UMBC Defeats Men's Lacrosse

Courtesy: UAlbany Sports Information

Baltimore, Md. – Ryan Smith scored a career-high five goals and added three assists to lead UMBC to a 14-10 victory over UAlbany in a showdown for first place in the America East Conference standings on Saturday, April 12 at UMBC Stadium. The Retrievers, who are ranked No. 9 in the USILA national poll and 11th by Inside Lacrosse, extended their winning streak to seven straight.

UAlbany (5-6, AE 2-1) rallied from a three-goal halftime deficit to draw even at eight apiece midway through the third quarter. Nate Sullivan found the net in a man-advantage situation 49 seconds into the period. The Great Danes won the following face-off, and Brian Caufield converted Steve Ammann’s feed. Tyler Endres, a defensive midfielder, then tallied his first goal of the season.

UMBC (8-3, AE 3-0) regrouped with four unanswered goals, including a pair in the final minute of the quarter. Terry Kimener, an All-America midfielder, forced a turnover and then scored himself to put his team on top for good with 7:35 remaining. Smith, a junior college transfer, converted back-to-back goals, including his fifth of the game with 39 seconds to play. Taylor Marino won the subsequent face-off to set up Maxx Davis’s goal with just one tick left on the clock.

The Retrievers, who have won 10 in a row at home, the second longest streak among Division I teams, led 5-4 in the second quarter, but then exploded with three goals in a 55-second span. UMBC won two consecutive face-offs to score 13 seconds apart, as Matt Latham and Smith connected. Freshman attack Dom Scalzo followed with his fifth of the season in a man-up situation after UAlbany’s Mike Ammann went to the penalty box for pushing.

Freshman Brian Caufield had three goals and two assists for the Great Danes, who had their five-game win streak halted. Corye Small and Sullivan each scored twice. UMBC’s Kimener finished with two goals and two assists. The start of the fourth quarter was delayed for 35 minutes due to lightning.

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UAlbany (5-6, AE 2-1) 2 3 3 2 - 10

#9 UMBC (8-3, AE 3-0) 3 5 4 2 - 14