CORTLAND, N.Y. – Freshman Zach Hopps (Akwesasne/Massena) scored an unassisted goal two minutes, eight seconds into the second overtime as the nationally top-ranked Cortland men's lacrosse team defeated 18th-ranked Ithaca, 9-8, Friday night at a snow-covered SUNY Cortland Stadium Complex.

Seven different players scored for the Red Dragons (6-0) led by junior Joe Slavik (Binghamton/Seton Catholic) and sophomore Benjamin Dunlavey (Elmira/Corning East) with two goals each. Hopps added two assists to his game-winning tally, and junior Brian Winterfeldt (Merrick/Calhoun) and sophomores Matt Rakoczy (Clifton Park/Albany Academy), Mike Cantelli (Holmdel, NJ) and Patrick Brown (Camillus/West Genesee) netted one goal apiece.

Senior goalie Mike Kaminski (Sayville) turned aside six shots. Freshman Pat Baldwin (Alpharetta, GA) won 8-of-15 faceoffs and collected three ground balls. Senior Craig Sullivan (Duxbury, MA) caused a game-high four turnovers, while Slavik and junior Cody Consul (Webster/Webster Schroeder) also recorded three ground balls.

Junior Pat Slawta (Bethesda, MD/Walt Whitman) paced the Bombers (5-1) with three goals and two assists. Junior Jake Long (Fort Washington, PA/Upper Dublin) also connected for three goals, senior Andrew Bruce (Lafayette, CA/De La Salle) and junior Andrew Kristy (Fairport) each scored a goal and three others contributed one assist apiece.

Freshman goalie Scott Sidnam (Camillus/West Genesee) made 16 saves. Sophomore Matt Greenblatt (North Potomac, MD/Thomas Wootton) won 9-of-14 faceoffs and registered a game-high seven ground balls, while sophomore Steve Danylyshyn (Fairport) recorded four ground balls.

Despite being out shot, 13-3, the Bombers owned a 1-0 lead after the first quarter on Slawta's first goal of the night at 8:52. Ithaca bumped the lead to 3-0 on a pair of Slawta goals just 27 seconds apart early in the second quarter. Cortland made it a 3-2 game at the half as Slavik scored at 3:53 and Rakoczy beat Sidnam at 2:09 of the second quarter.

The Bombers scored three of the next four goals to build a 6-3 lead at the 8:18 mark of the third quarter. Slawta assisted on scores by Kristy and Long, Dunlavey scored off a Hopps' assist and Long netted his second of the game. Cortland pulled to within 6-4 after 45 minutes as Winterfeldt, a defenseman, scored his first of the season at 6:23.

The Red Dragons earned their first lead of the night at 7-6 after tallying the first three goals of the fourth quarter. Cantelli scored at 13:08 before Slavik and Brown netted goals just 11 seconds apart at 10:34 and 10:23, respectively. Long tied the game at 7-7 with a shot just under the crossbar at 9:00, but Dunlavey gave Cortland back the lead, 8-7, at 4:58. Bruce answered with an unassisted goal at 4:08 to tie the game at 8-8. 

Ithaca won the ensuing faceoff but turned the ball over with just under two minutes remaining. After a successful clear and a timeout, Slavik had a chance denied by Sidnam with 46 seconds on the clock. The Bombers cleared the ball but Bruce's sharp-angled shot from the right side went wide left and Danylyshyn had a long shot blocked at the horn to send the game into overtime.

In the first four-minute extra session, the Red Dragons registered the only shots but missed the cage three times and Sidnam made a save on another to keep the game tied. Greenblatt won the faceoff to open the second overtime, but Cortland senior C.J. Nye (Marcellus) forced a turnover with just over three minutes remaining. The Red Dragons worked a successful clear and after running just over a minute off the clock, Hopps made a move from behind the cage on the right side and beat Sidnam with a high shot for his eighth goal of the season.  

Cortland 9, Ithaca 8 (2OT)

GAME SUMMARY:

Team                            1-2-3-4-O-O    Final
Ithaca (5-1)                  1-2-3-2-0-0      8
Cortland (6-0)              0-2-2-4-0-1     9

Scoring (Goals-Assists):
Ithaca: Pat Slawta 3-2, Jake Long 3-0, Andrew Kristy 1-0, Andrew Bruce 1-0, James Manilla 0-1, Steve Danylyshyn 0-1, Casey Schattner  0-1 
Cortland: Joe Slavik 2-0, Benjamin Dunlavey 2-0, Zach Hopps 1-2, Brian Winterfeldt 1-0, Matt Rakoczy 1-0, Mike Cantelli 1-0, Patrick Brown 1-0

Goalkeepers:
Ithaca: Scott Sidnam, 16 saves (9 GA in 66:08)
Cortland: Mike Kaminski, 6 saves (8 GA in 66:08)

Shots: Cortland 45, Ithaca 28
Ground Balls: Ithaca 36, Cortland 31
Turnovers: Ithaca 17, Cortland 12
Caused Turnovers: Cortland 8, Ithaca 8
Clears: Cortland 17-of-17, Ithaca 19-of-24
Faceoffs Won: Ithaca 11, Cortland 10
Penalties: Cortland 5-3:00, Ithaca 3-3:00
Extra-Man Offense: Ithaca 0-5, Cortland 0-3