Ohio State
Loyola (Md)
Buckeyes Drop Close Game at Loyola, 8-7 – Ohio State Buckeyes
3/31/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse
March 31, 2012
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State men’s lacrosse team dropped its first ECAC Lacrosse League game of the season, falling to No. 4/5 Loyola, 8-7, Saturday at Ridley Athletic Complex in Baltimore.
Ohio State (4-6, 2-1 ECAC) and Loyola (9-0, 3-0 ECAC) were tied at 3 at halftime before the Greyhounds scored the only three goals of the third quarter for a 6-3 advantage. Ohio State drew within one (6-5) at 8:19 of the fourth quarter but two goals from the Greyhounds in a 1:16 span (2:30, 1:14) pushed Loyola back ahead by three, 8-5. Ohio State scored twice in the final nine seconds to cut the deficit to one but was unable to get another shot after the final faceoff with just three seconds remaining.
The Buckeyes continue their stretch of three-consecutive road games with a league matchup at Hobart at noon next Saturday (April 7) in Geneva, N.Y.
Sophomore goalie Greg Dutton made 12 saves for the Buckeyes, who were the first team to hold the Greyhounds to less than 11 goals this season. Junior leading scorer Logan Schuss and freshman Jesse King both scored twice and added an assist for a three-point day.
Loyola scored the only two goals of the first quarter. The Greyhounds opened the scoring on a goal by Mike Sawyer, assisted by Justin Ward, at the 6:58 mark and Ward then found Eric Lusby to extend the advantage to two with 2:02 left in the quarter. Shots were 8-6 in favor of Ohio State in the stanza, with Dutton making three saves in the Buckeye cage.
Ohio State scored back-to-back goals in a 1:20 span to tie the game at 2-all. Senior Brock Sorensen drove to the cage for an unassisted goal at 8:14 to put Ohio State on the board and Schuss then fed King for a tally at 6:54. At 3:07 King assisted on a Schuss tally for Ohio State’s first lead of the day (3-2). The Greyhounds tied the game at 3-all when Sawyer scored on a non-releasable penalty at 2:36, ending a scoreless streak of nearly 15:00 for Loyola. Ohio State outshot the Greyhounds, 11-8, in the quarter. Both Dutton and Loyola goalie Jack Runkel had four saves in the stanza.
Loyola scored three times in the third quarter while holding Ohio State scoreless to take a 6-3 lead. Scott Ratcliff put the Greyhounds back on top at 13:41 and Josh Hawkins tallied at 9:15. Lusby gave Loyola its first three-goal lead of the day when he scored at 4:58. Each team attempted six shots in the quarter and both goalies had three saves.
The Buckeyes were able to draw within one (6-5) with the first two goals of the fourth quarter. Just 48 seconds into the stanza freshman Turner Evans scored unassisted and junior Nick Liddil tallied at 8:19. The Greyhounds held the one-goal advantage for nearly six minutes until Ward scored at the 2:30 mark and Lusby tallied at 1:14 for an 8-5 Loyola lead. In the final nine seconds, Ohio State scored twice in a six-second span to draw within one but could not get the equalizer. Schuss scored on an assist from freshman Reegan Comeault and sophomore Tyler Frederick then fed King for a goal off with three seconds remaining. The Greyhounds were able to tie up the ball on the final faceoff and seal the win. The Buckeyes led the Greyhounds, 8-7, in shots and Dutton had the only two saves of the quarter.
Ohio State outshot Loyola, 33-27, in the game. Dutton played all 60 minutes for the Buckeyes and had 12 saves. Runkel had eight saves in 60 minutes for Loyola.
Loyola had the advantage in faceoffs, winning 12, and in groundballs (39-26). Four Buckeyes had three groundballs – King, senior Joe Bonanni, Dutton and junior Kevin Mack. Ohio State caused 11 turnovers, with junior Dominique Alexander, sophomore Dominic Imbordino and Bonanni each forcing two.
Postgame Notes
• Dutton had the fifth game this year with double-digit saves. He has a 7.13 goals-against average and .580 save percentage this season.
• As a team, Ohio State is holding opponents to 7.5 goals a game. The squad entered the week seventh in the NCAA in team defense. Loyola entered the game averaging 13 goals a game.
• Schuss is now tied for eighth place all-time in points in Buckeye history with 148, matching Mike Avery (1988-91).
• Schuss extended his point streak to 40 games, the fourth-longest active streak in the country. He has multiple points in each game this year and leads the Buckeyes with 29 goals, 11 assists and 40 points.
• Oho State has faced an opponent ranked in the Top 13 in six of its last eight games.
• Ohio State has held its last three opponents to 27 shots or less and has outshot each of its last six foes.
• Evans has a goal in each of his last four games and has a 6-2-8 line in the stretch.
• Liddil, who has a career-high 12 points this year, is on a five-game point streak (4g, 4a, 8p).
• King is second on the squad with 10 goals and 14 points. It was his fourth multiple-goal game of the year and his three points were one shy of his career high.
• Sorensen now has eight goals on the year to rank third on the squad.
