GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Today the Calvin men's lacrosse team welcomed the Spartans of Dubuque for a non-conference matchup. Looking to keep their winning streak alive the Knights fought to the finish in a 11-9 victory.
After today's match up the Knights moved to a 3-1 overall record while Dubuque fell to a 1-2 record.
The game would prove to be a close one right away as the teams spent the first half matching each other goal for goal. The Spartans put up the first points of the evening in the first quarter but the Knights responded quickly with a goal from junior Thomas Smith (Grosse Pointe Farms, Mich./Grosse Pointe South). Calvin added another to their total when Braden Carpenter (Noblesville, Ind./Nobelsville) found junior Joshua Moyer (Allenpark, Pa./Allentown Central Catholic) who turned on a dime and found the back of the net. Smith scored another goal in the period off an assist from Cole McKenney (Mission Viejo, Calif./Trabuco Hills) but Dubuque had some scoring action of their own and finished the quarter with a slight 4-3 advantage over Calvin.
Calvin continued to click on offense in the second period as two quick goals from David Blackmon (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton North) and Nick Griffith (Geneva, Fla./Oviedo) gave the lead back to the Knights. However, two goals from the Spartans just before the period ended gave them the 6-5 lead at the half.
As the third period got underway so did a scoring surge for the Knights as Calvin would dominate the quarter with five unanswered goals, now putting them in command with a 10-6 lead. In the fourth quarter, Dubuque tried to bounce back as they scored three goals but a late game goal from Carpenter would prove to be the dagger as Calvin walked away with the 11-9 victory.
After missing the last game due to injury, sophomore Nate Hanson (Naperville, Ill./Naperville North) returned to his faceoff duties where he went 11-21 in the matchup. Senior Corgan Schaumburg (Rockton, Ill./Hononegah) held down the fort for Calvin in goal where he recorded 11 saves tonight.
Smith led the way for the Knights on the attack as he notched a hat trick while also recording one assist. Carpenter finished the night with two goals while Blackmon, McKenney, Moyer, Christian Coler (Ionia, N.Y./Honeyoye Falls-Lima), and Brandon Eenigenburg (Norton Shores, Mich./Western Michigan Christian) all had one. McKenney led Calvin in the assist category this evening with three.
COACHES COMMENT: "Today was a huge win for the program," said head coach Dave Hoger. "Dubuque is a great team and our guys battled through some adversity to come out on top. I'm proud of their effort and our team as a whole, from guys on the field to the guys on the sideline who had great energy for us. We are excited to learn from this and continue to grow as a team heading into spring break."
UP NEXT: The Knights will be back in action on Tuesday, March 5th when they kick off their spring break trip in Misenheimer, N.C. against Pfeiffer. The game is set to begin at 2 p.m.
