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OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- Nazareth's men's lacrosse team won its third consecutive game on Sunday when the Golden Flyers defeated 10th-ranked Cabrini 11-9 at the Greene Turtle Classic hosted by Stevenson University. Nazareth outscored the Cavaliers 6-0 in the first quarter and stretched its lead to 9-0 at halftime. Junior Luke Wooters tallied a game-high four goals to lead the Golden Flyers' attack.

With the victory, Nazareth stretches its winning streak to three games and improves to 5-2 overall. Following the loss, Cabrini drops to 4-4 overall. The loss comes a day after the Cavaliers defeated host Stevenson, ranked third nationally. Cabrini's other losses have been to second-ranked RIT, sixth-ranked Lynchburg, and 15th-ranked Salisbury. The Golden Flyers' two losses have each been by one goal, 10-9 to Hamilton and 5-4 to Oneonta.

Nazareth senior Drew Simoneau was a primary component of igniting the offense with his proficiency on faceoffs. Simoneau finished the contest with a dominant 17-6 advantage, which provided the Golden Flyers with additional possessions.

Classmate Will Fallo started the offensive onslaught in the first quarter with a goal 4:45 into the game after he received a pass from Wooters. Following a pair of faceoff victories by Simoneau, junior Dan O'Brien and sophomore Nick Arnold each found the back of the Cabrini net in a span of 49 seconds to stretch the Golden Flyers' lead to 3-0. O'Brien's goal was unassisted with the 30-second warning ticking down, while senior Kyle Fanning assisted on Arnold's score.

After Nazareth forced a turnover on a Cabrini clear attempt, Fallo scored his second goal of the game and eighth of the season with about five minutes left in the period. Sophomore Luke Longo assisted on the goal, which came only seconds after the turnover. Wooters extended the lead to six goals with two scores in the final 2:19 of the stanza. After junior Troy Haefele set up Wooters' first goal, Wooters scored his second unassisted with only 10 seconds left in the period.

In the second quarter, Haefele, Wooters, and Longo each scored to give Nazareth a commanding 9-0 lead at the break. Haefele's goal, only 1:32 into the period, was unassisted. Wooters and Longo, who scored midway through the stanza, were assisted by Fanning and Haefele, respectively.

The Golden Flyers finished the opening 30 minutes with a 20-7 advantage in total shots, and sophomore Michael Cuciti made three saves to hold the Cavaliers scoreless. Nazareth also forced Cabrini into committing 20 turnovers and forced four failed clears. Sunday's game was the first contest that the Cavaliers have been blanked in two quarters since March 2008.

Cabrini tallied six straight goals in the first 12:53 of the third quarter to crawl back into the game. Mike Leyden, who leads the Cavaliers in total points with 17 goals and 13 assists, scored the first, fourth, and sixth goals of the run. James Magnani, Tyler Johnston, and Damian Sobieski, who also has 17 goals on the season, also found the back of the Nazareth net. Leyden's third goal of the game cut the Golden Flyers' lead to 9-6 with 3:07 to play in the quarter.

With only :01 left in the third, Wooters tallied his fourth goal of the game and team-high 16th of the season to slow the Cavaliers' momentum. The scoring chance came after Nazareth rebounded from a turnover by forcing a Cabrini turnover with eight seconds to play in the period. Senior Matt McDermott collected the loose ball in the closing seconds and pushed the ball to Wooters to convert the opportunity.

In the fourth quarter, Sobieski scored two goals sandwiched by a man-up goal by junior Matt O'Neill to leave the Golden Flyers ahead 11-8 with 6:37 to play in regulation. The Cavaliers added a goal in the final four minutes but were unable to close their deficit to less than two goals as Nazareth maintained possession for the majority of the final minutes. The Golden Flyers collected three ground balls in the closing 65 seconds, including two by senior defenseman Jerry Chasteen.

Nazareth finished with an overwhelming 39-20 advantage in ground balls collected, aided by Simoneau's success on faceoffs. Simoneau grabbed a game-high 13 ground balls. The Golden Flyers also forced eight failed clears over the course of the game, including four in the fourth quarter. With its 20 shots in the first half, Nazareth closed the game with 32 total shots. The Golden Flyers' tenacious defense held the Cavaliers to a season-low 25 shots.

Cuciti earned the victory with six saves. Tyler Morrell played the opening quarter in the Cavaliers' net and took the loss. He was credited with two saves and allowed six goals. In relief, Jake Reynolds made 10 saves and allowed five goals in 45 minutes of action.

The Golden Flyers look to stretch their winning streak to four games when they open their Empire 8 schedule at Alfred on March 25th. Nazareth hosts Elmira on March 28th in another Empire 8 contest.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NElL3xrRl4