RINDGE, N.H. (April 20, 2022) – In a clash between two rivals, the Franklin Pierce University men's lacrosse team fought its way to the end against Southern New Hampshire at Sodexo Field on Wednesday afternoon, but fell short in overtime, 12-11. The Ravens had to make multiple comebacks along the way in the Northeast-10 Conference contest, but SNHU senior Tristan Pietz scored the winner with 52 seconds left in overtime.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 6-5 (3-5 NE10), while SNHU moves to 6-4 (4-4 NE10) on the season. The game had significant postseason implications, as the two sides entered the contest tied for the sixth and final berth in the NE10 Championship. The loss leaves the Ravens with an uphill battle to a spot in the postseason.

It was a defensive first quarter, which saw only three goals between the teams. With 6:29 left in the period, senior Stephen Ell (Peabody, Mass.) finally broke the stalemate and gave the Ravens a 1-0 lead on a shot that went short side past senior goaltender Alex Sturgess. The Penmen answered less than two minutes later on a man-up chance with a goal from senior Jeremy Handman. With less than a minute left in the quarter, Pietz scored an unassisted goal to give SNHU a 2-1 lead. 

SNHU took control of the game in the second quarter, outscoring the Ravens 5-2 to lead 7-3 going into halftime. Junior Ryan Auger got things started for the Penmen. Less than two minutes later, junior Owen McCormack (Hampstead, N.H.) answered for Franklin Pierce to cut the deficit back to one. The Penmen went on a tear after McCormack's goal and scored four straight over three minutes. Pietz got his second goal of the game with 6:48 left to play in the first half and, a minute later, sophomore Jack Terrones scored on the man-up. Terrones picked up his second goal of the game with 4:11 left to play to make it 6-2, and then Auger notched his second of the game just 24 seconds later to make it 7-2. The Ravens were able to grab one more goal by McCormack heading into the break.

It was another defensive battle in the third, as the two sides traded a goal apiece. Graduate student Josh Door (Brunswick, Maine) struck for the Ravens, while Auger finished off his hat trick and the Penmen took an 8-4 lead to the fourth.

Franklin Pierce turned the tables and came all the way back, posting a 7-3 margin in the fourth to force overtime. Junior Caleb Ikkela (Onset, Mass.) picked up a much-needed goal early on, but SNHU sophomore Cody Fleming had an answer just 38 seconds later. The Ravens then scored three straight goals to cut the deficit down to one (9-8). Dorr picked up the next two goals to notch a hat trick and then McCormack popped his third of the day as well. Auger scored an unassisted goal to give the Penmen a 10-8 lead.

The Ravens sparked some magic from there, thanks to goals from Ikkela and junior Nathaniel Girardin (Brunswick, Maine), who tied the game at 10-10 with 4:03 to play. The Ravens took their first lead since the early going when junior Sean Daly (Kingston, Mass.) scored with 2:16 to play. However, with 80 seconds left in regulation, senior Owen McCuin tied things at 11-11 to force overtime. 

Both teams had multiple possessions in what was a sloppy start to overtime. Neither side could muster a shot through the first three minutes of the extra period, but when they finally did, it took just one shot to end it. Pietz found a shooting lane on the right side and fired home an unassisted tally to touch off the celebration for the Penmen.

For SNHU, three players had multi-goal games. Pietz finished the day with three goals on seven shot attempts, and Terrones had two goals on five shots. Auger led the way with four goals and an assist.

For Franklin Pierce, Dorr and McCormack finished the day with hat tricks, and Ikkela added two goals. One big difference in the game came at the faceoff dot, where SNHU piled up a 25-2 advantage, which led to a 46-26 margin in shots in favor of the Penmen.

Sturgess (4-0) made seven saves against 18 shots in the victory for SNHU. For Franklin Pierce, freshman Mike Masterpolo (Kingston, Mass.) made 10 saves against 22 shots in the loss (1-4). 

Franklin Pierce will hold Senior Day prior to its home finale at Sodexo Field on Saturday, April 23, against Le Moyne College, at 11 a.m.