ROCHESTER, N.Y. – The nationally seventh-ranked Cortland men's lacrosse team jumped out to a big lead and went on to defeat 19th-ranked Nazareth, 17-10, in non-conference action Wednesday afternoon. The Red Dragons improved to 5-1 with the win, while the Golden Flyers lost their third straight and fell to 3-3 on the season.

Sophomore Chris DeLuca (Sayville) paced the Cortland offense with three goals and three assists, won 12-of-17 faceoffs and recorded seven ground balls. Freshman Mike Tota (Webster/Webster Schroeder) registered three goals and an assist, and senior Joey Morgan (Putnam Valley) and junior Brandon Misiaszek (New Hartford) scored two goals each, with Morgan also collecting an assist. Sophomore Jay DiStefano (Huntington/Harborfields) had a goal and two assists, while freshman Greg Wright (Irondequoit) and sophomore defenseman Justin Schneidman (Katonah/John Jay) chipped in with a goal and an assist each. Senior goalie Matt Hipenbecker (Mountain Lakes, NJ) made 10 saves in 55 minutes, 22 seconds, before senior Mike Robinson (Alexandria, VA/Thomas Edison) stopped one shot over the final 4:38.

Four different players collected two goals each for Nazareth -- C.J. Estes, Mark DeCirce, Scott Castle and Sean Dennison. Joe Jacobs-Ferderbar and Erinn O'Hara contributed one goal and one assist each. Goalie Todd Dermody turned aside 16 shots.

The Red Dragons opened up a 5-0 lead less than 10 minutes into the game with Morgan and DeLuca each scoring twice and Misiaszek capping the run at the 5:49 mark of the first quarter. DeCirce put Nazareth on the scoreboard with an unassisted goal at 3:41. After O'Hara assisted on Castle's first goal at 6:24 of the second quarter, the Red Dragons erupted for four goals in less than three minutes for a commanding 9-2 lead. Castle's second of the game 42 seconds before the half cut the deficit to 9-3.

Cortland put the game out of reach by outscoring the Golden Flyers, 6-2, in the third quarter as six different players found the back of the net. Estes and Dennison tallied goals early in the fourth to make it a 15-7 game, but Schneidman scored a man-down goal at 7:44 to essentially seal the win. The Golden Flyers finished off the game by scoring three of the last four goals for the 17-10 final.

Cortland 17, Nazareth 10

GAME SUMMARY:
Team                            1-2-3-4    Final
Cortland (5-1)               5-4-6-2    17
Nazareth (3-3)              1-2-2-5     10

Scoring (Goals-Assists):
Cortland: Chris DeLuca 3-3, Mike Tota 3-1, Joey Morgan 2-1, Brandon Misiaszek 2-0, Jay DiStefano 1-2, Justin Schneidman 1-1, Greg Wright 1-1, Justin Battino 1-0, Conor Duffy 1-0, Brian Krol 1-0, Zack Mulvaney 1-0
Nazareth: C.J. Estes 2-0, Mark DeCirce 2-0, Scott Castle 2-0, Sean Dennison 2-0, Joe Jacobs-Ferderbar 1-1, Erinn O'Hara 1-1

Goalkeepers:
Cortland: Matt Hipenbecker, 10 saves (7 GA in 55:22), Mike Robinson, 1 save (3 GA in 4:38)
Nazareth: Todd Dermody, 16 saves (17 GA in 60:00)

Shots: Cortland 54, Nazareth 44
Ground Balls: Cortland 45, Nazareth 41
Clears: Cortland 17-of-22, Nazareth 22-of-28
Faceoffs Won: Cortland 18, Nazareth 11
Penalties: Cortland 7-6:00, Nazareth 3-2:00
Extra-Man Offense: Cortland 0-3, Nazareth 0-6