POTSDAM, N.Y. -- In a key SUNYAC battle, the Oneonta men's lacrosse team defeated SUNY Potsdam, 17-16, on the road Saturday afternoon. Oneonta used the first and third periods to build a large enough lead to ward off Potsdam's extra-man opportunities in the final minute. Junior
Jamie O'Neil (Bath, N.Y./Haverling) led the game with nine points, scoring four goals and five assists. Senior
Matthew Krieg (Port Jefferson Station/Comsewogue) and sophomore
Thomas Hnis (Smithtown, N.Y./Kings Park) each finished with five points, Krieg recorded a hat trick with two assists while Hnis netted five goals. The win improved the Red Dragons to 6-7 overall, 3-1 in the SUNYAC, and the Bears moved to 6-5 on the season, 2-2 in conference play.
Potsdam took an early 2-1 lead at 10:03, until Oneonta scored five unanswered goals and ended the first period ahead 6-3. Senior
Vincent Herbstman (Port Jefferson Station/Comsewogue) dished the ball to O'Neil for the game-tying goal, then O'Neil gave the team the lead on a man-up score at 4:49. Senior
Stephen Barikyan (Tappan/Tappan Zee) won the immediate faceoff and scored between several defenders, then Hnis and sophomore
Finn Morris (Long Beach, N.Y./Long Beach) each hit the back of the net while they were heavily guarded by a Bears defenseman.
Krieg and senior
Andrew Guinto (Syracuse/West Genesee) both found O'Neil for a goal in the second period, and Hnis scored his second, however Potsdam used the quarter to score six goals and tied the game at nine entering the break.
After Hnis and Krieg traded goals with a couple of Bears to start the third period, the Red Dragons closed out the quarter with four straight man-up goals for a 15-11 lead. Krieg scored twice off a pair of passes from O'Neil, junior
Anthony Munro (Seaford, N.Y./Seaford) fired in his second of the game off a pass from senior
Vincent Tirino (Port Jefferson Station/Comsewogue), then Hnis ripped one into the net with an assist from Krieg.
Hnis scored his SUNYAC-leading 41st goal of the season off a pass from O'Neil to give Oneonta a 16-12 advantage with 10:30 to play. Following a couple of Potsdam goals, O'Neil recorded his conference-leading 75th point of the season with an assist to Morris with 4:57 to go. The sophomore received the ball behind the net, came out in front, and fired one low past the Bears goalie.
With 1:45 remaining, Oneonta got hit with two one-minute non-releasable penalties which allowed Potsdam to score two man-up goals to make it a 17-16 game with 1:16 to play. Down to 19 seconds and both sides at full strength, Owen Walsh had one last chance to tie the game, but freshman
Mark Restivo (Merrick, N.Y./Sanford H. Calhoun) saved Walsh's shot and sealed the win for the Red Dragons.
Restivo finished with 14 saves for Oneonta and Saka Thompson recorded 13 saves Potsdam. Munro finished with two goals, an assist and two ground balls, while Morris netted a pair of goals.
Barikyan went 15-for-32 on faceoffs and collected the team-high eight ground balls. Junior
Aidan Greene (Smithtown, N.Y./Smithtown West) caused three turnovers and picked up three ground balls, Guinto caused two turnovers and picked up two ground balls, and sophomore
Johnny Terrana (St. James, N.Y./Smithtown East) had four ground balls and caused one turnover.
Oneonta had a 40-38 advantage in ground balls as both teams recorded 30 shots on goal. The Red Dragons 16-for-21 on clear attempts and 5-for-6 on extra man opportunities while the Bears were 13-for-17 on clears and 4-for-6 with a man-up.
Oneonta is back in action on Tuesday, April 15, for a non-conference game against Hamilton at 6 pm on All College Field.
