WASHINGTON, DC - March 18, 2000 will go down in the books as the first-ever York College varsity men's lacrosse victory as the Spartans shocked the Catholic University Cardinals 10-9 in Capital Athletic Conference play on Saturday afternoon in Washington, DC. The victory snaps a four-game losing streak and gives the Spartans not only their first win, but their first conference victory, a feat not many thought would happen this year in the ultra-competitive CAC.
The Spartans found themselves down early as the hosts seized a 2-0 lead at the end of the opening quarter of play. The Spartans responded by tallying four goals in the second half as Scott Hermes (New Freedom, PA/Baltimore Poly HS), Trey King (Columbia, MD/South Carroll HS), Jason Kemper (Bel Air, MD/Bel Air HS), and Evan Mazzocchi (Swarthmore, PA/Strath Haven HS) each scored goals in the period. Catholic tallied two goals in the frame as the teams went to the half tied at four.
The Cardinals outscored the Spartans 3-2 in the third period to take a 7-6 lead heading into the final quarter. Brendan Brace (Bethpage, NY/Bethpage HS) scored both Spartan goals in the period, keeping the green and white within striking distance.
The final quarter found the game tied at nine when Bob Lutz (Medford, NJ/Shawnee HS) converted the game-winner off a pass from Brace with just 1:25 left in the game. The Spartans made that goal stand-up as the game-winner and the green and white earned their first win.
Colin Johnson (Hellam, PA/Lower Merion HS) notched 16 saves in his first collegiate win in goal.
Spartan head coach Phil Avillo was happy to get the first one.
"It was a great team effort," commented Avillo. "It certainly feels very good to get the first one. It gets the monkey off everyone's back."
The offense was led by Brace as he had two goals and four assists for six points. Hermes added three goals and one assist while O'Brien chipped in with one goal and one assist. King, Kemper, Mazzocchi, and Lutz each added single tallies for YCP.
The Spartans, now 1-4 and 1-2 in the CAC, return to action on Wednesday afternoon when they travel to Marymount University. Game time is set for 4:00 pm.
