Union unleashes massive second-half run to stymie Skidmore
The No. 7 Union College men's lacrosse team started the second half with seven straight goals and outscored Skidmore College 10-3 over the final 30 minutes on the way to a 15-8 victory in Liberty League action on Wednesday evening at Frank Bailey Field at Bertagna-Class of 1985 Stadium.
SCHENECTADY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- The No. 7 Union College men's lacrosse team started the second half with seven straight goals and outscored Skidmore College 10-3 over the final 30 minutes on the way to a 15-8 victory in Liberty League action on Wednesday evening at Frank Bailey Field at Bertagna-Class of 1985 Stadium.
Senior Peter Kip led a balanced scoring attack with a game-high six points, scoring three goals and adding three assists. Classmate Michael Shaw also had three goals with an assist for a four-point effort, as did fellow senior Zach Davis with two goals and two helpers. Junior Hazen Pike chipped in three points (two goals, one assist) and five other players had one goal apiece for Union (9-2, 3-1 Liberty League).
Union had another great day at the faceoff spot on Wednesday with 23 wins in 26 draws, led by senior Matthew Paolatto with a 20-of-23 effort as well as two wins from junior Luke McHugh and one from sophomore Luke Tranter.
The Garnet Chargers outscored Skidmore 4-1 in the opening frame, getting a pair of goals from Davis and one each from juniors Patrick Reilly and Matt Blasi. However, Skidmore (9-4, 1-3 Liberty League) turned the tide and outscored Union 4-1 in the second stanza, knotting the score at five with Brian Gonsalves' last-second tally.
The tide began to turn dramatically in the third period, with the home team scoring three unanswered tallies. Senior Henry Quaintance netted a man-up tally 69 seconds into the period and Shaw added two goals later in the frame, while the defense limited Skidmore to just three shots.
Union continued its run with four goals in less than four minutes to start the fourth quarter, expanding the lead to seven. Pike continued the run with his second of the game, followed by two Kip goals and an assist on Shaw's third tally to make the score 12-5 with 11:17 remaining. Kip and classmates Jake Mabardy and Justin Greene rounded out the fourth-quarter scoring as Union put seven goals up over the final 15 minutes.
The Garnet Chargers finished the game with a 46-25 edge in shots, with senior Dan Donahue making nine saves to pick up his ninth victory of the season.
Union will continue Liberty League play on Saturday with a Capital Region showdown at #2 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute beginning at 1 p.m. in Troy.