GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Siena Heights men's lacrosse team defeated second-seeded Aquinas on the road to advance to the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference Championship on Saturday with a 9-8 win on Thursday evening. The Saints (10-5) outscored Aquinas 6-4 in the second half to earn the win and advance in the tournament.
Garnet Potter was the Saints leading playmaker with a goal and three assists in the win. Devin Plemmons and Ryan Moore scored twice, while Eric Csizmadia, Matthew Quillen, Jake Gallaher, and Logan Hudnut netted a goal. Gallaher added two assists and four ground balls to his totals. Fernando Robison led all players with 14 ground balls while going 16-19 in faceoffs. Vinnie Jean continued his phenomenal play in the postseason with 25 saves in the game.
Aquinas took the lead in the first quarter with a goal at the 12-minute mark. Potter tallied his lone goal at 5:04 to tie things up, but the home Saints scored the second goal in the closing minutes to hold a 2-1 lead going into the second quarter.
Quillen scored off a dish from Potter to tie the score in the opening minute. Moore then added a man-up tally that gave SHU the 3-2 lead with 14:06 left in the first half. However, Aquinas' two-straight goals ended the half with a 4-3 edge for the home team as the teams entered the locker room.
The Saints in maroon scored an insurance goal to begin the third, but Hudnut, Gallaher, and Plemmons (two goals) scored four straight to flip the momentum and lead to 7-5 as the quarter ended.
Aquinas scored three goals in the final period, including two in a row that tied the game at eight with just 5:33 left to play. Csizmadia put the go-ahead score on the board at 4:56, and the SHU defense did the rest to seal the win and extend the season for at least one more game.
UP NEXT
The Saints will face the other WHAC Semifinal game-winner between Indiana Tech and Lawrence Tech. The Championship game will be held in Fort Wayne, Indiana, if the Warriors win. The Saints will host the Championship game at O'Laughlin Stadium if the Blue Devils win. Game time will be announced once the championship game is set.
