Courtesy of Wesleyan University
MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – The third-ranked Amherst College men's lacrosse team held Wesleyan University to only one second-half goal but was never allowed to get into a rhythm on offense, as the Lord Jeffs came out on the losing end of a 6-3 result for their first setback of the season.
Wesleyan (5-1, 4-1 NESCAC) secured the 2012 Little Three title by scoring four consecutive goals during the second quarter, breaking a 1-1 tie and carrying a 5-1 lead into halftime. Amherst (7-1, 3-1 NESCAC) accounted for the only goal of the third period and cut its deficit to 5-3 late in the fourth, but Cardinals delivered the final blow with 2:14 remaining in regulation.
Last year the Lord Jeffs snapped a 13-game losing streak against the Cardinals by posting a 4-2 win over their Little Three rivals, but Wesleyan pushed back to take a commanding 14-1 series edge since 2000. Amherst will return to action this Saturday to host Hamilton College at 1 p.m.
The hosts scored the only goal of the first period when senior Teddy Citrin began his hat trick at 5:48 of the stanza, as the Cardinals took a 1-0 lead into the first break after the Lord Jeffs came up empty on both of their extra-man opportunities.
Amherst tied the game at 10:56 of the second quarter on a nice backhand whisk shot from senior Cole Cherney, who finished off an interior feed from classmate Alex Fox.
The Cardinals took over and rattled off four in a row in a span of 8:25, giving them a commanding 5-1 lead at the half. John Froats got the run started with a low shot inside the left post, followed by Citrin netting his second goal on a fast break at 7:32. It was 4-1 after Froats scored again at 4:11, and Max Landow put the finishing touches on the run with his third point of the game.
Amherst got the only marker of the third period when leading scorer Devin Acton '14 bounced in a shot from long range at 11:43 for his 23rd goal of the year. The score stayed 5-2 for more than 22 minutes until the Lord Jeffs narrowed the margin to two at 4:11 of the final period on a tally by sophomore Aaron Mathias, marking his 14th goal of the season.
Amherst drew three penalties in the final three minutes, allowing Wesleyan to cash in on a two-man-up situation at 2:14 when Citrin raced past his defender and beat Jakimo as he was out of the net guarding against a pass. It was the team-leading 12th goal of the season for Citrin, who secured the final 6-3 score.
As they did in last year's meeting, the Cardinals mounted a substantial margin in total shots, holding the Lord Jeffs to 14 attempts while taking 32 of their own. Wesleyan senior goalie Grant Covington made five saves as Amherst put only eight shots on net over the 60 minutes, while Jakimo ended the game with seven stops.
