MOON TOWNSHIP– The men’s lacrosse team was back in action on Saturday afternoon as they were looking to get back to .500 on the year when they hosted the Cleveland State Vikings (2-4) at Joe Walton Stadium for the second time in program history.
They did just that, smoking Cleveland State 15-7 on the program’s senior day in front of fans for the first time since last season.
The Colonials were in control of the first quarter, led by strong passing and physical play, leading 3-2 at the end of one. The Colonials got help from Jake Boudreau, Elliot Holden and Ben Starkey, and for the Vikings, Stephen Masi seemed to be the only Vikings player who showed up as he netted two goals for them.
Right as the second quarter began, Ryan Smith netted his 34th goal, making him the all-time leader in points in program history, breaking the record of 195 set by Trevor Moore in 2011. It was was all Colonials in the second as they netted four goals, which came from Smith, Johnny Chaisson, Brandon Sulhoff and Jimmy Perkins.
RMU moved the ball around well and played much more physically than CSU. The Vikings looked lost and the field which led to their lapses on defense.
Head coach Andrew McMinn spoke about his star attackman breaking the record.
“He has been tremendous his entire career since he was a freshman. He has come in and met all the standards of the program.”
Ryan Smith talked about his record-breaking day, scoring the goal in question on a beautiful behind-the-back shot.
“It was an awesome way to break it… I wouldn’t be here without so many people along the way, and it is a great feeling being part of the record books here at RMU.”
It was not all doom and gloom for CSU as they got a goal to keep the game close. Chase Baker scored at 10:40 in second, keeping the game close. The Vikings were struggling to even have a passive possession, they played sloppily and couldn’t match the speed of the Colonials.
In the third quarter, the Vikings tried to make a comeback, they played with more speed and a lot more physicality and it led to three Viking goals, coming from Evan Moskwa, Baker and Nick Polydoras. The Colonials matched the effort with two goals by Smith and one by Holden making the score 11-7.
In the fourth, the Colonials kept the Vikings off the board, playing great team defense and moving the ball around well. RMU got goals from Boudreau, Will Johansen, Sulhoff and Liam Keane. The Colonials played a solid game all-around.
The Colonials took this one 15-7 and improved to 5-5 on the year, getting back to .500. They will play next Friday at Bucknell.
