Box Score
MEDFORD, Mass. -- The Bates College men's lacrosse team lost at Tufts University Sunday, 13-8, in the first round of the NESCAC Championship, to bring the Bobcats' season to a close.
The fifth seed in the tournament, Bates (9-5) came back from a deficit of as much as four goals, at 6-2, and the Bobcats were tied with the fourth-seeded Jumbos 7-7 after three quarters.
The Jumbos' Rory Doucette scored early in the fourth quarter, assisted by Clem McNally, but the Bobcats evened the game back up with 10:03 to play with a score by sophomore Justin Simon (Canaan, N.H.), assisted by sophomore Brent Morin (Hanover, N.H.).
But Tufts then scored five unanswered goals over the final 10 minutes of the game to put the game away.
McNally, who scored five times including the game-winner in double-overtime eight days ago at Bates, notched six goals and one assist on Sunday. The first-year attack has scored 11 of his 20 goals this season against the Bobcats.
Tufts (11-5) moves on to the semifinals where they’ll play host and top seed Middlebury next Saturday. Bates finished its season by losing its last five games after winning nine in a row to start.
With the game tied 2-2 at the end of the first period, Tufts had one of its best offensive stretches of the year to start the second period. The Jumbos scored four goals, three by McNally, to lead 6-2. The passes leading to the goals were precise, and the hosts were clicking.
Unfazed, Bates answered by taking over the momentum in the second part of the quarter and all of the third. Sophomore Bryan Frates (Woodstock, Vt.) scored back-to-back goals to cut the margin to 6-4 at 5:26 of the second quarter. The Tufts lead was 7-5 at the half. Bates then won the third period by a 2-0 count, with junior Matt Erisman (Nantucket, Mass.) scoring a man-up goal at 5:07 to tie the score at 7-7.
Frates scored twice for Bates, while Simon came up with one goal and two assists. Morin and junior Wes Couture (South Hadley, Mass.) each had a goal and one assist. Junior Ithai Schori (New York, N.Y.) and sophomore Craig Blake (Ballston Lake, N.Y.) also scored.
Playing in his final game for the Bobcats, senior goalkeeper Paul Kazarian (Providence, R.I.) was credited with 10 saves; Tufts' Matt Harrigan stopped 11 shots.
Also in their final games as Bobcats were seniors Gabriel Belsky (Avon, Conn.), Tom Lucey (Easthampton, Mass.), B.J. Majeski (Norwalk, Conn.), Ryan O'Connor (Avon, Conn.), Brenton Pitt (Duxbury, Mass.) and David Pritchard (Narbeth, Pa.).
