Curtin nets 3 against Bryant's stingy D, Bulldogs escape 10-9

Courtesy of Hobart Athletics

SMITHFIELD, R.I.—For the third straight game, Hobart senior attackman Kevin Curtin (Corcoran/Syracuse, N.Y.) produced a hat trick, but Bryant scored twice in the final five minutes to escape with a 10-9 non-conference lacrosse win. The Statesmen scored the second most goals against the Bulldogs, who boasted the stingiest defense in Division I (6.44 GAA).

Hobart actually outscored its host at even strength (8-6), but was undone by a 4-for-7 extra-man showing by Bryant. The Bulldogs also had the statistical advantage in shots (32-25) and ground balls (34-32).

After Bryant (12-5) scored three straight to end the third quarter and tie the game 8-all, senior midfielder Mike Lazore (Immaculate Heart/Carthage, N.Y.) scored with 6:01 remaining in the final frame to give the Statesmen a 9-8 lead.

Hobart was hit with a slashing penalty at the 4:23 mark and 18 seconds later, Evan Roberts cashed in a pass from JK Poirier to tie the game for the fifth and final time. Roberts netted the game winner with 2:45 remaining.

The Statesmen won the ensuing faceoff and senior Daniel Keegan (Georgetown Prep/Rockville, Md.) took a shot at the 1:14 mark, but Jameson Love made the save. Hobart turned it over on a bad pass a short time later and was saddled with two penalties in the final 30 seconds, thwarting its hopes of a comeback.

The teams traded goals in the first quarter. The Bulldogs struck first with a man-up goal, but Curtin countered off an assist from senior midfielder Mike Suits (CBA/Jamesville, N.Y.). Bryant again scored with the extra-man to make it a 2-1 game, but this time Lazore scored off a feed from senior midfielder Tyler Cassell (Salisbury School/Geneva, N.Y.).

BU opened the second quarter with back-to-back goals. Hobart countered with four unanswered goals to carry a 6-4 lead into halftime. Curtin started the run when a pass along the crease was deflected and hit off the back of Love and redirected into the goal. Less than a minute later, he completed his hat trick, putting home his team-leading 22nd goal of the season, assisted by senior midfielder Kurtis Gibbs (Bridgton Academy/Ipswich, Mass.).

Sophomore midfielder Bobby Dattilo (Pinkerton Academy/Derry, N.H.) won the ensuing faceoff and worked a give-and-go with junior long-stick midfielder Alex Caton (McQuaid/Rochester, N.Y.). Dattilo took the return pass and buried it just five seconds after Curtin's goal for a 5-4 lead. Dattilo won 11 of 22 faceoffs and picked up seven ground balls.

Sophomore attackman Sam Miller (Yarmouth/Yarmouth, Maine) completed the first half scoring with an unassisted goal 55 seconds before the break.

Junior midfielder Tim Bigelow (Northfield Mt. Hermon/Walpole, Mass.) made it five straight goals for the Statesmen when he netted an extra-man tally set up by Lazore, less than two minutes into the third quarter. Bryant scored a man-up goal two minutes later to make it a 7-5 game, but 21 seconds after that, Caton scored his fourth goal of the year, setting up the drama of the stretch run.

Poirier (0-3),  Peter McMahon (2-1), Travis Harrington (2-1), and Max Weisenberg (2-1) produced three-point games to pace the Bulldogs.

Senior goalie Max Silberlicht (New Hartford/New Hartford, N.Y.) capped his brilliant career with 12 saves. He posted 178 stops this season, fourth on the Statesmen Division I list, and wrapped up his career with 553, second behind Fred Pawlikowski's 582. Silberlicht is Hobart's DI career record holder for goals against average (9.24) and wins (18) and is second in save percentage (.576).

Curtin led the team in goals and points (36) this season, finishing his career with 55 goals and 29 assists.

Hobart finished the season with a 3-11 record.