Sophomore Andrew Wright scores a goal against Wittenberg on April 13. The Tigers picked up their second NCAC win with a 15-6 victory over Hiram Saturday. SAM CARAVANA / THE DEPAUW
It was a beautiful day for a win on Saturday when the men’s lacrosse team took down Hiram College for their second North Coast Atlantic Conference win of the season.
The Tigers scored 10 straight goals to fight back from an early deficit, eventually defeating the Terriers by a score of 15-6.
“This weekend was a huge win for us,” said junior Joe Ross. “It was great to get another NCAC victory under our belt.”
Hitam took the lead initially with a score of 3-2. However, the Tigers were able to close the first quarter with a pair of goals to put them on top 4-3.
Carrying their momentum into the second quarter, DePauw held Hiram scoreless while managing to convert four points of their own, heading into the locker room at the half leading 8-3.
With goals from juniors Nick Woerner and Grant Skipper, sophomore Ben Sherman and first-year Buck Dorger, the Tigers put the game away in opening 2:22 minutes of the third quarter.
Finishing on a high note, DePauw scored a final two points in the fourth quarter to seal their 15-6 victory.
“It was a great win. ...because we improved our play throughout each quarter of the game,” said first-year Sam Rivera.
Dorger led the Tigers with his five goals, while first-year Sam Alkema contributed two goals and first-year Austin MacDonald added five assists.
Defensively, junior Connor Patterson represented the Tigers in goal with 12 saves, earning himself his first win.
“I can't say enough about Connor Patterson stepping up into the role of starting goalie halfway through the season. He has played better than anyone could have asked of him," said first-year RJ Klinke.
The players are taking this win in stride, acknowledging that this season hasn’t necessarily been ideal for them. They’ve had to deal with injuries, lack of communication and players quitting the team for other reasons.
“This win is a nice boost to team morale. It's always a good feeling earning a ‘W’,” Ross said. “This season hasn't necessarily gone the way a lot of us expected it to, but guys on the team continue to battle through adversity and play hard.”
With this win, DePauw moves to 5-8 on the season overall, and 2-4 in NCAC conference play. Hiram dropped to 2-10 overall and 0-6 in the NCAC.
“The whole team demonstrated that we're not done with this season yet. We've got two big games coming up this week and I'm excited to see what we can do,” Klinke said.
The Tigers travel to Ohio Wesleyan tonight for a contest against the Battling Bishops. Faceoff is scheduled for 5 p.m.