WATERBURY, Conn. – Graduate attacker Hunter McCarty had a fourth-quarter hat trick en route to a three-goal game on a chilly opening day for Post University Men's Lacrosse in a 12-8 loss against Assumption University at LaMoy Field on Friday afternoon. The game was originally scheduled to be played on the road this past Wednesday, but cold temperatures forced the postponement, which was ultimately changed to a home game today for the Eagles. 

THE BASICS

Post University 8, Assumption University 12

Post University (0-1)

Assumption University (1-0)

HOW IT HAPPENED
It was a battle of the freshmen between the pipes for both teams as Liam McCurry serviced the net for Post while Shane Corcoran got the start for Assumption in the opening-day affair. Only two minutes into the contest, senior attacker Robbie McGrayne gave Post their first goal of the season, while junior attacker Ryan Denike earned his first assist of the season, giving the Eagles a 1-0 lead. 

In the first quarter alone, McGrayne would partake in all three of Post's goals, scoring twice and assisting on freshman midfielder Connor Denny's first collegiate goal, but four different goal scorers for the Greyhounds gave them a 4-3 lead after 15 minutes and an eventual 6-4 lead at the halftime break.

Being put to work in the first half, Post's McCurry made eight saves while allowing those six goals compared to seven saves and four allowed goals for Corcoran of the Greyhounds. Turnovers would be dead even with 12 each, while ground balls heavily favored Assumption, 25-17. 

That three-goal first quarter would be the highest quarter of offense for the Eagles as they were held scoreless in the third quarter while the Greyhounds tallied four more goals to open up a six-goal advantage, 10-4. Up to that point, Assumption had three multi-goal scorers in freshman attacker Ben McHugh, who led the way with three goals, followed by two goals each from graduate midfielder Ryan Bogar and senior attacker Adam Gilbert.

Adding his name among the multi-goal scorers in today's affair would be senior attacker, Cameron Theriault, with his second of the game in the fourth quarter. Breaking a nearly 36-minute scoring drought, McCarty responded with three goals of his own, giving the Eagles their first multi-goal quarter since the first and cutting into their deficit with 4:16 remaining, 11-7. 

However, the comeback would come up short as McHugh's fourth goal of the afternoon put an end to the 3-0 run by McCarty and the Eagles, helping the Greyhounds to their first victory of the season, 12-8, behind the freshman's offensive performance and a 10-save game by Corcoran in net. In addition to the hat trick for McCarty, McGrayne's fourth-quarter goal would get him to three goals to go along with his two assists as part of his five-point afternoon. 

BY THE NUMBERS

• James Sproul finished the game with five ground balls and two caused turnovers – Those marks bring him to 169 ground balls, and 61 caused turnovers in his career as he trails Alsharif Blackman (2015-17) by just six ground balls and Peter Naboka (2019-23) by two caused turnovers for those two respective records 
• Starting the season with three goals and two assists, Robbie McGrayne sits at 126 career goals and 167 career points – McGrayne is only nine goals away from the all-time record of 134 goals scored by Dylan Heald (2021-24) and 36 points from Heald's program-best 202 career points 
• Earning the win in net for Assumption University, Shane Corcoran made 10 saves on 18 attempts taken by Post University to get his first collegiate win in net -- Liam McCurry made 19 stops on 31 attempts in net for the Eagles.
• Post University remains winless in the all-time series against Assumption University, dropping all seven matchups they have had against the Greyhounds since they began facing each other during the 2014 season 

WHO'S NEXT
Post University continues what will now be a three-game homestand next Wednesday afternoon against Franklin Pierce University at 1:00 PM on LaMoy Field. The Eagles are 1-7 in the eight all-time matchups they have had against the Ravens, losing each of the last five head-to-heads since the 2017 season, including a 9-7 loss on the road last year.