By: Brayden Peters
ONEONTA, N.Y. - The Brockport Golden Eagles men’s lacrosse team fell in a heartbreaker to Oneonta, 10-9. The Red Dragons scored five unanswered goals in the fourth quarter to rally for the win. Even though Brockport lost, Nick Askin tied the record for the most points in a season with 53. He posted four goals and one assist for five points in the loss.
“It is a tremendous feeling,” Askin said. “Coming into this season, I never expected it. It is truly a blessing.”
It was a back-and-forth first quarter. Jamie O’Neil kicked things off for Oneonta by burying a shot down low to give the Red Dragons a 1-0 lead.
Three minutes later, the Golden Eagles responded with Askin scoring down low. It wasn’t long before the Red Dragons regained the lead as O’Neil scored up close to the net less than a minute after Askin’s goal.
Both teams started to tighten things up defensively from there. Oneonta kept Brockport’s offense out towards the perimeter and were able to create turnovers. Meanwhile, Brockport’s defense began to play physically and created turnovers thanks to good stick checking.
When it seemed like the Red Dragons were going to go into the second quarter with the lead, Brockport tied things up again when. Askin ripped a right side-arm shot past goalie Harrison Boukas.
It was more of the same in the second quarter. Vincent Tirino helped Oneonta break the tie less than a minute into the quarter. Things then stalled for almost ten minutes, as both teams held their ground defensively.
The scoring resumed with almost two minutes left, with Oneonta’s Vincent Herbstman ripping a shot down low past goalie Jack Acker. Much like in the first quarter Brockport responded to tie the game. Jackson Worden snuck a bounce shot past Boukas with less than a second to go in the half to knot the game at four.
Brockport found their rhythm offensively in the third quarter. They scored two unanswered goals to give them their first lead of the game. Nate Askin and Garrett Smith were credited with the goals.
The Red Dragons responded with O’Neil completing the hat trick to make it a one goal game. Then, Brockport’s offense exploded with three unanswered goals. With a 9-5 lead entering the fourth quarter, it was the largest lead the Golden Eagles had all game.
Oneonta came into the quarter with a sense of determination. They found their groove by scoring four unanswered goals to tie the game up 9-9. Their offense crashed the net and their defense kept Brockport’s offense at the perimeter.
After a critical turnover from Brockport, the Red Dragons were able to carry the ball into the offensive zone. Oneonta head coach Pete Owens then took a timeout with 27 seconds left.
The Red Dragons took advantage of the possession. With four seconds left, O’Neil buried a shot down low past Acker in front of the crease. The goal put the nail in the coffin for Brockport, as Oneonta escaped with the 10-9 win.
It was a tough loss for Brockport, as they are fighting to get into the playoffs. Oneonta, Brockport and Potsdam are all fighting to secure the fourth seed in the SUNYAC playoffs.
“We just got to take the loss to heart and move forward,” Nick Askin said. “I think whatever we are doing, we just got to keep doing…we are a good team and I want nothing more than to help this team.”
With the loss, Brockport falls to 3-9 on the season and 1-3 in SUNYAC play. As for Oneonta, they improved to 6-5 overall and 2-2 in SUNYAC play.
Brockport will look to bounce back when they take on Plattsburgh State next. The Golden Eagles will be on the road with opening draw scheduled for next Saturday, April 20 at 3 p.m.