Men's lacrosse drops home opener to Brown

Men’s lacrosse drops home opener to Brown

By Angelique Fiske, QBSN Publishing Editor

In spite of a three-goal effort by junior Basil Kostaras (Southlake, Texas), the Quinnipiac men’s lacrosse team could not shut down Brown’s offensive attack, falling 12-7 in its home opener.

courtesy: quinnipiacbobcats.com

The Bobcats took only a few minutes to get their five starting freshman acclimated to NEC play before striking down with a Kostaras goal in the first frame. 

The Bears countered the quick tempo with a breakaway goal just over a minute later.  Junior Alex Jones darted down the field to no opposition, tying the score 1-1. 

With an offensive fire lit underneath him, Kostaras ripped two more goals in the first to give the Bobcats their final lead of the game.  The opening frame ended with Quinnipiac up 3-2. 

The flip then switched and the second quarter belonged to Brown.  The Bears notched six goals by freshman goalkeeper Dylan Torey (Darien, Conn.) compared to Quinnipiac’s lone score by junior Brendan Wilbur (Hingham, Mass.).

“We’ve been talking a lot about the fact that either we control the game or the game controls us,” said Quinnipiac head coach Eric Fekete.  “I think we controlled the game in the first quarter, and I think that in the second quarter the game kind of got a hold on us.”

Brown managed to take command of the by tying, taking the lead and furthering it to a 5-3 hold in a single minute of action. 

Quinnipiac’s lone goal of the second arrived with less than 40-seconds to play.  Wilbur landed his second on the day as he fell to the ground, getting the ball in to the right side of the net.  Kostaras earned the assist.

While the Bobcats intended to ride the momentum from the much needed score, the Bears planned otherwise, answering the rallying goal with 10.9-seconds left before the conclusion of the half. 

The low-scoring second half put the final touches on the Bobcat defeat.  Quinnipiac got three by Will Round, while Brown did just one better with four. 

Quinnipiac combined for a total of 10 shots in the second half of play, a number that equaled the quantity of the second quarter alone.  The shots the Bobcats made in the latter half of the game, according to Fekete, came out of panic.

“I think we got a little desperate, feeling like we needed to score again right away,” Fekete said.

The Bobcats look ahead as they next face Air Force on March 3, knowing what adjustments need to be made.

“We’ve got to create defensive advantages into to offensive advantages,” Fekete said.

While the team welcomes 25 newcomers, including 23 freshmen, the Bobcats need to prove that they are mature and competitive enough to replicate their second place finish last year as they head into the rest of their season.