BROCKPORT, N.Y. – Nineteen different players registered at least one point as the nationally seventh-ranked Cortland men's lacrosse team defeated The College at Brockport, 21-8, Saturday afternoon in SUNYAC action. With the win, the Red Dragons improved to 12-3 overall and 5-0 in the conference and have clinched at least a share of the regular-season title and the top seed in the upcoming conference tournament with one league game left on their schedule. The Golden Eagles fell to 4-8 and 1-4 with the loss.

Sophomore Zach Hopps (Akwesasne/Massena) paced the Cortland offense with six points on four goals and two assists. Juniors Matt Rakoczy (Clifton Park/Albany Academy) and Matt Savlov (Liverpool) each netted three goals with Rakoczy adding an assist. The only other Red Dragons to score multiple goals were senior Cody Consul (Webster/Webster Schroeder) and freshman David Rubenstein (Somers) with two each. Rubenstein's goals were the first of his career.

Senior Joe Slavik (Binghamton/Seton Catholic) tallied one goal and two assists, junior Benjamin Dunlavey (Elmira/Corning East) had one goal and one assist, while five others each netted one goal for Cortland, including freshman Mike Hart (Cornelius, NC/Hough) with the first of his career. Freshman Nate Beresovoy (LaFayette) chipped in with two assists.

Junior goalie Scott Tota (Webster/Webster Schroeder) played the first 45 minutes in the cage for the Red Dragons, making 10 saves. Senior Nick Costabile (New Fairfield, CT) stopped two shots in the fourth quarter. Sophomore Pat Baldwin (Alpharetta, GA) won 9-of-14 faceoffs and collected eight ground balls.

Jake Giudice and Steve Brissette led the Brockport offense with a pair of goals each. Brendan Fitzgerald contributed one goal and one assist, Justin Cook, John Countryman and Casey Cleary netted one goal apiece and Alex Austin chipped in with two assists.

Three goalies shared time for the Golden Eagles. Conor Nowak started, stopping seven shots in the first half. Shane Hutchins made three saves in the third quarter, and Alex Shoemaker turned aside one shot in the final 15 minutes. Keenan Sullivan won 18-of-32 faceoffs and recorded a game-high 11 ground balls, while Bryon Palmer collected eight ground balls.

The Red Dragons built a 4-1 lead after one quarter as Hopps scored a pair of goals. The lead grew to 9-2 at the half with Consul and Rakoczy each netting a pair of goals. Cortland out scored Brockport, 7-2, in the third quarter for a commanding 16-4 lead. Savlov and Hopps scored twice for the Red Dragons in the quarter. After Hart netted his goal for a 17-4 Cortland lead early in the fourth quarter, the Golden Eagles put together four straight goals from four different players to make it a 17-8 game with 6:44 remaining. The Red Dragons answered with the game's last four goals, two from Rubenstein, for the 21-8 final.   

Cortland 21, Brockport 8

GAME SUMMARY:

Team                                            1-2-3-4 Final
Cortland (12-3, 5-0 SUNYAC)  4-5-7-5 21
Brockport (4-8, 1-4 SUNYAC)   1-1-2-4   8

Scoring (Goals-Assists):
Cortland: Zach Hopps 4-2, Matt Rakoczy 3-1, Matt Savlov 3-0, Cody Consul 2-0, David Rubenstein 2-0, Joe Slavik 1-2, Benjamin Dunlavey 1-1, Mike Cantelli 1-0, Nate Garbarino 1-0, Mike Hart 1-0, Austin Brady 1-0, Mike Cummings 1-0, Nate Beresovoy 0-2, Stephen Burke 0-1, Pat Baldwin 0-1, Patrick Brown 0-1, Billy Davis 0-1, James Nielsen 0-1, Luke McNaney 0-1
Brockport: Jake Giudice 2-0, Steve Brissette 2-0, Brendan Fitzgerald 1-1, Justin Cook 1-0, John Countryman 1-0, Casey Cleary 1-0, Alex Austin 0-2

Goalkeepers:
Cortland: Scott Tota, 10 saves (4 GA in 45:00), Nick Costabile, 2 saves (4 GA in 15:00)
Brockport: Conor Nowak, 7 saves (9 GA in 30:00), Shane Hutchins, 3 saves (7 GA in 15:00), Alex Shoemaker, 1 save (5 GA in 15:00)

Shots: Cortland 46, Brockport 34
Ground Balls: Cortland 35, Brockport 29
Turnovers: Brockport 14, Cortland 9
Caused Turnovers: Cortland 1, Brockport 1
Clears: Cortland 21-of-23, Brockport 12-of-15
Faceoffs Won: Brockport 18, Cortland 14
Penalties: Cortland 4-2:30, Brockport 3-3:00
Extra-Man Offense: Cortland 1-3, Brockport 1-4