GETTYSBURG, Pa. – For the third time this season, the No. 3-ranked Gettysburg College men’s lacrosse team will take on its Centennial Conference nemesis, No. 5 Washington (Md.) College, when the two teams face off in the NCAA Division III Championship quarterfinals on Wednesday.
The Bullets will host the Shoremen at 3 p.m. at Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium. The winner of the game will advance to the NCAA semifinals to play the winner of the quarterfinal between No. 1 Salisbury University and No. 6 Cabrini College.
Ticket prices for Wednesday’s game are $5 for adults, $3 for students and senior citizens, and $1 for children ages 3-12. Children under 3 are admitted for free.
More information on Wednesday's game, including web links for live stats and live video, can be found at http://www.gettysburgsports.com/Sports/mlax/2008/080510_NCAA_MLAX.asp.
The Bullets won both of the meetings between the two teams earlier this season, prevailing 17-10 at Washington during the regular season before capturing a 12-7 decision in the Centennial Conference championship game in Gettysburg. The Bullets have won their last eight meetings with the Shoremen.
Coming off a thrilling finish in its 8-7 second-round, overtime victory over No. 12 Denison University at Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium on Saturday, Gettysburg will be making its fifth straight appearance in the NCAA quarterfinals.
On Saturday, the Bullets trailed Denison, the top-ranked defensive team in Division III, 6-5 before sophomore Joe Brody (Bethesda, Md./Walter Johnson) sent the game to OT when he scored with 1:03 remaining. Senior Ben Sufrin (Mahopac, N.Y./Mahopac) completed the rally in the extra session, scoring the game-winner and his third goal of the game with 1:59 on the clock. The win gave Gettysburg its eighth straight opening-game victory in the NCAA Championship.
Sophomore Kyle McGrath (Randolph, N.J./Randolph) also recorded an outstanding game against Denison, scoring three goals as well. Junior Tom O'Donnell (Montgomeryville, Pa./La Salle College) handed out two assists while junior goalie Zachary Furshman (Miami, Fla./Kent School (Conn.)) made eight saves, including a stop on a point-blank shot with 35 seconds left in regulation.
Brody’s goal gave him 46 for the season, which leads the team and is tied for eighth on the school’s single-season list. Sufrin is now second among the Bullets with 28 goals while senior Trip Dyer (Ocean View, Del./Worcester Prep (Md.)) and junior Drew Duckworth (Rye, N.Y./Hotchkiss School (Conn.)) have added 28 and 25 tallies, respectively. Junior Zach Pucci (Ridgewood, N.J./Ridgewood) leads the team with 30 assists while O’Donnell has dished out 18 helpers. Furshman is 11-2 with a Centennial Conference-leading 6.54 goals-against average.
The Bullets, who are making their 18th tournament appearance, are 0-2 all-time against Washington in the NCAA Championship. The Shoremen defeated Gettysburg 9-8 in the 2004 quarterfinals and 10-9 in the 1997 semifinals.
The Shoremen advanced to the quarterfinals for the third time in the last five years with their 12-9 win over No. 4 Lynchburg College in Chestertown on Sunday.
Senior Chris Read led Washington with an outstanding game against the Hornets, scoring five goals and assisting on two others. The Shoremen led just 8-7 heading into the third quarter before reeling off four unanswered goals to take an insurmountable five-goal lead with 6:50 left. Four different Shoremen found the back of the net during the decisive run, with Read, senior Kolyn Kirby, senior Nick Gregory, and junior Jimmy Kielek all scoring.
Kirby and Gregory each finished with a hat trick, scoring three goals apiece, while Kielek posted one goal and three assists. Junior Gordon Cohen made nine saves in goal while facing 41 Lynchburg shots.
Read, an All-Centennial Conference First Team selection, leads the conference in both goals (51) and points (75). Kirby ranks second among the Shoremen in goals (41), assists (28), and points (69) while Kielek leads the team and the conference in assists (37) while racking up 31 goals.
Defensively, Cohen ranks second in the conference in save percentage (.602). The Shoremen have made their mark on special teams, leading the Centennial in both man-up scoring (45.5%) and penalty-killing percentage (80.6%).
Washington is making its 23rd appearance in the NCAA tournament. Only Salisbury University, which is making its 26th appearance this year, has been to the Division III championship more often.
