AMHERST, Mass. – The High Point University men's lacrosse team dropped its Atlantic 10 opener to Massachusetts on Saturday afternoon, 12-10.
Jaxson Lamb had a career day, finishing with four goals on seven shots while
Hunter Vines surpassed 100 career points with four assists on the day.
Site: Garber Field
Score: High Point 10, UMass 12
Records: High Point (6-5, 0-1 A10), UMass (6-3, 1-0 A10)
"Hats off to UMass and their staff," said head coach
Jon Torpey. "They put together a great game plan and did what they needed to win."
HPU was first on the board as
Michael Ippolito fired a shot past his defender to put the Panthers up, 1-0. The goal marked Ippolito's 17
th goal of the season, meeting his total from last season.
UMass responded with six unanswered goals that spanned the remainder of the first quarter and extended into the second. "I'm disappointed with the way we came out today and the mental lapses throughout the game. Simply put, we are in need of a 60-minute effort from our team." said Torpey. The Panthers ended the run as
Collin Hoben won a face-off and took the ball down the field for his second goal of the season.
Lamb followed up with his first goal of the day just two minutes later to get back High Point within 7-3 with 12:35 to go in the first half.
The Minutemen extended their lead with a man-up goal and held HPU scoreless for nearly 10 minutes in the second quarter until
Brayden Mayea posted his first goal on an assist from
Nick Murphy. High Point entered the halftime break still trailing, 8-4.
The Panthers mounted a comeback in the third quarter after giving up an early goal in the period, finishing off the quarter on a 3-0 run. Mayea added an unassisted goal to stay within four with 11:29 left in the frame.
Lamb's second goal of the day on an assist from Vines, his second dish of the day which gave him 100 career points.
With time winding down in the penultimate quarter, Vines found
Colin Cooke cutting up the middle of the field who buried the ball in the back of the net as the buzzer signaled the end of the period. HPU still trailed 9-7 heading into the fourth quarter.
UMass added another score to open the fourth, but High Point rallied again. Lamb and Mayea added back-to-back goals to get the Panthers back within one with 10:47 left on the game clock.
A career-high fourth goal of the day from Lamb tied the game at 10-10 with 5:21 remaining, but UMass was quick to respond, scoring two goals in the next two minutes of play to hold on for the 12-10 win.
Up Next: High Point returns to Vert Stadium for the first time since March 11
th to host Hobart for its Atlantic 10 home opener. First face-off next Saturday is set for 11:00 a.m. in High Point.
#GoHPU x #A10MLAX
