Nor'easter defense stifles AMCATS on Saturday

PAXTON, Mass. – (04.09.11) The University of New England men's lacrosse team held Anna Maria College to just two goals, as the Nor'easters captured a 10-2 The Commonwealth Coast Conference victory at AMCAT Field on Saturday afternoon. The victory improves the Nor'easters playoff chances as they move to 6-7 (2-4 TCCC) on the season, while the loss drops the AMCATS to 4-9 (1-7 TCCC).

UNE senior attackman Luke DiFiore (Gloucester, Mass.) led all players with five points and three goals, to go along with two assists on the day, while sophomore Tyler Thomas (Mount Pleasant, N.Y.) chipped in with three points on two goals and one assist. Junior Dylan Thomas (Mount Pleasant, N.Y.) also collected three points in the win, scoring one goal and dishing out two assists, while senior Steve Smith (Walpole, Mass.) grabbed a game-high five ground balls. Junior goalkeeper Nate Porter (Cohasset, Mass.) played well in net, making nine saves, including five in the fourth quarter, to earn the win and improve to 6-7 on the season.

The AMCATS were paced by junior defenseman Brad Peterson (North Kingstown, R.I.) who scored one of the AMCATS' two goals on the day while also grabbing a team-high four ground balls and causing a game-best five turnovers in the loss. Sophomore Chris Summers (Long Valley, N.J.) scored the AMCATS' only other goal, while freshman Andrew Biscardi (Wantagh, N.Y.) scooped four ground balls and won 4-of-7 faceoffs. Despite taking the loss in net, sophomore Andrew Ellis (Fitchburg, Mass.) made a game-high 13 saves on the day, and kept the AMCATS in the game early on with six stops in the first quarter alone.

The Nor'easters jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead after the first quarter of play, as Tyler Thomas scored the first two goals of the game off feeds from Dylan Thomas and senior Billy Davis (North Kingstown, R.I.).

UNE expanded their lead to 4-0 when freshman Nick Gross (Kennebunk, Maine) assisted senior Nick Wilson (Amherst, N.H.) for the first goal of the second quarter.

The AMCATS finally broke through and got on the scoreboard when Summers scored an unassisted tally with just 1:56 remaining before the end of the half, sending Anna Maria into the break trailing 4-1.

The Nor'easters came out of the intermission strong, putting the game out of reach by scoring five unanswered goals to start the third quarter. DiFiore was instrumental during the run, contributing two goals and two assists, while Dylan Thomas added one goal and one assist.

Peterson put an end to the UNE run with an unassisted goal with 36 seconds remaining in the third quarter, cutting the Nor'easter's lead down to 9-2 heading into the final period.

The Nor'easters solidified the win by holding the AMCATS off the scoreboard in the fourth quarter, while senior Michael Woods (Kittery Point, Maine) scored the final goal of the game to seal the 10-2 victory.

The Nor'easters take to the field again on Tuesday when they hit the road to face Curry College at 4:00 pm, while the AMCATS return to action on Wednesday, traveling to Clark for a non-conference contest starting at 7:00 pm.

Photo Courtesy of David Sheridan for AMC Sports Information