The Canisius College men's lacrosse team couldn't overcome a slow start to the second half and a late rally fell short on Tuesday night to Binghamton, 11-9. The Griffs are now 2-11 on the season, while the Bearcats improve to 4-7.

“I'm really proud of our team's effort put forth on both sides of the ball today,” said Canisius head coach Randy Mearns. “As always, we continue to try and dig out of a third-quarter hole and it ends up being too little, too late. We create good opportunities but just need to do a better job of finishing. We have great character guys that don't quit and we are going to continue to battle as we still have a lot to play for this season.”

Sophomore Jeff Edwards led the Griffs with three points on two goals and one assist in the defeat, while junior Vince Gravino matched Edwards with two tallies. Graduate student Christopher Kane and senior Jake Giarrano both added two points on a goal and an assist, while senior Austin Romantic, junior Billy Jacobbi and sophomore Lewis Vaccaro rounded out the scoring for Canisius with a goal each.

Graduate student Kevin Collins anchored the Canisius defense, matching his career high with six ground balls.

Canisius started the contest strong and seized a 3-1 lead after 15 minutes of play. Vaccaro opened the scoring with his first tally of the season, picking up a loose ball on the defensive end and finishing on the other side for a 1-0 lead. After a Binghamton goal, Romantic and Gravino scored 45 seconds apart for the 3-1 advantage.

Binghamton, however, controlled the next 25 minutes of action to take control of the game. The Bearcats outscored the Griffs, 4-1, in the second stanza to take a slight 5-4 lead into the halftime break. After the intermission, Binghamton tallied three goals in the first 3:45 before Canisius even had possession of the ball and then added a fourth-straight tally later in the quarter for a commanding 9-4 lead.

Canisius fought back and ended a drought when Giarrano finished the scoring in the third quarter. Gravino and Kane added tallies for a mini 3-0 Griffs run to pull the team back within two, 9-7, with 11:39 remaining in the game. Canisius, however, would not get any closer despite two late extra-man chances and the Bearcats held on for the 11-9 victory.

Canisius outshot Binghamton, 33-30 but the Bearcats owned a 16-8 advantage in faceoffs on the night. Three players led Binghamton with two goals, while Tucker Nelson recorded a game-best four assists.

The Griffs continue non-conference play this weekend with a road game at VMI. First faceoff is scheduled for noon on Sunday.

Game Notes: Binghamton owns a 4-1 advantage in the all-time series … Collins now leads the team with 15 caused turnovers, while ranking second with 42 ground balls … Collins also took 10 faceoffs on the night, winning three (he had attempted only one in his first 52 career games) … Canisius has now been outscored 48-12 in the third quarter this season … The Griffs finish the season 1-4 at the Demske Sports Complex.