Worcester, Mass. (3/18/23) – The Franklin Pierce men's lacrosse team faced all they could handle in their 2023 Northeast-10 Conference opener on Saturday afternoon, falling to Assumption University by a 28-7 score at Bryan Kelly '83 Stadium.

The 28 goals allowed comes as a new program-worst for Pierce men's lacrosse, who drops to 3-2 (0-1 NE10) overall with the loss. Assumption improves to 2-2 (1-0 NE10) on the season with the win.

The Greyhounds dominated right out of the gate, and continued to do so throughout the entirety of the first half. Out of their 12 goals scored through the first 30-minutes played, three were scored by attacker Nolan Sheehan, while attacker Aidan Rodgers and midfielder Brady McNulty each scored twice. From the Peirce side, senior Sean Daly (Kingston, Mass.), graduate Joe Nutting (Amherst, N.H.) and junior Caleb Ikkela (Onset, Mass.) provided the limited offense for the Ravens, who trailed the Greyhounds 12-3 into the second half.

Out of the break, the Greyhounds continued to own the offense as they piled on another ten goals, outshooting the Ravens 21-2 in the process. Joe Nutting would score the lone goal of the frame for Pierce, before adding the final two in the fourth quarter to bring his season totals to 14. Through the full 60-minutes, Assumption ended the day with a 64-24 shots advantage, deftly cruising to the 28-7 win.

Multi-purpose player Nathan Taylor (Danville, N.H.) was credited with the loss after making his first start in goal this season for the Ravens, making 14 saves on 36 shots faced. Freshman goalkeeper Jacob Smith (Sturbridge, Mass.) entered in relief for the final 15-minutes of the contest, and stopped 2-of-8 shots thrown his way.

Men's lacrosse will now turn its attention to its next Northeast-10 Conference matchup on Saturday, March 25th where the Ravens will host Bentley University for a mid-day matinee at Sodexo Field