Owls Drop Season Opener in OT to Bates 11-10

LEWISTON, Maine 3/3/10 - Keene State College freshman Matt Shairer (Wrentham, Mass.) scored with 22 seconds left in regulation to force overtime, but David Barrett scored 26 seconds into overtime to lift the Bates College men's lacrosse team to an 11-10 non-conference win over the Owls on Wednesday in the season opener for both teams. With the win, the Bobcats avenged their season-opening 14-7 loss at Keene State last season.

Bates' Cody Newman won the face-off to open the overtime period and scooped the ground ball. Rob Highland received the ball, penetrated from the left wing and pitched to Barrett on the right wing. The senior captain fired the ball into the upper right corner of the net for the game-ending score.

Bates broke a 9-9 tie with 36 seconds left in regulation on an unassisted tally by Rory Cosgrove. But the Owls quickly ended the celebrating by tying the game back up at 10-10 with 22 seconds left, when freshman Shairer scooped the ground ball after the face-off and scored an unassisted tally to send the game into the extra stanza.

The game was very close throughout: only twice did either team build even a two-goal lead, which the Owls did at 3-1 in the first and 9-7 in the fourth.

Shairer and sophomore Griffin Meehan (Simsbury, Conn.) scored four goals apiece for the Owls, with Meehan adding in a pair of assists. Freshman Jonathan Rodrick (Plaistow, N.H.) tallied a goal and an assist for Keene State. Freshman Taylor Jette (Simsbury, Conn.) added the other goal for the Owls in the losing effort.

Both goalies played well throughout the contest. Bates' Adam Scharff made 12 saves, while Keene State's Alec Corliss (Waltham, Mass.) made 13 stops. Bates out-shot Keene State by a wide 55-30 margin, but the shots on goals tally was much closer, at 24-22 in Bates' favor.

Seniors Kyle Barnett (Londonderry, N.H.) and Jamie LeSage (Exeter, N.H.) had 10 and nine ground balls, respectively, for the Owls. Scharff led Bates with six ground balls.

The Owls return to action on Saturday with their 2010 home opener against New England College at 1 pm.

(Courtesy Bates College Sports Information)