The men’s lacrosse team defended home turf against the Loyola University Maryland Greyhounds the weekend of Feb. 19. The Jays came out on top in a game that remained tight the whole way, winning 11-10 and becoming the first lacrosse program in history to reach 1,000 wins.
In the first quarter, the Greyhounds got on the board first with a goal by short-stick defensive midfielder Payton Rezanka. Blue Jays’ sophomore midfielder Jakson Raposo responded with a goal of his own, assisted by graduate student attackman Connor DeSimone.
Each team scored two more goals in the quarter. The two additional Blue Jay goals from the first period came from senior attackman Joey Epstein and senior midfielder Garrett Degnon, assisted by sophomore face-off specialist Tyler Dunn and graduate student midfielder Jack Keogh, respectively.
With the score locked at 3-3, each team continued to trade goals until the Greyhounds secured the largest lead of the game, leading 10-8 with 10 minutes to play in the fourth quarter.
Down two goals, the Jays sparked a 3-0 run to take the lead. Sophomore midfielder Ryan Evans started the run by juking out his defender and firing a shot into the back of the net. Less than three minutes later, Keogh found Epstein, who nailed a long-distance shot to tie the game.
Sophomore long-stick midfielder Scott V. Smith gave Hopkins the lead by going coast-to-coast for an unassisted goal. The Blue Jay defense held strong for the final five minutes of action, securing the win over Loyola.
In an interview with The News-Letter, Dunn shared his thoughts on how the team remained resilient despite being down heading into the fourth quarter.
“I would say we were able to stay mentally tough because of the mindset that we came into the game with,” he said. “We always talk about playing a game to one and only worrying about the next play and not the past. This mindset allows us not to get caught up in the natural highs and lows of the game.”
Dunn also discussed how it felt to be a part of the program’s 1,000th victory.
“It feels amazing knowing that we contributed and are a part of the most successful college lacrosse team ever. 1,000 wins are almost hard to comprehend, especially when you consider that it has taken 134 years for it to happen,” he said.
Now with a record of 3-1, the Jays will travel to Chapel Hill, N.C. to take on the University of North Carolina Tar Heels on Feb. 27.
