ONEONTA, N.Y. - The Oneonta men's lacrosse team had nine different goal scorers on the way to a 15-12 win over Hartwick in the Battle of the Hills on Wednesday afternoon. The Red Dragons move to 3-3 overall, while the Hawks fall to 0-4.
Heavy rain and wind set the tone for the first half, with Oneonta jumping out to an early 2-0 lead following back-to-back goals by junior Thomas Hnis (Smithtown, N.Y./Kings Park). Hartwick responded with goals from Colby Simonetti and Liam McManus to tie 2-2. After senior Tyler Carroll (Niskayuna, N.Y./Niskayuna) won the ensuing faceoff, freshman Ryan Babikian (Jamesville, NY/Jamesville-Dewitt) scored off a pass from senior Jamie O'Neil (Bath, N.Y./Haverling) to retake the lead at 4:17. The Hawks answered with a goal from Colin August, but the Red Dragons snuck in a goal by junior Aidan Boyle (Yorktown Heights, N.Y./Yorktown) at 1:09 to lead 4-3 at the end of the first quarter.
Oneonta controlled the second quarter and outscored Hartwick 6-1. After sophomore goalkeeper Mark Restivo (Merrick, NY/Sanford H. Calhoun) stopped two consecutive Hartwick shots, sophomore Riley Royals (New Hyde Park, NY/Herricks) found the back of the net at 9:59 to go ahead 5-3. Senior Shakim Carr (Brooklyn, N.Y./John Dewey) scored at 8:09, and the Red Dragons added goals from sophomore Cody Sharp (Ballston Lake, N.Y./Burnt Hills Ballston Lake) and Boyle to make it 8-3. Hartwick tacked on a goal from August at 6:37 to cut the lead to four. Junior Nathan Nurse (Brooklyn, N.Y./Uncommon Collegiate Charter) won the faceoff, and a quick goal by Royals made it 9-4. Hnis added one more before halftime to take a six-goal lead.
Hartwick fought back in the third, scoring five unanswered goals to start the half. O'Neil scored off a pass from senior Daniel Macchiarella (Guilderland, N.Y./Guilderland) at 2:12, and then Macchiarella scored from O'Neil 40 seconds later to give Oneonta a 12-9 lead heading into the fourth.
An early Oneonta penalty in the fourth led to a Hartwick man-up goal from Matthew Paquette to cut the lead to 12-10. Junior Finn Morris (Long Beach, N.Y./Long Beach) netted a goal at 7:55, but the Hawks followed with two scores from August to make it 13-12 with six minutes to play. Boyle gave the Red Dragons two more goals to escape with the narrow win.
Boyle finished with four goals, one assist, two groundballs, and one caused turnover. Hnis added three goals and an assist, while Royals had two goals. O'Neil dished out seven assists with one goal. Sophomore Hunter Busch (Babylon, N.Y./Babylon) caused three turnovers, while junior Ryan Lussier (Burnt Hills, N.Y./Burnt Hills Ballston Lake) had five groundballs. Nurse went 19-for-25 on faceoffs with 12 groundballs, and Tyler Carroll (Niskayuna, N.Y./Niskayuna) was 3-for-5 on faceoffs.
August led Hartwick with five goals and one assist. Simonetti, McManus, and Paquette each had two goals. Owen Ryan went 6-for-17 on faceoffs.
Restivo made 14 saves in goal, while AJ Saragossi had 15 saves.
Oneonta next travels to face St. Mary's College of Maryland on Saturday, March 14, at 2 p.m.
