NEW LONDON, Conn. – Regis College took the early lead, saw Mitchell College rally to tie the contest, and then pulled away in the final quarter as the Pride defeated the Mariners, 11-8, Wednesday in a non-conference men's collegiate lacrosse match at Silfen Field on the campus of Connecticut College.
Brian Wagner (Melrose, Mass.) led the Pride with three goals and three assists, while Michael Tremblay (Arlington, Mass.) also notched a hat trick with three goals for Regis. Pressed into service as the goalkeeper, Brendon Donahue (Lynn, Mass.) made 10 saves to help his team earn the season-opening victory.
The contest remained scoreless until the final minute of the first quarter, when Regis broke through with goals by Tremblay and Michael Daras (Danvers, Mass.) in the span of 42 seconds. The Pride further extended their advantage just over one minute into the second quarter as Daras set up Tucker Cherry (Franklin, Mass.) for his first collegiate goal.
Mitchell (0-4) finally scored with 10:08 remaining in the second quarter as Nick Loris set up Kyle Marsh. However, Regis traded goals with the Mariners when Wagner assisted on tallies by Paul Brennan (Rumford, R.I.) and Tremblay, giving the Pride a 5-2 lead at halftime.
Daras scored off an assist by Cherry early in the third quarter to increase the Regis lead to its largest of the day at 6-2. After a Mitchell goal, Wagner scored to reestablish the four-goal advantage for the Pride, but the Mariners quickly struck back, scoring three goals in the span of 3:29 to pull within one at 7-6, where the score would remain at the end of the third quarter.
Marsh scored 52 seconds into the fourth quarter to tie the contest at 7-7, but the Mariners would commit a penalty to give the Pride an extra-man opportunity. Wagner set up Cherry for a man-up goal 12 seconds into the EMO to put Regis back on top, but Marsh struck again with 6:48 left in regulation to once again create a tie at 8-8.
Just over three minutes later, Wagner put the Pride ahead for good with an unassisted goal, followed by a Tremblay goal 46 seconds later to give Regis some insurance. Wagner would complete his hat trick with 1:21 left in the fourth quarter.
Marsh led the Mariners with three goals and one assist, while Jake Karnes finished with two goals for Mitchell. Marcel Quinlan finished with 10 saves in net for the home team, including eight saves in the third quarter to help his squad rally from its four-goal deficit.
The Pride continually gained possession thanks to the work of its faceoff men, as Wagner went 10-for-16 and Cherry won all six faceoffs he took. Regis enjoyed a slight edge in shots on goal, 21-18, and a small advantage in successful clears, 16-13.
Regis (1-0) steps into Great Northeast Athletic Conference action for four of its next five matches, starting with the home opener Saturday, March 16, against Lasell at 12 p.m. The Pride have also rescheduled their match against Becker College for Thursday, March 21, beginning at 4 p.m. at Regis Stadium.