LEXINGTON, Va. – Senior
Alex Brown scored four goals, with the third setting the Washington and Lee men's lacrosse program record for goals in a season, but the 11th-ranked Generals were unable to hold off the Randolph-Macon Yellow Jackets in the second half, falling by a 13-12 final in the ODAC Semifinals on Thursday.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Brown scored both of the game's first two goals to tie the single-season goals record, to help his side to a 4-2 lead through the first quarter. Junior
Hillis Burns also had two points in the opening period, with a goal and an assist. The Generals (13-5) kept the offense going in the second with a 5-1 run to cushion their lead to the largest of the game at 9-3 with 4:33 before halftime. Brown's record-breaking score was the team's sixth goal of the game, and it came assisted by sophomore
Elliot Cohen at the 10:02 mark.
The Yellow Jackets (15-4) ended the first half on a high note, however, scoring the final three goals to cut their deficit in half. Burns then scored the first goal of the third quarter with 12:55 left, but RMC answered with a 5-1 run to tie the game, 11-11, with 13:12 remaining in regulation.
With 10 and a half minutes left, a W&L shot wide turned things over to the Yellow Jackets, who looked to clear. Brown then took matters into his own hands by causing a turnover near midfield, scooping up the ground ball and taking it the rest of the way to put the Generals back on top, 12-11, with 10:13 remaining in the game.
Randolph-Macon managed to hold the Generals scoreless after that, while scoring at the 7:19 mark and with 2:43 left to play to take the final lead of the game.
TOP PERFORMERS:
Brown's four goals marked his 14th hat trick of the season and his sixth game this season with at least four goals. He also added three ground balls alongside his fourth-quarter caused turnover. Burns tallied a W&L-high five points on four goals and an assist, while sophomore
James Haley (2g, 1a) and junior
Jack Elliott (1g, 1a) rounded out the Generals with multiple points.
First-year
Tyler Spano took all 29 face-offs on the day for the Blue and White, and he won 21 for a 0.724 winning percentage with a game-high 15 ground balls. On the defensive end, sophomore
Chris Datz caused a Generals-best three turnovers, while junior
Riley Albregts, sophomore
Jay O'Keefe and senior
Jed Heald all forced two. Those four players combined to grab five ground balls.
Austin Payne led the RMC attack with five points on four goals and an assist, followed by Bubba Bowen at three goals and one helper. Ryan Pritchard and Jack Smith both logged one goal and two assists, while Avery Tankersley scored three times. Five Yellow Jackets caused one turnover each for the team's total of five, and Brodie Kent picked up six ground balls.
Nick De Cain and Jack Twomey played all 60 minutes in goal for their respective teams. De Cain made eight saves for the Generals, while Twomey made six stops.
NOTEWORTHY POINTS:
Brown is now two goals up on A.J. Witherell's '19 2018 season and Ande Jenkins' '97 1997 season totals of 60 for what had been the program record. Brown has scored multiple goals in all 18 games this season, and his overall multi-goal streak is at 20 consecutive games after ending his junior season with four goals in the NCAA Round of 16 against Grove City and three scores against Salisbury in the quarterfinals.
UP NEXT:
The Generals now await their postseason fate, with the NCAA Division III Men's Lacrosse Selection Show scheduled to air on Sunday night at 9:00 p.m. at
ncaa.com.
Nestled in the mountains of Virginia, Washington and Lee University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Founded in 1749, W&L is the ninth-oldest college in the United States and a top-ranked liberal arts university. With over 500 student-athletes in 24 varsity sports, the Generals have celebrated over 265 conference championships. Learn more about the Blue and White by visiting www.generalssports.com or on social media at @WLUGenerals.
