Savannah, GA – The sixth-seed UC men's lacrosse team erased a four goal fourth quarter deficit to take the lead with 2:30 remaining, however, fell to second-seed Indiana Tech 10-9 in double overtime Friday night at Memorial Stadium. The Patriots close out the season with an 8-7 record as it marks the third straight time UC reached the national semifinals.
Thomas Fogarty led the way for UC with a hat trick, while
Tanner Popovich added two goals and an assist.
Anthony Gray added a pair of goals, while
Christian Vanover and
Dylan Crouch each dished out a pair of assists.
Defensively, UC was led by
Michael Toohey's 13 saves in the cage, eight of which came in the fourth quarter and overtime.
Jake Morgan recorded four caused turnovers to go along with seven ground balls.
Chrystian Coleman scooped five ground balls in the game.
Cumberlands came out strong as Morgan scooped a ground ball and on the ensuing transition found Fogarty for a goal to give UC a 1-0 lead 36 seconds into the game. The Patriots extended their lead just over a minute later
Dawson Coltran put a well-placed shot just inside the upper 90 of the cage making 2-0. After an Indiana Tech goal
Tony Arseneault and Popovich each netted a goal in the closing minutes of the first quarter giving the Patriots a 4-1 edge.
Indiana Tech out scored Cumberlands 3-0 in both the second and third period to take a 7-4 lead into the fourth quarter.
The Warriors added another goal to open the fourth quarter to give them an 8-4 advantage with 12:06 remaining. The Patriots started to mount their comeback as Fogarty took advantage of an Indiana Tech penalty with a man-up goal. Two minutes later, Vanover found Gray in front of the cage for a goal cutting the deficit to 8-6 with 8:27 remaining. The two teams traded possession over the next several minutes as Popovich connected with Fogarty for a transition goal to bring the Patriots within one. On the next UC possession Crouch found Gray in front of the cage for the equalizer with 2:42 remaining. Cumberlands won the ensuing faceoff and on the next possession Popovich dodged his way towards the cage for a goal putting the Patriots in front 9-8 with 2:30 remaining. Looking to hold onto the lead, Toohey made one of his three third quarter saves, however, Indiana Tech evened the score at 9-9 with a goal in the final minute sending the game into overtime.
UC won the opening faceoff of the first overtime as Coleman scooped the ground ball. On the Patriots possession Popovich and Vanover both had good looks but couldn't convert. Cumberlands defense stepped up big as Toohey made five saves in period to keep the Warriors off the board and force a second overtime. Indiana Tech won the opening faceoff of the second overtime and netted the golden goal with 3:09 remaining for the 10-9 final.
For the latest and most up-to-date information on University of the Cumberlands Athletics, please visit www.cumberlandspatriots.com. Follow us on Twitter - @UC_Patriots, Instagram - @UCPatriots, YouTube – Cumberlands Patriots, and Facebook by searching University of the Cumberlands Athletics.
