RINDGE, N.H. (March 31, 2021) – Eight first-half goals proved to be more than enough for Saint Anselm on a rainy Wednesday afternoon at Sodexo Field, as the No. 17 nationally ranked Hawks dealt the Franklin Pierce University men's lacrosse team a 13-6, Northeast-10 Conference defeat. Four goals from sophomore Jack Andrews led the way for Saint Anselm, while Franklin Pierce was led by a three-point afternoon (1-2-3) from sophomore Sean Daly (Kingston, Mass.).

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 0-3 (0-3 NE10), while Saint Anselm improves to 3-0 (3-0 NE10).

The start of the game was dominated by Saint Anselm. Freshman Nick Larsen got the scoring started at the 12:41 mark in the first, and senior teammate Griffin Shoemaker doubled the lead two minutes later at 10:37. Senior Matt Ward would extend the lead to three with a goal at 8:42 while a man up. Andrews scored his first of the day at 5:21 and gave the Hawks a commanding lead at the end of the first quarter.

Franklin Pierce would strike for its first goal of the afternoon, as well as its only of the first half, 3:20 into the second. The Ravens found themselves a man up and got the ball in the stick of Daly. Daly found senior Mike Alibrandi (Holliston, Mass.), who then found the back of the net.

Saint Anselm added four straight goals before halftime to double the lead to 8-1 going into the break. Andrews picked up the first and last goal for the Hawks in the second. The first came at 8:18, and the second at 5:28, while a man up. Between Andrews' tallies, sophomore Callen Willworth scored at 7:30, and Shoemaker scored his second of the game at 6:16.

Franklin Pierce held its own in the second half, as the two teams traded five goals apiece and the Hawks went on to the 13-6 victory. The Ravens would end up getting six goals from six different players on the day, as sophomore Owen McCormack (Hampstead, N.H.) and senior Josh Dorr (Brunswick, Maine) struck in the third quarter, while Daly, freshman Conor Rooney (Wilmington, Mass.) and sophomore Caleb Ikkela (Onset, Mass.) found the net in the fourth.

Defensively for Franklin Pierce, senior Kyle Fortier (Derry, N.H.) picked up a team-high five ground balls, while sophomore Eric Bua Jr. (Revere, Mass.) and junior Robert Colburn (Walpole, Mass.) added three apiece. Fortier also caused a game-best three turnovers.

For Saint Anselm, sophomore Andrew Bonavita snagged a game-high six ground balls and seven different Hawks caused one turnover each.

Freshman James Heitmiller (Nashua, N.H.) got the start in net for Franklin Pierce and piled up 17 saves against 30 shots on goal, but suffered the loss (0-3) anyway. The Hawks went with senior CJ Hart (3-0) in the crease, and he made six saves against 11 shots to snag the win.

The Ravens are scheduled to be back in action on Saturday, April 3, as they hit the road for a 3 p.m. start at Southern New Hampshire.