PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – The nationally fifth-ranked Cortland men's lacrosse team broke open a close game by outscoring Plattsburgh, 6-1, in the fourth quarter to earn a 14-5 win Saturday afternoon in the regular-season finale for both teams. The Red Dragons improved to 13-2 overall and 6-0 in the SUNYAC, while the Cardinals fell to 10-6 and 3-3.

Junior Mike Tota (Webster/Webster Schroeder) paced the Cortland offense with four goals and two assists. Senior Jay DiStefano (Huntington/Harborfields) and freshman Joe Slavik (Binghamton/Seton Catholic) tallied a pair of goals, senior Neal Hopps (Akwesasne/Massena) contributed one goal and a career-best four assists, junior Greg Wright (Irondequoit/West Irondequoit) collected a goal and two assists and juniors Zack Mulvaney (Deferiet/Carthage) and Eric Richards (Skaneateles) each had a goal and an assist. Senior Justin Battino (Plainview) won 14-of-15 faceoffs and collected a game-high seven ground balls, and senior Chris DeLuca (Sayville) won 6-of-7 faceoffs as Cortland won 21-of-23 in the game. Freshman goalie Scott Tota (Webster/Webster Schroeder) made 12 saves.

Senior Kyle Norchi (Hauppauge) and sophomore Joey Kramer (Lindenhurst) led the Cardinals with two goals each. Freshman Charlie Dullea (Brasher Falls/St. Lawrence) netted a goal and junior Pete Morgan (Putnam Valley) and sophomore Brett McClelland (Oswego) chipped in with one assist. Junior goalie Danny Caufield (Rochester/McQuaid) made 17 saves in 54 minutes, 21 seconds. Sophomore Gordie Gehring (Jamesville/Jamesville-DeWitt) stopped two shots in 5:39. 

Cortland 14, Plattsburgh 5

GAME SUMMARY:

Team                                                       1-2-3-4        Final
Cortland (13-2, 6-0 SUNYAC)             4-3-1-6           14
Plattsburgh (10-6, 3-3 SUNYAC)        1-2-1-1             5

Scoring (Goals-Assists):
Cortland: Mike Tota 4-2, Joe Slavik 2-0, Jay DiStefano 2-0, Neal Hopps 1-4, Greg Wright 1-1, Zack Mulvaney 1-1, Eric Richards 1-1, Mark Panneton 1-0, Brian Winterfeldt 1-0, Matt Hoey 0-1 
Plattsburgh: Kyle Norchi 2-0, Joey Kramer 2-0, Charlie Dullea 1-0, Brett McClelland 0-1, Pete Morgan 0-1

Goalkeepers:
Cortland: Scott Tota, 12 saves (5 GA in 60:00) 
Plattsburgh: Danny Caufield, 17 saves (13 GA in 54:21), Gordie Gehring, 2 save (1 GA in 5:39)

Shots: Cortland 57, Plattsburgh 26
Ground Balls: Cortland 34, Plattsburgh 17
Turnovers: Plattsburgh 23, Cortland 20
Caused Turnovers: Cortland 15, Plattsburrgh 6
Clears: Cortland 24-of-25, Plattsburgh 22-of-32
Faceoffs Won: Cortland 21, Plattsburgh 2
Penalties: Plattsburgh 2-2:00, Cortland 2-1:30
Extra-Man Offense: Cortland 0-1, Plattsburgh 1-2
Record after the game: Cortland (Red Dragons) 13-2, 6-0 SUNYAC (ranked 5th nationally in Div. III), Plattsburgh (Cardinals) 10-6, 3-3 SUNYAC