Williamsburg, KY – It was almost DeJa'Vu for the third-ranked UC men's lacrosse team as for the second time this season they jumped out to a 13-0 first half lead against St. Andrews except this time it was in the quarterfinals of the AAC tournament.  The third-seed Patriots defeated the sixth-seed Knights 21-2 to improve to 11-3 on the year and advance to next week's AAC semifinals.

Nine different Patriots recorded multiple points in the win led by Christian Vanover, who dfinished with a game-high five goals.  Thomas Fogarty added two goals and three assists, as Nick Kava netted a career-high four goals.  Dylan Crouch and Breckin Sharkey added four points apiece, while Maleek Wilson added a goal and two assists.

Defensively, Will Settle made 11 saves over the first three periods to earn the win as Michael Toohey came in relief and made four stops.  Nik Kubik went 15-20 on faceoffs, including the first seven straight in the game, with a team-high six ground balls as Noah Brandt and Settle scooped five ground balls each. 

Both teams came up empty in their first possession, however, it was Crouch that got things started as he dodged from behind the cage and scored the first goal to make it 1-0. Kubuk won the ensuing faceoff, raced up field and went upper deck with the shot to extend the lead to 2-0, eight seconds later.  UC made it 3-0 as Vanover found Coltran for a man-up goal a minute later.  Kava and Breckin Sharkey combined for tow goals and an assists as part of four unanswered goals, as Crouch netted a man-down goal giving UC a 7-0 lead after the opening quarter.

Fogarty opened the second quarter two goals and two caused turnovers to extend UC's lead to 10-0, midway through the second period.  St. Andrews looked to get on the board, however, Settle made three of his five second quarter saves over a four minute span to keep the Knights at bay.  The Patriots added three goals over the final 2:30 of the half to extend their lead to 13-0.  Fogarty found Dom Lulow, who put a well-placed shot into the upper corner of the cage as he was getting hit to start the run.  Vanover intercepted a pass, which led to the next goal, before Sharkey connected with Kava to cap off the run. 

Cumberlands defense continued with another strong output in the first half of the third quarter as Settle made a save, while Taylor Long and Schylar Chapman both had caused turnovers.  Vanover and Kava combined for three straight goals, before Johnathon Vanover connected with the back of the cage to make it 17-0 with 5:22 left.  Settle added a couple more saves to surpass double-digit stops for the sixth time this season. 

Wilson added a goal to start the fourth quarter, while Toohey came in and made one of his three saves to keep the score 19-1 with 9:15 remaining.  A couple minutes later, Zachary Swann made a cross field pass to Evan Barton, who as he was getting hit fired a over-the-shoulder shot right into the cage to make it 20-1 with 6:31 left.  Toohey added two more saves as the two teams traded goals for the 21-2 final.

UC's man-down defense was unstoppable for the Patriots as they held St. Andrews scoreless on five man-down opportunities.

The Patriots will face Tennessee Wesleyan in the semifinals of the AAC tournament in Waleska,  GA.  The game time has yet to be determine, however, UC is looking to avenge their 14-13 overtime loss to the Bulldogs from earlier this season.

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