PHILADELPHIA - The Saint Joseph's men's lacrosse team outscored Delaware 5-0 in the fourth quarter en route to an 11-8 come-from-behind victory at Sweeney Field on Tuesday.  Mike Adler made 18 saves on the day, Zach Cole went 10-of-11 from the X in the second half, and Shane Fable led the offense with three goals, including the eventual game-winner.

"After last week, it was awesome to rebound and come out firing," said Adler of the win. "Last year, they beat us pretty badly, so that provided some extra motivation. Add playing at Sweeney Field on top of that, and the energy was awesome. There is no better feeling than winning on Sweeney Field. This was fully a team win, and it was awesome to do it opening night on Sweeney."

How It Happened
• After a back-and-forth third quarter, Delaware (2-1) held an 8-6 lead heading into the final 15 minutes.  That's when Zach Cole took over from the X, winning all six faceoffs in the fourth quarter to spark the comeback.  The Hawks turned two consecutive face-off wins into goals, tying the score at 8-8 just 63 seconds into the quarter after tallies from Matt Bohmer and Liam Hare.

• Fable would net his third of the day with 9:08 to play to give the Hawks their first lead since the second quarter before Ryan Kemp notched the first goal of his career on a man-up opportunity to double the advantage.

• Hare put away his second goal of the quarter with 6:09 remaining to make it an 11-8 game.  Cole and Adler did the rest for SJU, with the senior goalkeeper making three big saves in the closing minutes to keep the Blue Hens at bay.

• Saint Joseph's (2-1) got off to a good start as Fable and Levi Anderson tallied in the first quarter to give the Hawks a 2-0 lead after one.

• The second quarter was all Delaware, as the Blue Hens, ranked 20th in the latest Inside Lacrosse poll, ripped off four consecutive goals in the first 3:53 of the period to take a 4-2 lead.  The teams would trade goals over the rest of the frame, with Austin Strazzulla and Bohmer tallying for the Hawks to send the game into halftime with UD on top, 6-4.

• Andrew Chilson brought the Hawks within one with his first goal of the season two and a half minutes into the third, but UD's Matt DeLuca denied Anderson on two consecutive attempts to tie the game minutes later.  After another Blue Hen tally restored the two-goal margin, Fable netted his second of the day to make it 7-6 with 10:04 to go in the quarter.  Charlie Kitchen would go on to score for Delaware to push the visitors' advantage to 8-6 heading into the pivotal fourth quarter.

Behind the Boxscore
• Adler made 18 saves on the day, two shy of his career best.  He totaled six in the second half as the Hawks clamped down on the Blue Hens defensively.  Tyler Makar and Josh Bosher held the potent UD scoring combination of Kitchen and Mike Robinson to three goals on 20 shots, while Adler made eight stops on the pair.

• Fable's hat trick led the way, while Bohmer and Hare netted two goals apiece.  Evan Campbell and Matt Tufano each handed out two assists on the day.

• The Hawks made their comeback against one of the nation's top defenses, which had conceded just nine goals over its opening two games, led by DeLuca, who was named to the Inside Lacrosse Preseason All-America First Team.

• Cole was 14-of-22 on faceoffs, including a game-changing 10-of-11 in the second half.  He also scooped up a game-high 11 ground balls; Cole entered the day as the nation's leader in ground balls per game.

• The Hawks cashed in two of their five man-up opportunities, while the Blue Hens went 2-for-3, with all three opportunities coming in the second quarter.

Postgame Thoughts
"What a huge team win today!" said head coach Taylor Wray following the victory. "We talked on Saturday, after a dismal performance at Penn State, about being accountable and doing your job. I thought our guys did that tonight, and I thought our scout team did it on a short two days of preparation."

"Tyler Makar was terrific defending an All-American attackman in Charlie Kitchen. Liam Hare scored two huge goals for us. Josh Bosher did a great job covering their lefty scorer Mike Robinson. And Mike Adler was absolutely sensational in net; 18 saves and many of them in dramatic fashion. Our leaders stepped up and our role players did their jobs."

"Zach Cole got off to a bit of a slower start, then won some ground balls in the middle, and then turned it on and completely dominated the second half. That gave us a tremendous boost and allowed us to build momentum."

"We made great shot decision offensively against one of the best goalkeepers in the country, and when we had chances, we put them away. I am incredibly proud of my team."

Up Next
Saint Joseph's remains home for a non-conference tilt against Providence on Saturday.  The opening face-off is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. at Sweeney Field.