Supporters packed the stands of Rotch Field on a sunny 56-degree Saturday to watch the Emerson men’s lacrosse team face the Wheaton College Lyons in their first NEWMAC contest of the season. Despite a momentum shift late in the first half and throughout the third quarter, the Lions fell to Wheaton 16-7 on March 15.
In the first quarter, Wheaton stifled Emerson’s first opportunities with strong defense before finding the back of the net with a goal at the nine-minute mark. The Lions scored the equalizer after senior midfielder Alex Menendez spun and found senior attacker Beson Offit for a goal with 8:34 left. The Lyons shot through tight Emerson defense for another goal at the 7:39 mark, taking a 2-1 lead. They scored once more in similar fashion, the ball evading the Lions for a 3-1 advantage with 6:21 left in the first.
The Lions cut the deficit after an initial Wheaton save brought the ball back to Burns, who flung it in for a 3-2 score with 2:11 remaining. Wheaton scored once more from the right side with 20 seconds left, giving them a 4-2 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Wheaton’s offense hummed in the second quarter, first scoring from the right side with 13:24 left for a 5-2 lead. They piled on points primarily from the right side and from close range, netting two goals in the next couple of minutes for a 7-2 lead with 11:45 remaining.
After a three-minute scoring drought, Wheaton pulled away with three more goals to make it a 10-2 game with 7:18 left. Emerson stopped the Lyons’ hot streak after junior midfielder Toby Cunningham passed to Burns, who scored at the 3:38 mark. Junior attacker Aedan Kiniry found Offit for another Lions goal with 43 seconds remaining, giving the Lions some much-needed momentum and bringing the score to 10-4 Wheaton at halftime.
The Lions hung their hat on defense to begin the third quarter, as junior goalie Ethan Corby recorded a three-peat of saves in the opening minute. Wilson slipped and scored to trim the deficit to five with 13:44 remaining. Wheaton kept their distance with a goal at the 11:09 mark, leading 11-5. They scored immediately off of a face-off on the next possession, going up 12-5 with 10:39 remaining. Emerson trimmed the lead once more with a goal by Offit with under eight minutes left in the period. After a clearing attempt by the Lions, Offit found Burns for another right-side goal with 5:39 left. Emerson’s defense prevented further scoring opportunities by Wheaton, though they still trailed 12-7 after three quarters.
Sophomore face-off specialist Quinn Gardiner gave the Lions the first possession of the final frame, but they couldn’t add to their total, committing a turnover nearly a minute in. Wheaton evaded Emerson’s front line and dropped the ball in for their 13th goal of the day, leading by six again at the 13:12 mark. The Lyons caused an Emerson turnover and eventually scored once more, putting the ball in from the left side for a 14-7 advantage with 11:15 left. After a few more ground balls from both sides, the Lyons’ last two goals of the game came with 8:29 and 7:15 remaining, respectively. Emerson’s final attempts to trim the deficit either went wide or were met by Wheaton’s goalie. The loss dropped them to 2-6 overall, while Wheaton notched their fourth straight win and improved to 6-1.
Burns and Offit led the Lions in scoring with three goals apiece, while Corby had a team-high nine saves and senior goalie Elijah Turbow finished with four. As a group, the Lions tallied 29 shots, four assists and 33 ground balls while causing ten turnovers.
“It was probably a little closer than the score said,” head coach Matthew Colombini said postgame. “They just made more plays and closed things out [in the] fourth quarter in particular.”
Colombini added that the team is “right there,” but emphasized the need to clean up and sharpen their play.
“The nice thing about conference play is each week is your Super Bowl,” he added. “We’re ready to go for [next] Saturday.”
Colombini said this season’s goal remains unchanged from previous years—get to the NEWMAC playoffs and compete for a conference championship. When describing the team’s identity, he noted the group has leaned into its toughness on both sides of the ball.
“We’re really strong defensively, we have a really good attack unit,” he added. “We play really hard. We are as tough as anybody, and I think that’s what we focus on all the time.”
Next, the Lions play the Springfield College Pride in an away game on March 22 at 1 p.m.
