By Shelby Townsend
Sports Editor
Almost 500 fans filled Bethpage Federal Credit Union Stadium to watch East Coast Conference rivals NYIT and LIU Post battle it out on April 1. The Pioneer men’s lacrosse team was handed its second conference loss of the season by the now seventh ranked Bears.
The Pioneers trailed 7-3 at the beginning of the third quarter, but rallied back with three unanswered goals to get within two of the Bears. Still down 8-6 with just 1:37 left to play, the home team knew they had a chance to stay in the game.
“On the defensive side, we just knew we had to keep making stops to give the offense more opportunities to score,” junior mid fielder Kris Alvarado said. “We took it goal by goal and eventually saw that we had a chance to come back.”
Two quick back-to-back goals within the last 50 seconds of the game, scored by junior mid fielder Dylan Harned and freshman midfielder Dan Foley, forced the game into overtime. Unfortunately, the Pioneers were unable to stop a strong Bears offense, and lost 9-8.
“We made a lot of little mistakes, which cost us some goals,” Alvarado said.
Collectively, the Pioneers and the Bears each caused 17 turnovers, and senior mid fielder Anthony Galeota ore had a strong showing, winning 14-of-20 face-off attempts. The home team struggled to find the back of the net, only seeing success on 8-of-49 shot attempts.
The Pioneers’ next four games will be on the road, the first scheduled for April 12 against Mercy College in Dobbs Ferry, NY at 4 pm.
The team, keeping focused on what they can control and taking it day-by-day and one step at a time.
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