WORCESTER, Mass. - The fifth-seeded Saint Michael's College men's lacrosse team lost to fourth-seeded Assumption University, 10-9 in overtime, on Saturday during a Northeast 10 Conference Championship first-round game at Brian Kelly '83 Stadium.
 
The Purple Knights were ranked 19th in this week's United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) national poll while sitting seventh in the latest NCAA North Region rankings, while the Greyhounds were 16th and fifth, respectively.
 
RECORDS

• Saint Michael's (9-5), Assumption (11-4)

SAINT MICHAEL'S LEADERS

• Senior Sean Murphy (Medway, Mass./Medway), 5 goals, 1 assist
• Sophomore Nate Gulachenski (Southboro, Mass./Algonquin Regional), 21 saves (career high)
• Junior Taylor Wiercinski (Groton, Mass./Lawrence Academy), 5 ground balls, 3 caused turnovers
• Senior Owen Balfour (Mashpee, Mass./Mashpee), 2 goals
• First-year Chris Davis (Kings Park, N.Y./Kings Park), 1 goal, 1 assist
• First-year Braeden Murphy (Miller Place, N.Y./Miller Place), 2 assists
• Sophomore Noah Veroneau (South Portland, Maine/Thornton Academy), 1 goal
• Sophomore Noah Poirier (Dalton, Mass./Wahconah Regional), 7 faceoff wins, 6 ground balls
• Junior Travis Keel (Temecula, Calif./Great Oak), 2 caused turnovers

OPPONENT LEADERS

• Sophomore Boomer Staunton, 3 goals, 2 assists
• Senior Patrik McGrath, 2 goals, 2 assists
• Sophomore Max Lowenberg, 3 goals, 3 ground balls
• Junior Connor Stack, 15-for-21 faceoffs, 5 ground balls
• Sophomore Shane Corcoran, 15 saves

GAME FACTS

• The Purple Knights played their second postseason overtime game, with the first an 8-7 setback in another 4/5 match-up at Bentley University on April 29, 2003.
• Saint Michael's lost to a nationally-ranked team by two goals or less for the fourth time this season, and for the third time by a single tally, including for the second time at Assumption.
• Assumption is 2-1 in the all-time postseason series.

THE ACTION

• Staunton (14:38) and Sean Murphy (13:57) traded early goals before Assumption led 3-1 on first-year Finnegan McKeon's strike at 1:30 of the first quarter.
• Sean Murphy and Davis scored only nine seconds apart to tie the game with 16 ticks remaining.
• First-year Joey Berardi (7:53) and Veroneau (7:19) exchanged tallies midway through the second quarter, and the teams were tied at 4-4.
• Lowenberg, McGrath and Staunton all scored in the final 5:30 to send Assumption into halftime ahead 7-4, and the hosts were still up 8-5 at 12:35 of the third stanza.
• Seniors Balfour and Sean Murphy did all of the scoring in a tying 4-1 spurt, with Sean Murphy's equalizing strike coming with 5:31 to go in regulation.
• The teams combined for seven possessions before the fourth-quarter horn, including as the hosts retained for the better part of the final two minutes and fired five shots toward the net, with Gulachenski making saves at 39 and nine seconds and a bid in between ringing the post.
• Stack won the opening draw in overtime before Gulachenski denied an Assumption shot, and the Purple Knights cleared and called timeout. Corcoran saved a visitor attempt with 2:26 to go, and the hosts quickly moved downfield, with Lowenberg potting the winner off of Staunton's feed at the 2:10 mark.