AMHERST, Mass. – The High Point University men's lacrosse team picked up Head Coach
John Crawley's first win over a ranked team on Saturday afternoon. The Panthers took down No. 16 University of Massachusetts, 14-9 and advanced to 2-0 in league play.
The Panthers were led by freshman attackmen
Carson Robins with a season-high six points, contributing on three goals and three assists.
Ryan Hynes led the team in goals with a career-high four.
"When you show up to play UMass at Garber, you know you're going to get into a scrap… and I'm so proud of how our guys attacked the opportunity," Crawley stated. "That's a very good UMass team, and I have a ton of respect for their coaching staff and players.
"I thought each of our units showed up, knew their job, and executed on the details. I thought we played solid complimentary lacrosse. Offensively, I thought we shared the ball well with 10 of our 14 being assisted. Defensively, I thought we executed our game plan very well. And in the middle of the field, I thought our group played very hard… specifically when the ball hit the ground. I'm really proud of this group!"
Site: Garber Field
Score: High Point 14, No. 16 UMass 9
Records: High Point (5-6, 2-0), UMass (8-3,1-1)
From the start, the Panthers made a statement. After going down 1-0, High Point answered in the first quarter with three straight goals to take a 3-1 lead.
Collin Rovere assisted on two of the goals, finding Robins cutting down the middle and
Jeb Brenfleck wide open in the middle for an easy dish off.
Tommy Meehan headed down hill with a head of steam to score a goal.
UMass snuck in a goal before the end of the first quarter for HPU to lead 3-2 going into the second. Early in the second quarter, the Minutemen scored two goals to even the game at three all. High Point continued to move the ball on offense as
Ian Cann found the back of the net for a goal at the 10-minute mark. Hynes began to heat up, scoring his first of four goals in back-to-back fashion.
HPU led 6-4 going into the half.
The Panthers turned up the offensive pressure and stretched on a three goal tear early, scoring all three goals in the first six minutes of action. Hynes opened the half with his third goal of the game, followed by another goal from Robins and
Owen Bunten's first of the game.
Overall High Point outscored UMass in the third quarter 5-3 to lead 11-7. The Panthers' largest lead of the game was at the 4:18 minute mark in the third with an 11-5 advantage before the Minutemen scored two goals late in the quarter.
In the last 15 minutes of the game, the Panthers defense held it down and kept UMass from making a run, holding the Minutemen to two goals while scoring three of their own. High Point secured its first ranked win of the season with the 14-9 victory.
In net, Zach Overend picked up nine saves from the 26 shots on goal and allowed nine goals. HPU dominated in the defensive categories, picking up 34 ground balls to UMass's 14 and also led on the faceoff with 17 wins to the Minutemen's eight. The Panthers were led by
Luca Accardo going 16-for-26 at the X.
UP Next:
High Point will remain on the road for an Atlantic 10 matchup at No. 10 ranked Richmond in Richmond, Va. The first faceoff is set for 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 12.
#GoHPU x #A10MLAX
