There is no better way to start off conference play than with a dominating win in the opener. Georgetown men’s lacrosse (3-3, 1-0 Big East) secured their first Big East win against the Providence Friars (5-1, 0-1 Big East) this past Saturday. After a slow start in the first period with a close 3-2 lead, the Hoyas launched an aggressive attack against the Friars, setting the tempo for not only the rest of the half, but also the remainder of the game. Getting ahead early had been a fundamental goal desired by Head Coach Kevin Warne coming into the contest.
“I think, because of their transition game, we wanted to dictate the tempo, and I thought we did that today,” Warne said. “And I think you do that a lot by scoring and a lot with Tyler Knarr, who had a fantastic game.”
Due to the outstanding offensive performance by sophomore phenom Reilly O’Connor, who scored 4 goals and notched 6 assists, and the powerhouse face-off wins by redshirt junior defender Tyler Knarr (17 of 25 at the face-off), the Hoyas were able to dominate on the field and also keep the Friars from reaching their usual double-digit score. Prior to the matchup, the Friars were averaging 13.4 goals per game in the previous five.
With the help of Knarr maintaining the Hoyas’ possession, the dynamic duo of senior attacker Travis Comeau (4 goals and 2 assists) and O’Connor was able to capitalize on offensive opportunities. Fellow Canadians Comeau and O’Connor proved to be a force to be reckoned with, given the remarkable skill and finesse displayed on the Multi Sport Field that resulted in a resounding 16-8 win.
Despite this victorious Big East debut, the Hoyas fell at home to defending national champion and No. 9 Loyola (MD) (6-2, 2-0 ECAC) 13-8 on a brisk Wednesday night.
After a goal by sophomore midfielder Charles McCormick to open the game and put the Hoyas up 1-0, the Greyhounds proceeded to rack off seven unanswered goals to go into halftime with a 7-1 lead. Loyola capitalized effectively on Georgetown turnovers and scored some easy goals on fast breaks.
“Loyola is very good in the transition game,” said Warne. “We definitely emphasized it in practice the last couple of days. We didn’t execute what we needed to do and they jumped up on us.”
The Hoyas came out with more energy in the second half and outscored the Greyhounds 7-6. But, the first-half deficit was too much to overcome, despite two second-half goals from O’Connor and goals from junior midfielder Grant Fisher, senior midfielder Dan McKinney, and Comeau.
“You got to take something positive out of every game … and we won the second half,” Warne said. “I think that’s good for us to build on. It’s a 60-minute game, not a 30-minute game. If it was a 30- minute game, I’d be a lot happier.”
The Hoyas will look to bounce back when they travel south this Saturday to take on Duke at 1 p.m. in Durham, N.C. Warne sees similarities between Loyola and Duke and looks forward to the matchup.
“I think on Saturday we will see more of the same. I think it gives us a blueprint to see what we are going to see down in Durham on Saturday.”
