CARLISLE, Pa. – The Haverford College men's lacrosse team looked poised to upset No. 6 Dickinson on the road as the Fords ran off four straight goals to cut a 7-2 deficit to just a one goal difference. However, the host Red Devils (9-1, 4-0 CC) scored two of the final three goals in the last 21-plus minutes of regulation to hold on for a 9-7 win against the Fords (6-5, 2-2 CC).
Ben Frost and Isaac Krier each scored during the Fords' 4-0 sprint that came mostly at the start of the third quarter. Both players finished the day with a pair of goals as teammates PJ Jackson, Ryan Tetro, and Patrick Girard also found the back of the net. Dylan Maher led the Red Devils attack with four goals and an assist.
The opening quarter saw the Fords get on the board first with Krier making the score 1-0 less than two minutes into game action. His fellow co-captain, Girard, also scored an unassisted goal with 5:24 to play in the opening period, giving Haverford a 2-1 edge. Despite the early momentum, Dickinson held the better of the attacks during the first half thanks in part to a pair of man-up goals to that allowed the Red Devils to take their first lead of the afternoon. Those goals started a 6-0 run from the hosts that saw them score the first four in that stretch. That string of goals came in a span of just 2:05 of playing time.
That run was capped with two more goals just 1:39 apart during the second quarter, making the score 7-2. Tetro finally snapped the offensive draught with 21 seconds to play in the opening half as his unassisted goal made the score 7-3 at the break.
Dickinson goalie Andrew Jones was called on to make 12 saves during the contest. Seven of those stops came in the second half as the Fords blistered the Dickinson crease with 16 second half shots. Despite several key stops, the Fords scored three times in a span of just 2:41 early in the third quarter. Frost and Krier started the rally with Stephen DeLeo assisting on the man-up goal from Frost.
From his defensive position, PJ Jackson got into the attacking end after picking up a ground ball following a save from Dylan Slack. He then went the length of the field for his second goal this season. Haverford won the ensuing face off, but Dickinson capitalized on a Haverford turnover by scoring at the 6:16 mark of the third quarter and carrying an 8-6 advantage into the fourth quarter.
The Fords once again made it a one goal game as Krier set up Frost's second goal of the afternoon at the 12:39 mark of the final period. Dickinson called on its goalie to make a total of four saves in the fourth quarter, matching his four saves from the opening period. However, Jones was up to the test and ultimately it was the Red Devils who scored following their possession after Jones' final save of the afternoon.
Haverford scooped up 25 ground balls on Saturday. Zack Cohen and Mitch Hagan led the way with four pickups each. Cohen won eight of his 17 face offs during the contest as the team went 8-for-19 as unit. Five different players caused a turnover for the Fords defense in front of Slack. The Fords' goalie stopped half of the shots on goal he faced, making nine saves on the afternoon.
Men's lacrosse will head back on the road this coming Wednesday as the team travels to Washington College for a 7 p.m. showdown under the lights in Chestertown. Haverford will be back at home next Saturday to take on No. 15 Gettysburg at 3 p.m. on Swan Field.