KEENE, N.H. – The Keene State College men's lacrosse team scored a pair of late goals in the third quarter to tie the game for the first time since it was 1-1 and seemed to have momentum, but Bates College scored the only two goals of the fourth quarter and eventually posted an 8-6 win over the Owls in non-conference action at a cloudy-and-then-rainy Owl Athletic Complex Wednesday night.

Records

• Keene State:  1-5
• Bates:  2-2

Postgame Interview (Coach Theriault)

How It Happened
Perhaps somewhat remarkably in a game that featured a combined 14 goals between the two teams, 13 different people scored including eight different goal scorers for Bates as the Bobcats used their defense to hold on to their slim lead for most of the afternoon.  Keene State scored the opening goal of the contest when Jack Ansart remained hot, but then went scoreless for 18 minutes as the visitors scored three straight over a 7:23 span to jump in front 3-1.  KSC made it a one-goal game at 3-2 on Rex Maccarini's man-up goal with 10:52 to go in the second, and that proved to be the last goal of a very low-scoring half that saw the Owls outshoot Bates 22-21 but land just eight on target.
Out of the locker room, the teams combined for half of their overall goal total in the game in the third quarter – in fact, the last 9:39 of the quarter.  The Bobcats scored twice in 23 seconds to open a 5-2 edge as Jack Daoust and Rye Kushner each scored off assists from Connor Hartman.  However, Ben Tukey got one back a minute later and Colby Quiet made it 5-4 with 5:30 left as the Owls answered to stay right there.  Hartman then scored himself 31 seconds later for a two-goal advantage again, but Maccarini became the first multi-goal scorer of the game (and he would end up being the only one) with 1:21 to go.  Dylan Seymour beat the buzzer to end the third in a big way, scoring with one second left to make it 6-6 after 45 minutes.

However, KSC could not sustain their offensive momentum and mustered a game-low seven shots in the fourth quarter, three of which came in the final 59 seconds when they were down two.  Goalie Charlie Giuliotti kept the Owls in it, making six of his 16 stops in the final 15 minutes including a pair within 22 seconds of each other with about 11 minutes to go after Bates had retaken a 7-6 lead on a goal from Riley McClure with 13:02 to go.  Dylan Fadale then turned over Gray Doyle to give KSC a chance, but Seymour hit the post with 9:24 left on a shot that would have tied the game.  Bates than fired high and wide on consecutive shots with just under eight minutes left, but Keene State could not clear and TJ Underhill made them pay, scoring for an 8-6 Bobcats advantage with 7:11 left.  Giuliotti stopped Ben Miller with 6:34 left to prevent the deficit from growing to three, but Tukey shot wide and then was stopped by Andrew Toland within 16 seconds of each other on the Owls' ensuing possession.  Keene State's next true offensive chance did not come until there was less than a minute left, as Bates drained three minutes off the clock thanks to two long possessions and an Owl turnover mixed in between.  The Bobcats fired off six shots in that span to look for what essentially a game-sealer, though they hit the post once and Giuliotti made three other saves.  But draining the clock was effective enough, as KSC was down to just 59 seconds by the time they got their next shot, which was blocked.  Toland then stopped Woods twice in the final 17 seconds to cap off Bates' win, their first season with more than one win since 2019.  This year, three of the four Bobcats games have been decided by two goals or less (the other two in overtime).

Toland made 11 stops in the win.  Hartman, Underhill, Doyle, and McClure accounted for 28 of the 43 shots for Bates, each scoring once.  Hartman added three assists.

Maccarini had two goals and an assist for KSC, while Tukey had a goal and a helper.  The Owls won 11 of 18 faceoffs and had the only extra-man goal (Bates 0-2; KSC 1-3), but were shorthanded and scored in single-digits for the fourth time in their opening six games.

Inside the Crease

• KSC has dropped 11 straight in the series, six by three goals or less.  This was the first meeting between the teams since March 2020, when it wound up being both teams' last game before their seasons were cancelled.
• The Owls have finished with between 30 and 42 total shots in all six of their games.  However, their 17 shots on goal today were their fewest of the season.
• Keene State has won the faceoff battle in each of their last two games after losing it in their first four.
• Ansart has a team-best 14 goals and 17 points on the season.  Second-leading scorer Andrew Miller (eight goals) was out today.  Maccarini leads the team with seven assists.

Up Next

• The Owls are off for two and a half weeks before opening Little East Conference play at Eastern Connecticut State University (2-2) on Saturday, March 23 at 1:00 p.m.  The Warriors will have four more games before that matchup, including their home opener on March 19 against Roger Williams University after opening the season with seven straight road games.
• Bates hosts Williams College (1-1) in a NESCAC matchup this Saturday (March 9) at 12:00 p.m.  The Ephs have split a pair of one-goal home games against nationally-ranked teams, beating then-No. 20 Babson College 14-13 on March 2 before losing today to 11th-ranked Union College 12-11.  Bates is looking to right the ship under second-year head coach Dan Annino.  The Bobcats were one of the final eight teams in the country playing as recently as 2017, reaching the national quarterfinals.