DURHAM, N.C. – Despite a strong start from the Saint Joseph's men's lacrosse team, No. 5/8 Duke used a 6-1 second-half advantage to secure a 12-6 win on Sunday afternoon at Koskinen Stadium.
Saint Joseph's set the tone early, holding the Blue Devils scoreless on their first two possessions before striking first.
Jack Fiordalis found
Ben Dutton near the crease, and the sophomore finished from close range to open the scoring. Midway through the first quarter,
Collin Campbell doubled the Hawks' lead, burying a feed from behind the cage by
Trae Ika. Duke answered late in the frame to trim the deficit to 2-1 after 15 minutes.
Will Barber restored a two-goal cushion early in the second quarter, but the Blue Devils responded with back-to-back goals in a two-minute span to even the score.
Griffin Mallory put the Hawks back in front with a solo effort, ripping a high shot past the Duke goalkeeper. Duke then seized momentum with a 3-0 run over 2:29 to take its first lead at 6-4. Dutton halted the surge with a goal out of a timeout, cutting the deficit to 6-5 at halftime.
Both teams were held scoreless for more than eight minutes to open the second half before Duke broke through on a man-up opportunity. The Blue Devils added two more goals in the third quarter while keeping the Hawks off the scoreboard to build a 9-5 advantage entering the final frame.
Carter Truesdell netted his lone goal of the afternoon late in the fourth, but Duke outscored Saint Joseph's 3-1 in the period to close out the 12-6 decision.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Ben Dutton led the Hawks with two goals.
- Griffin Mallory totaled a team-high three points on a goal and two assists.
- Collin Campbell added a goal and an assist.
- Owen Staunton recorded three caused turnovers.
- Tommy Gross made eight saves in goal.
- Duke held a 48-37 edge in shots and a 20-17 advantage in shots on goal, while winning the faceoff battle, 14-8.
UP NEXT
Saint Joseph's returns to action on Saturday, March 7, hosting Drexel at 7 p.m. on Sweeney Field.
