LATROBE, Pa. (April 17) – The Saint Vincent men's lacrosse team fired on all cylinders to defeat visiting Bethany College 17-2 in a Presidents' Athletic Conference matinee at UPMC Field.
 
The Saint Vincent (5-9, 0-5 PAC) offense produced a season-high 59 shots and saw nine different players score at least one goal, while the defense forced 33 Bison turnovers en route to surrendering a season-low two goals.
 
Caleb Hawkins and Jordan Billet each registered five points, with Hawkins scoring four goals with one assist, and Billet scoring two goals with a team-best three helpers.
 
Luke Hartle registered the first three goals of his collegiate career, while Carter Haid and Liam McCall each tallied three points, on two goals and one assist. Benjamin Wohlin, Layne Heininger, Tyler Harpst and Hayden Nowotarski all scored one goal, and Justin Wodarek tallied two assists. Ryan Rosenberger, Eli Hartle and Justin Vezzi each dished one assist.
 
Defensively, three goalies combined to surrender just two goals, as Jack Zayas started and made four saves, before Bryan Milward recorded five saves in 15 minutes of play, and Nick Carter saved the only shot that he faced in just over five minutes of action.
 
Brady Beard had a stellar afternoon in the faceoff circle, winning 16 of 17, while grabbing a team-best five ground balls. RJ Kenna, AJ Bricker and Cam Herring each collected four GBs, while Bricker led the Bearcats with four caused turnovers. Kenna, Wohlin, Harpst, Haid and Logan Hood were each credited with two caused turnovers.
 
The first quarter remained scoreless for seven minutes, before Haid broke through with SVC's first goal of the day. Bethany promptly tied it less than 90 seconds later, but Hawkins and Billet each scored within a two-minute span to open up a 3-1 lead at the close of the quarter.
 
The Bearcats would then explode with six unanswered goals over the second quarter to extend the lead to 9-1 at the half. Five players accounted for the six tallies, with McCall scoring twice, and Billet, Nowotarski, Haid and Harpst each scoring once.
 
The SVC run would extend to 7-0 with a goal by Hawkins in the opening minute of the third quarter, and after Bethany temporarily halted the surge with its second goal of the day, Hartle and Hawkins scored two goals apiece over the final nine minutes of the quarter to push the lead to 15-2. The Bearcats outshot the Bison 18-4 over the third frame.
 
The Bearcats continued to control play in the fourth quarter, with Hartle, Heininger, and Wohlin each finding the scoresheet, and Millward and Carter combining to stop all five Bethany shots, to close out the victory.
 
Saint Vincent closed the game with a 59-26 margin in shots, while the Bearcats were successful on 22 of 24 clearing attempts and limited the Bison to 23-for-35 on clears. The SVC penalty kill also enjoyed a strong afternoon, killing off all six Bethany man-up chances.
 
The Bearcats will return to action on Saturday, April 20, traveling north to take on Thiel College in a 3 p.m. PAC matchup.