Owls Dominate Beacons 17-3

KEENE, N.H. 4/5/08 - The #18 ranked Keene State men's lacrosse team remained undefeated (5-0, 2-0 Little East) with a dominating 17-3 victory over UMass-Boston at Owl Athletic Complex on Saturday afternoon.

Sophomore attack Josh Nugent (Cheshire, Conn.) scored four goals to lead the Owls. Junior midfielder Casey Brodersen (Derry, N.H.) had three goals and two assists, and senior midfielder Ryan Hazelton (Chester, N.H.) finished with three goals and an assists for KSC, which outshot UMB 69-22. Junior attack Tony Santa Fe (Derry, N.H.) chipped in with four assists.

"I think we played a pretty complete game," said KSC Coach Mark Theriault. "We're hard to beat at home."

The Owls jumped out to a 5-0 lead after the first quarter. Leading 6-0 early in the second quarter, KSC withstood a two-man down penalty and took a 9-1 halftime lead. Nugent and Hazelton combined to score seven of the Owls' nine first half goals. Hazelton's three goals gives him 12 on the season. Nugent has tallied 10 goals this season.

Keene State's defense and senior goalie Matt Johnson (Derry, N.H.), who finished with nine saves, shut down the Beacons the rest of the game. Back-up goalie Bill Brooks (Lewiston, Me.) played the final 9:25 and stopped two shots.

"We're playing smart, team defense," said long stick midfielder Easton Kezer (Derry, N.H.), who delivered several strong hits on Beacon players. "When you have players looking over their shoulders, they're not as aggressive taking the ball to the net."

Kezer also did a good job clearing the ball and thought about scoring a goal." "I'm always trying to come down and score it's a defensemen's dream," he said.

"Working with our offense every day in practice helps us prepare for games, said senior defender Ronnie Ward (Derry, N.H.). "Even the other teams' offense is in shock at what our offense can do."

Jamie Lesage (Exeter, N.H.) scored twice for the Owls while Peter Lauranzano (Beverly, Mass.) Michael Araujo (Southborough, Mass.), Joshua Luft (Lake Peekskill, N.Y.), and Alex Loscialpo (Westport, Conn.) also found the back of the net. It was the first college goals for Araujo, a freshman.

UMass-Boston (1-5, 0-2 LEC), which has dropped four straight games, scored single goals in the final three quarters. John Canty (Milton, Mass.), Nick Thomo (Brookfield, Mass.), and Jared Kinch (Cohasset, Mass.) were the Beacon goal scorers. Sophomore Aaron Pollock, (Belmont, Mass.) had an outstanding day in goal for the Beacons, finishing with 26 saves.

Keene State host rival Plymouth State on Thursday (4 p.m.). UMB returns home to face MIT on Tuesday. Both games begin at 4 p.m.