sunday. Senior Alex Casertano (Millbrook, NY) and sophomore Derek Cherney (Chappaqua, NY) powered the Jeff attack with five goals apiece, while Casertano added a pair of assists as the Jeffs improved to 11-3 and advance to next Saturday's conference semifinal matchup with fourth-seeded Wesleyan University at 3 p.m. at top-seeded Middlebury College. 

Amherst dominated from the opening face-off, allowing Conn. just four first-period shots, while forcing four broken clears and building a 6-0 lead. Cherney led the early barrage with a trio of unassisted goals, while defenders Scott Aldrich (Wilmington, MA) and Andrew Wilcox (Ancramdale, NY) added back-to-back long-stick scores to close the session. Despite 11 second-quarter attempts, the Camels remained scoreless at the break. Amherst sophomore Chris Hofmann (New Canaan, CT) netted a pair of goals, including a man-up tally at the 9:22-mark, to guide the Jeffs to their 9-0 halftime edge. 

Conn. came to life after the break, outscoring Amherst 6-2 in the third frame and cutting the lead to 11-6 heading into the final quarter. Conn. senior Dave Schwartz (East Dix Hills, NY) led the rally with a pair of unassisted tallies, but Amherst would awake from its third-quarter slumber, tacking on six more goals in the final stanza to seal the win. Casertano notched three goals down the stretch, using slick feeds from classmates Colby Griffith (Lexington, MA), Andrew Syfu (Hobart, IN) and Bryan Hiller (Wantagh, NY) to find the net. 

Also scoring for the Jeffs were senior Josh Cherney (Chappaqua, NY), sophomore Chris Hahm (Saratoga Springs, NY) and rookie Will Ferrer (Greenwich, CT), while juniors Kevin Boova (Summit, NJ) and Sean Murray (Madison, NJ) dealt an assist apiece. Syfu added a pair of assists, won 5-of-9 face-offs and grabbed five ground balls, and Wilcox continued his dominance of the midfield, scooping up a game-high eight ground balls. The Jeff defense squashed 11 Conn. man-up opportunities as senior goalie Cushing Donelan (Noroton, CT) collected seven saves and four ground balls in just over 55 minutes and junior Raul Altreche (Bronx, NY) nabbed a save in the closing minutes. 

Joining Schwartz in the Camels' scoring column were juniors Chas McLaughlin (Morris Plains, NJ), Brad Luckhardt (Danville, CA), Brendan Rampi (N. Easton, MA) and Mike Conti (Montclair, NJ) and sophomore Russ Chase (Hingham, MA). Senior Topher Grossman (Villanova, PA) went the distance in goal, collecting 10 saves as Conn. wrapped up its season at 7-8. 

BOX SCORE