May 9, 2010
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POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. - Siena men's lacrosse fought back after trailing the entire game and tied it with 1:42 left in regulation only to have the Championship ripped away. Andrew Scalley came from behind the cage and scored the game winning goal as time expired and No. 2 seeded Mount St. Mary's upended Siena 7-6 in the MAAC Championship.
Mount (12-4) earns the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2003 and snaps Siena's 22-game win streak against MAAC teams (second longest in league history - Fairfield, 24).
Mount controlled the first half as it jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first six minutes and goalie T.C. DiBartolo frustrated Siena's offense. He looked sharp from the start, making four saves in the first quarter and robbing a few Saints throughout the day.
Chris Roth opened Siena's scoring just under two minutes left in the quarter and allowed the Siena fans in attendance to breathe in relief.
Mount led 4-1 early in the second quarter and 6-4 at halftime. It was a manageable deficit for the slow-starting Saints considering they erased a three-goal difference in the final six minutes to defeat Mount on the road two weeks ago. Ryan Duggan scored two goals and had an assist to tie that game and Roth won it with 48 seconds left in the game.
Siena (12-5) surged in the second half, piecing together goals as the defense made stops and the team prepared for its final charge.
Jordan Loftus and John Rogener each scored in the final four minutes to tie the game, 6-6. After Mount threw the ball away on the faceoff, Siena took a timeout with the ball and 53 seconds to play. Roth went at the goal with 25 seconds left, but he was double-teamed and had the ball checked loose which gave Mount an opportunity for the last shot.
Scalley came around the back of the cage and placed his shot high above Herbst's stick for the win as the clock hit zeroes. Scalley was named MAAC Championship Most Outstanding Player and led all players with three goals, but it was DiBartolo that allowed Mount to keep the pressure on Siena. He made 13 saves and forced Siena to play from behind all day.
"T.C. [DiBartolo] did a good job early and throughout the game," Siena coach Brian Brecht said. "He was a difference-maker today."
His only miscue was flexing his arms at the Siena crowd when running off the field at halftime which earned him a one-minute penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct to start the second half. Siena made him pay when Bryan Neufeld scored off a rebound while he sat in the penalty box.
Herbst, who beat out DiBartolo for MAAC Defensive Player of the Year and All-MAAC First Team, made seven saves in the loss.
Ryan Duggan led the Saints with two points on one goal and one assist and Neufeld, Loftus, Roth, Rogener and Kyle Curry each scored once.
Siena's season ends with a 12-5 overall record, matching the program's most wins for a single season (2009 and 1979).
"I'm proud of this team and what these 11 seniors accomplished the last four years," Brecht said. "They won 10, 10, 12 and 12 games the past four years and I thanked them for their commitment."
Loftus, Faus Bernabo and Bryan Hale were named to the All-Tournament Team following the game.
