GALLOWAY, N.J. – Fifteen different players scored goals as the nationally third-ranked RIT men's lacrosse team advanced to the the national quarterfinals with a 25-6 win over Cortland in the NCAA Div. III second round Sunday afternoon at Stockton University in Galloway, N.J. The Red Dragons had their nine-game winning streaked stopped and finished the season 11-4 and tied for ninth nationally. The Tigers improved to 11-0.

Senior Zak Jones (East Quogue/Westhampton Beach) led Cortland with two goals and an assist. Seniors Brandon Stiles (Mastic/Eastport-South Manor) and Jacob Rivers (Homer), junior Troy Morris (Long Beach) and freshman Colton Smith (Naples/Penn Yan Academy) each netted a goal, while junior Dante Yacavone (Homer) added two assists.

Junior goalie Marc Esposito (West Babylon) stopped seven shots in the first half for the Red Dragons. Freshman Evan Alfano (Webster/Webster Schroeder) registered a career-best nine saves in the second half. Senior Brian Williams (Holtsville/Sachem East) won 19-of-28 faceoffs and scooped up 11 ground balls. He finished the season with 129 ground balls, ranking ninth in a single season in program history. Senior Mike Nicholson (North Babylon/St. Anthony's) collected four ground balls.

Zeb Hollinger led the balanced offense for the Tigers with three goals and two assists. Larson Sundown and Marley Angus each tallied two goals and two assists. Quinn Commandant, Conor Bollin and Ryan Barnable recorded two goals and one assist apiece, and Andrew Powlin, Ryan Rosenblum and Spencer Bell score twice. John Mozrall chipped in with a goal and three assists, and Dawson Tait added one goal and two assists.

Goalie Walker Hare made nine saves in 37:07 before giving way to Drew Hutchison, who turned aside three shots over the final 22:53. Nick Montemorano won nine faceoffs and gathered seven ground balls. Chris Becker recorded three ground balls and caused two turnovers, while Taylor Jensen finished with three caused turnovers.

The teams were tied at 2-2 just past the midway point of the first quarter as Barnable and Sundown scored for the Tigers and Smith and Rivers notched goals for the Red Dragons. RIT closed the opening quarter with four straight goals and went ahead, 7-2, with the first goal of the second quarter. Jones and Morris netted back-to-back goals for Cortland just over a minute apart to pull Cortland to within 7-4, but the Tigers took control of the game with a six-goal run, eventually building a 15-5 lead at the break. RIT continued to push its lead with a 7-0 advantage in the third quarter and outscored Cortland, 3-1, in the fourth quarter for the 25-6 final.
 
RIT 25, Cortland 6
 
GAME SUMMARY:
 
Team                 1-2-3-4   Final
Cortland            2-3-0-1        6
RIT                    6-9-7-3      25

Scoring (Goals-Assists):
Cortland: Zak Jones 2-1, Troy Morris 1-0, Colton Smith 1-0, Brandon Stiles 1-0, Jacob Rivers 1-0, Dante Yacavone 0-2
RIT: Zeb Hollinger 3-2, Larson Sundown 2-2, Marley Angus 2-2, Quinn Commandant 2-1, Conor Bollin 2-1, Ryan Barnable 2-1, Andrew Powlin 2-0, Ryan Rosenblum 2-0, Spencer Bell 2-0, John Mozrall 1-3, Dawson Tait 1-2, Nick Montemorano 1-0, Pent Eistrat 1-0, Luke Pilcher 1-0, Matt Woechers 1-0, Taylor Jensen 0-1
 
Goalkeepers:
Cortland: Marc Esposito, 7 saves (15 GA in 30:00), Evan Alfano, 9 saves (10 GA in 30:00)
RIT: Walker Hare, 9 saves (5 GA in 37:07), Drew Hutchison, 3 saves (1 GA in 22:53)

Shots: RIT 50, Cortland 27
Ground Balls: Cortland 25, RIT 25
Turnovers: Cortland 16, RIT 7
Caused Turnovers: RIT 9, Cortland 0
Clears: RIT 22-of-24, Cortland 9-of-11
Faceoffs Won: Cortland 21, RIT 13
Penalties: Cortland 3-1:30, RIT 1- 0:30
Extra-Man Offense: RIT 2-3, Cortland 1-1

Records after game: Cortland (Red Dragons) 11-4; RIT (Tigers) 11-0 (ranked 3rd nationally in Div. III)