SAINT LEO, Fla. – In a SSC rivalry matchup, #13 Men's Lacrosse battled wire-to-wire with #15 Embry-Riddle but came up just short in a 10-11 triple overtime thriller at home Saturday afternoon. The Lions showed offensive balance, defensive grit, and plenty of resilience, but a late surge by the Eagles sent the game into extra time, where the road teams side ultimately secured the golden goal in the third overtime.

The Lions wasted no time setting the tone early in the first quarter, with John Raucci opening the scoring at 13:09 off a solo effort. It was the first of four first-quarter goals for the Lions, who traded goals with Embry-Riddle throughout the frame. Zach Kroog, Maverick Chernoff, and Aidan Knoetgen each found the back of the net, with Knoetgen benefiting from a crisp feed from James Davies  to give Saint Leo a 4-2 edge. Embry-Riddle would close the gap to 4-3 before the horn.

In a tightly contested second quarter, Saint Leo continued to grind. Despite Embry-Riddle tying the score at 4-4, it was Wes Love who broke the deadlock just before halftime, burying a well-executed assist from Thomas Nelan with 15 seconds remaining to give the Lions a 5-4 lead at the break.

The third quarter featured more excitement, and once again, Saint Leo rose to the challenge. Ben Baker and Knoetgen answered an early Embry-Riddle equalizer with back-to-back goals to put the Lions ahead 7-5. While the Eagles responded, cutting the lead to 7-6, Knoetgen wasn't done yet—he completed his hat trick early in the fourth quarter off a slick pass from Baker, giving Saint Leo an 8-6 cushion.

But a flurry of penalties and a late-game push from Embry-Riddle changed the complexion of the game. Despite goals from Anderson Smith and a clutch solo effort from Ben Baker with 4:49 remaining that gave the Lions a 10-8 lead, the Eagles refused to go quietly. Embry-Riddle scored twice in the final 96 seconds of regulation—including the equalizer with just 1:15 left—to send the game into overtime knotted at 10.

In the third overtime, it was Tim Keefe for the Eagles who delivered the game-winner for Embry-Riddle with a final score of 10-11. Despite the tough loss, the Lions had plenty to build on, with standout performances from Knoetgen (3G,), Baker (2G, 1A), and Nelan (2A) leading the offense.

UP NEXT

Saint Leo will look to regroup and bounce back in its next match up as the team will host Palm Beach Atlantic on Senior Day, Saturday April 12th. Faceoff is scheduled for 1 p.m local start time. 

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- SaintLeoLions.com -