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Canisius University Athletics

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Canisius face-off specialist Micah Hanson battles for the ball during game action versus Michigan at the U-M Lacrosse Stadium on Feb. 25, 2025
Jack Moreland
8
Sacred Heart SHU 4-2, 0-1 MAAC
10
Winner Canisius CAN 1-6, 1-0 MAAC
Sacred Heart SHU
4-2, 0-1 MAAC
8
Final
10
Canisius CAN
1-6, 1-0 MAAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Sacred Heart SHU 3 2 1 2 8
Canisius CAN 1 1 2 6 10

Game Recap: Men's Lacrosse |

Late Rally Lifts Men’s Lacrosse to Victory Versus Sacred Heart

Canisius scored five unanswered goals during a nearly five-minute stretch in the fourth quarter to erase a two-goal deficit and defeat Sacred Heart, 10-8, in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference men's lacrosse action Saturday at the Demske Sports Complex.
 
Seniors Patrick Mitchell and TJ Buono each recorded hat tricks for the Golden Griffins (1-6, 1-0 MAAC). Senior Jaxon Fridge chipped in a goal and an assist while sophomore Mason Wolford dished out a pair of helpers.
 
Junior face-off specialist Micah Hanson went 15-of-21 at the "X" as he became the program leader for career face-off wins during the contest. Senior goalie Tommy Kunz finished with nine saves between the pipes.  
 
John Murray and Tucker Spencer and Jake Ward tallied two goals each for the Pioneers (4-2, 0-1 MAAC). Alex Pazienza finished with 10 stops in goal for the visitors.
 
Trailing 7-5 with less than 13 minutes to play in the game, junior Alexis Simard started the game-changing run with his first goal of the season at the 12:17 mark to pull the Griffs within one.
 
An even-strength tally from Fridge less than a minute later brought Canisius level before a man-up strike from Mitchell with 9:45 on the clock gave the Griffs their first lead of the contest. Buono and Mitchell capped the spurt with tallies a little more than a minute apart to put the Griffs in front, 10-7, with 7:39 remaining.
 
Ward halted the Canisius run with 5:59 on the clock to trim the lead to two, but Kunz and the Griffs defense kept the Pioneers off the board the rest of the way to secure the two-goal victory.
 
Earlier in the contest, Sacred Heart jumped out to a 3-1 lead after the opening 15 minutes before out-scoring Canisius by a 2-1 margin in the second quarter to take a 5-2 lead into the locker room.
 
Canisius recorded three of the first four goals of the second half to pull within one early in the fourth before Murray notched his second goal of the game with 13:03 remaining, putting the Pioneers up two and setting the scene for the Griffs game-changing run.
 
POSTGAME COMMENTS GAME NOTES
• Canisius picked up its first victory in five tries against Sacred Heart with its win on Saturday. Each of the last two meetings between the programs has been decided by two goals or fewer.
• The Griffs outshot the Pioneers by a 36-35 margin in the contest, highlighted by a 12-6 edge in the first quarter.
• Canisius was 1-for-3 in man-up situations while Sacred Heart was 1-for-4.
• Sacred Heart was 19-of-25 on clear attempts while Canisius was 15-of-22.
• With his win at the 10:22 mark of the third quarter, Hanson recorded the 452nd face-off win of his career, eclipsing the previous program mark of 451, held by Daniel Balawejder (2017-20).
• Hanson also scooped up a game-high seven ground balls in the victory, leaving him just 11 away from reaching the 300-ground ball milestone for his career.
• Mitchell recorded his first hat trick of the season and the third of his career with his three-goal performance.
• Buono notched his second hat trick of the season with his three-goal effort on Saturday.
• Graduate defenseman Jeff Douglas recorded a game-best three caused turnovers and added four ground balls.  
• Freshman Jacob Lambert notched his first collegiate point with an assist on Simard's fourth-quarter goal.
 
UP NEXT
Canisius finishes non-conference play Tuesday as it hosts Little Three rival St. Bonaventure in a 4 p.m. contest at the Demske Sports Complex.
 
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