ANGOLA, Ind. -- The Trine men's lacrosse team was edged by Hope, 12-10, on Senior Day Saturday afternoon in Fred Zollner Athletic Stadium.
Neither team led by more than three goals in a tightly-contested contest, but the Flying Dutch were able snuff out a fourth quarter comeback attempt by the Thunder to hold on for the win. Gunnar Elder scored three goals and added an assist to lead Hope's attack. Jordan Lelito (West Chicago, Ill. / West Chicago) and Nick Maher (DeWitt, Mich. / DeWitt) each notched four-point efforts with two goals and two assists each to lead Trine's attack. Maher finished the season with 43 points, the sixth-most in a season in program history. He added four ground balls.
Eric Peal (Imperial, Mo. / Seckman) scored a team-high three goals for the Thunder. Conner Putman (Ridgefield, Conn. / Ridgefield) added a pair of tallies. Max Harris (Green Bay, Wis. / Green Bay Southwest) won 8-of-12 faceoffs and tied Brent Farrugia (Clarkston, Mich. / Clarkston) with a team-high five ground balls. Farrugia added a team-high three caused turnovers.
Zach Weber and Gino Battaglia each added two goals for Hope. Rocco Mularoni and Liam Turley each contributed a goal and an assist. Kyle Gaines won 10-of-20 face-offs and notched a team-high five ground balls.
The Dutch quickly went up 2-0 in the first five minutes, but goals by Ian Grise (Goshen, Ind. / Northridge) and Peal knotted the score back up. An Eldger goal gave Hope the lead back, but Lelito answered in the opening minutes of the second quarter to tie the score. The Flying Dutch would go on to hold a 3-2 edge in each of the first two quarters to hold a 6-4 lead at the half.
Hope pushed the lead to three early in the fourth, but goals by Peal and Putman brought the Thunder back within 7-6. After two goals by the Dutch, Hope's lead would fluctuate between two and three goals into the closing minutes of the fourth quarter.
Lelito assisted on back-to-back goals to bring the Thunder back within one. The first of his passes four Peal, who cut the deficit to two with 5:45 to play in the fourth quarter. Maher pulled Trine back within one with 1:58 to play, but Hope was able to win the ensuing faceoff to establish possession. Elder's final goal with 25 seconds sealed the win.
Trine seniors Brian Orr (Lombard, Ill. / Montini Catholic) and Brandon Walters (Bloomfield Hills, Mich. / University of Detroit Jesuit) played the final game of their Thunder careers Saturday afternoon. Orr recorded one ground ball, while Walters notched two ground balls and a caused turnover.
Trine concluded the season 7-6 overall and placed fifth in the MIAA with a 3-4 mark in league action. Hope advances to the MIAA Tournament with a 10-5 overall record, 5-2 in conference play.
