Judge Murphy tallied six goals and an assist for seven points to lead the fifth-ranked St. Lawrence University men's lacrosse team to a 15-10 upset win over fourth-ranked RPI on Saturday afternoon in Troy, N.Y.
With the win, the Saints clinched the second seed in the upcoming Liberty League Tournament and earned regular season co-championship honors, with three team's finishing league play at 6-1.
Second to Murphy,
Daniel Mahoney recorded four goals and two ground balls, while
Ted Wilson scored twice.
Brian Souza,
Paddy Condon and
Zack Corsi each scored once, while Condon went 20-for-30 from the faceoff dot.
Tripp Clark picked up three ground balls, while
Charlie Miele grabbed two and five different Saints each caused one turnover.
The Saints were hot out of the gate, scoring the first three goals of the game and outscoring the Engineers 3-1 in the first quarter.
The second quarter was a high scoring affair, as the Saints dismantled the Engineers defense outscoring RPI 9-3 to build a 12-4 lead by halftime.
RPI scored the lone two goals in the third quarter, making it 12-6 heading into the final frame.
The Engineers scored the first two to start the fourth to bring the game within four, but back-to-back goals from Mahoney and Murphy gave the Saints back a six-goal spread. Murphy capped the scoring at 3:54 of the fourth, sealing the 15-10 win for the Scarlet and Brown.
"That was a good way to wrap up the regular season and earn a home playoff game Friday," said head coach
Mike Mahoney. "It was great to settle in early with a good start and respond to their push in the third and early fourth."
Sean Smith, Cooper Manzi and Zach Swanson each tallied two goals for RPI, while Sean Smith picked up six ground balls.
Michael Marinello finished with 13 saves for the win, while Joseph Perry made nine for RPI.
The Engineers finished with a 51-39 advantage in shots, but the Saints held a 24-23 edge in shots on goal. RPI also went 2-for-3 on extra-man opportunities.
Both St. Lawrence and RPI moved to 14-2 overall and 6-1 in Liberty League play.
"I am really proud of the overall approach of the entire roster today," Mahoney added. "This game will have no impact on the conference tournament game next weekend, but it was a nice way to cap a successful regular season!"
The Saints received a first-round bye and will host third-seeded RPI on Friday, May 3 for the Liberty League Semifinals. Game time is scheduled for 4 p.m.
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