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Canisius University Athletics

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Mario Caito action vs UDM 5-5-18
Dave Schofield '71
12
Winner Canisius CAN 3-3, 0-0
8
Robert Morris RMU 1-4, 0-0
Winner
Canisius CAN
3-3, 0-0
12
Final
8
Robert Morris RMU
1-4, 0-0
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Canisius CAN 3 5 1 3 12
Robert Morris RMU 2 2 3 1 8

Game Recap: Men's Lacrosse |

Caito’s Career Day Sparks Men’s Lacrosse Past Robert Morris

Senior Mario Caito notched a career-high six goals to pace Canisius to a 12-8 victory over Robert Morris in collegiate men's lacrosse action Saturday at Joe Walton Stadium in Moon Township, Pa.
 
Caito's career day highlighted an otherwise balanced Golden Griffins (3-3) attack as freshman Jacob Buck pitched in two goals and an assist while four players – seniors Layne Collins and Michael Sanzone, junior Carter Stefaniak and sophomore Mike Carbone – accounted for the other four Canisius goals.  
 
Senior goalie Brad Nordstrom turned in another solid performance between the pipes for the Griffs, matching his season high with 15 saves, including 10 during the second half.
 
Tyson Gibson and Jake Boudreau notched two goals apiece for the Colonials (1-4). Goalie Alex Hager finished the contest with 12 saves for RMU.
 
Canisius jumped out to an early 3-0 lead thanks to goals from Stefaniak, Sanzone and Buck, but Robert Morris responded with three unanswered goals of their own to tie the game early in the second quarter.
 
That's when Caito took control of the contest, scoring four times in a nearly seven-minute span to ignite a 6-1 spurt that gave Canisius a 9-4 advantage early in the third.
 
The Colonials attempted to climb back into the contest, closing the third with three straight goals to pull within two heading into the fourth.
 
Collins provided some breathing room for Canisius early in the final frame, notching his fifth of the campaign just 1:14 into the stanza to make it a three-goal contest.
 
Boudreau tallied his second of the contest with just under five minutes remaining to once again get Robert Morris within two, but Caito closed out the contest with a pair of man-up markers in the final 1:42 to determine the four-goal margin of victory.
 
Head Coach Mark Miyashita's Postgame Comments
"Mario was awesome today. Coming back into the lineup tonight, he played under control and was poised in providing us with some great senior leadership on the offensive end, especially after Carter (Stefaniak) went down with an injury and was unavailable for the rest of the game, he really stepped up his play.
 
"The fact that we played Robert Morris twice last year and had a really close game against them in the regular season and an intense game in the NCAA Tournament just shows that it's a budding rivalry. They've got a great staff and a great team. We wanted to have a chance to prove ourselves. They were the No. 18 team in the country in the preseason polls and all three of their losses prior to tonight have come against ranked opponents, so for us to have a chance to go out and come out with a win against a quality opponent such as Robert Morris is a great thing.
 
"The weather wasn't really a factor tonight, it was more about us being able to handle their pressure in the fourth quarter when they were running a 10-man ride and being aggressive by doubling the ball. The fact that we were able to gut it out tonight and finish some plays gives us more experience in tight moments, which should bode well for us moving forward."
 
Game Notes
• Saturday's contest served as the 13th meeting between Canisius and Robert Morris. The Griffs moved to 7-6 against the Colonials as they snapped a seven-game losing skid to the NEC foe.
• Robert Morris out-shot Canisius by a 43-34 margin in the contest, highlighted by a 15-5 edge in the third quarter.
• Robert Morris held a 14-10 edge in faceoffs, including a 5-1 margin in the first quarter.
• Canisius held an opponent to single-digit goals for the first time this season as it held Robert Morris to a season-low for goals scored.  
• Caito recorded his second career hat trick with his six-goal effort on Saturday. The hat trick was his first since a three-goal effort against Cleveland State on March 4, 2017.
• With one caused turnover on Saturday, junior defender Holden Garlent moved into sole possession of third place on the program's career caused turnovers list (43).  
• Junior Daniel Balawejder led all players with eight ground balls and recorded double-digit wins at the faceoff X for the fifth time in six contests as he recorded 10.
• Nordstrom posted double-digit saves for the fifth time in six game this season with his 15-save effort on Saturday. The total matched his season high set in the opener against Hobart back on Feb. 9.
 
Up Next
• Canisius returns home to host Central New York foe Colgate in a 1 p.m. contest at the Demske Sports Complex.
• The game will air live on ESPN3.
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