LANCASTER, Pa. – A six-goal outburst that spanned the end of the second and start of the third periods led visiting Haverford College to an 11-10 upset of 15th-ranked Franklin & Marshall College in Centennial Conference men's lacrosse action Saturday afternoon at Tylus Field.
The Fords (6-6, 3-3 CC) erased a 6-3 deficit with goals from Geoff Geppert, Jake Maldonado and Christian Clay in the final six minutes of the second period to forge a 6-6 tie with the Diplomats (9-4, 5-1) heading into the halftime break.
Haverford's Dan LoSardo broke the tie soon after the opening faceoff of the third period, picking up an unassisted tally just 13 seconds into second-half action.
The two teams were held without a goal over the next 10 minutes but Clay picked up his second marker during the Fords' 6-0 run with a goal at the 5:58 mark off an assist from Sage Disch. The unanswered string was complete with Jack Bodine's goal three minutes later to push the Haverford advantage to 9-6 on the Dips' home turf.
Tristan Miller finally halted the Haverford streak with a buzzer-beating goal to close out the third period which drew his F&M team to within two, 9-7, and gave the home team a chance to steal the momentum.
Henry Millson made sure the field remained tilted downhill for the Fords, though, as the Haverford midfielder scored 32 seconds into the fourth period then added another unassisted goal less than four minutes later to give his team a four-goal cushion.
Those two Millson goals proved vital in the end as the Diplomats scored the game's next three goals including another by Miller that pulled F&M to within one, 11-10, with 44 ticks left on the game clock.
Scott Chanelli, who ranks fifth in the nation with a 3.64 caused turnovers per game mark, took the faceoff for Haverford following Miller's threatening goal and won the draw allowing Clay to scoop up the ground ball.
A turnover behind the F&M net with 15 seconds remaining gave the home team slim hope but a last-second desperation shot from F&M's A.J. Reichert sailed wide allowing the Fords to escape with the upset.
Geppert led the Haverford attack with three goals in the win, but Bodine, Clay and Millson played large roles in the victory, each scoring twice on the day.
In the defensive zone, goalie Eric Caliendo finished the day with nine saves, seven of which came in the second half while the Fords were building, and then clinging to their lead.
Saturday's victory moves Haverford into fifth place within the league standings with two regular season games remaining before the four-team postseason Centennial tournament.
The Fords travel to Ursinus College (7-5, 1-5 CC) on Wednesday night then finish with a visit from Swarthmore College (4-9, 1-5 CC) on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. on the turf at Swan Field.