WATERBURY, Conn. – It was another one of those defensive battles for Post University Men's Lacrosse who was no stranger to that sort of situation having played in multiple low-scoring affairs throughout their 2024 campaign. On Saturday it was just that as the Eagles combined with Chestnut Hill College for just 19 total goals at LaMoy Field in a crucial conference match in which they fell just short, 10-9, dropping only their second conference game of the year.

With the loss and the win for Wilmington University over Georgian Court University, Post falls back into the fourth seed in the CACC Tournament at the moment. While they are tied in the loss column with the Lions and technically one game out in the loss column with the Griffins, they do not own the tiebreaker against either team now. As for the Wildcats, they sit atop the conference at 6-0 and will take on the Eagles next Saturday in a game that will have big tournament ramifications.

THE BASICS

Post University 9, Chestnut Hill College 10

Post University (8-6, 4-2 CACC)

Chestnut Hill College (6-4, 4-1 CACC)

HOW IT HAPPENED
For Post University, who had been lighting the lamp in record numbers over the past few games, Saturday afternoon was a change of pace especially in the first half which was dominated by the defense of both teams. Just one goal would be scored by each side in the first quarter as junior midfielder Tim Keefe gave the Eagles their only lead of the half with 9:40 remaining. Junior attacker Sam Slater would late tie the game at one all with 2:38 to go in the first followed by a score just under three minutes into the second which gave Chestnut Hill their first lead of the affair, 2-1.

Going two-for-one again, junior attacker Robbie McGrayne's game-tying goal would be met once more with two more goals by the Griffins off the sticks of sophomore midfielder Will Duddy and senior attacker Cade Johnson to put the visitors ahead by two, 4-2. Pulling the Eagles to back within one briefly was Keefe, netting his second of the half from sophomore attacker Ryan Denike before the hat trick half for Slater yet again made it a two-goal game, 5-3, heading into the locker room.

At the half, shots were nearly even with the Griffins holding a slight 19-17 lead in that category as well as ground balls, 19-15, while both senior goalies Cole George and Julius Soriano each made seven saves. Junior long-stick midfielder James Sproul also had a team-high six ground balls and sophomore faceoff specialist won 6-of-10 draws in the circle for the Eagles.

Out of the break, McGrayne and Johnson exchanged goals before Denike and McGrayne scored back-to-back four minutes apart to tie the game for the first time since the first quarter, 6-6. By the end of the third, the two sides would be tied at seven all as Duddy and senior attacker Dylan Heald each netted one less than 30 seconds apart inside of a minute.

With their third 2-0 run of the game, freshman attacker Jake Ballerini and junior midfielder Austin Derx gave the Griffins another two-goal lead, 9-7, with still 13:23 left in regulation for the Eagles to come back. While Post would get within one after senior midfielder Noah Piette's goal at the 7:50 mark of the fourth, sophomore attacker Noah Hammon all but sealed the affair with his goal inside of two minutes. Keefe would score for the Eagles with 1:14 left in the game but Post would be unable to get the equalizer before time expired, snapping their four-game winning streak overall and in conference with a 10-9 loss at home.

In the defeat, Post held a narrow 41-37 edge in overall shots while George made 14 saves to Sorino's 13 in the game. Each team picked up exactly 32 ground balls, were 1-for-3 on their man-up opportunities, and 22-for-24 on their clear attempts while Chestnut Hill had just two more turnovers than the Eagles with 16.

BY THE NUMBERS

• James Sproul finished the game with 10 ground balls, narrowly missing out on tying the program record of 11 ground balls which was just tied by Jaxon Holden against Dominican (N.Y.) last game
• Tim Keefe and Robbie McGrayne each recorded a hat trick with three goals each marking the ninth time this season McGrayne has had at least three goals in a game and the seventh time for Keefe
• Post University won 12-of-23 faceoffs today but dropped to 5-2 on the season when winning more than 50% of the draws in the faceoff circle this season with the only other loss being a 9-7 defeat at Franklin Pierce
• In the all-time matchup, Post University falls to 3-8 against Chestnut Hill and has lost four of their last five games against them – In every single head-to-head, the losing team has finished with less than 10 goals in the game and each of the last two games have been decided by two goals or less

WHO'S NEXT

Post University has a week off before Senior Day Saturday against Wilmington University next Saturday afternoon at LaMoy Field at 2:00 PM. After winning the first head-to-head matchup between the two teams back in 2018, the Eagles have lost four straight to Wilmington with three of those four losses coming on the road.