Box Score YORK, PA – The York College men's lacrosse team improved to 6-1 after defeating Haverford College 12-6 on a chilly Saturday at Kinsley Field. The eighth-ranked Spartans were propelled by their 17-for-21 dominance at the faceoff X, where sophomore Billy Sasso went 11-for-12.
Records
#8 York: 6-1
Haverford: 4-2
Game Statistics
Shots: York 34, Haverford 26
Shots on Goal: York 24, Haverford 14
Saves: York 8, Haverford 12
Face Offs Won: York 17, Haverford 4
Ground Balls: York 38, Haverford 13
Turnovers: York 16, Haverford 12
Caused Turnovers: York 9, Haverford 4
Man Up: York 0-for-1, Haverford 4-for-6
Penalties: York 3-for-1:30, Haverford 3-for-2:00
How it Happened:
• Joseph Joseph kicked things off for the Spartans under two minutes into the first quarter. After given the 30-second warning, Joseph whipped a shot from the point to give York the early lead. Haverford equalized at the 10:56 mark, but Billy Sasso had the response. On the ensuing faceoff, following the Fords' goal, Sasso won at the X, picked up the ground ball, sprinted into the attacking zone and unleashed a shot past the Ford goalie. His second goal of the season came just six seconds after the Spartans were scored on.
• Just over a minute later, Austin Glab doubled the lead, putting York ahead 3-1. Glab was facing the goal, then ripped a shot while running to his right. Before the end of the first quarter, defender Joey Fiorino came rumbling into the offensive zone and scored his first goal of the season on just his third shot. That extended the lead to 4-1 before the end of the opening period. All four Spartan goals were unassisted.
• On an extra-man opportunity, Haverford closed the deficit to 4-2 before York put together two more consecutive goals. Thomas Pfeiffer scored his first of the game and Matt Whitcher followed him less than three minutes later. With a 6-3 lead and 3:42 remaining in the half, Brendan McGrath scored his 24th goal of the season from close range on the right side of the net. Then, Pfeiffer scored again, giving the Green and White an 8-3 lead at the break. Pfeiffer was standing behind the net in a sort of cat and mouse game with the Ford defender before he quickly wrapped around the left side and finished past the goalie.
• Glab scored to begin the third quarter and then Cameron Leech made it 10-3 when he created some separation on a quick stop, turn and shot. Leech then assisted on a Dillon Hannah goal on an extra-man opportunity before the end of the third, as York led 11-5.
• Leech concluded the scoring for the Spartans midway through the fourth quarter on an unassisted goal. York cruised to a 12-6 triumph thanks to a 17-for-21 performance at the X from Sasso and Ryan Powers. Sasso was 11-for-12 with five ground balls and Powers was 6-for-9 with two ground balls. The dominance at the X really gave the Spartans a multitude of extra possessions.
Spartan Leaders:
Cameron Leech: 2 goals, 1 assist, 3 points, 2 shots on goal
Billy Sasso: 11-for-12 at the X, 5 ground balls, 1 goal, 1 point
Austin Glab: 2 goals, 2 points, 5 shots, 2 ground balls
Thomas Pfeiffer: 2 goals, 2 points, 4 shots on goal
Joey Fiorino: 1 goal, 1 point, 1 shot, 2 ground balls, 2 caused turnovers
Nick Roman: 8 ground balls
Ford Leaders:
Isaac Krier: 2 goal, 1 assist, 3 points, 4 shots on goal, 1 ground ball
Rob McLallen: 2 goals, 1 assist, 3 points
Goalie Comparision:
Landry Marshall (YCP): 60:00 minutes, 6 goals against, 8 saves (W, 6-1)
Dylan Slack (Haverford): 60:00 minutes, 12 goals against, 12 saves (L, 4-2)
Spartan Notes: Nick Roman's eight ground balls and two caused turnovers are both career highs … Billy Sasso scored his second-career goal on just his sixth-career shot … York continues their terrific shot on goal percentage, putting 24 of their 34 shots on goal, moving to a .601 SOG pct. this year … the Spartans have been impressive while defending and attacking man-up opportunities: York has a .517 conversion percentage while attacking and their opponents have just a .136 conversion percentage (3-for-22) … today's dominance at the X improves York to a .702 faceoff win percentage … Sasso is 93-for-132 at the X this year … York doubled up the Fords in the second quarter, where they have outscored their opponents 29-11 this season … Brendan McGrath has now scored 24 goals in seven games after his goal today.
He said it:
"It was huge," head coach Brandon Childs said of York's performance at the X. "Haverford is a really well-coached team that is disciplined and that was going to have long, meaningful possessions when they got the ball, so to win the middle of the field like that made it easier for us.
"When you win in the middle of the field, you can afford to turn it over, sort of uncharacteristically, and still score 12 goals like we did today," Childs said.
The Spartans put over 70% of their shots on target against the Fords, right in line with their season average.
"Shots on goal percentage is one of our main focus points everyday in practice, making the goalie make saves to beat us. If it weren't for that today, it would probably have been a neck-and-neck game."
Next weekend, York heads to Stevenson to play Nazareth on Friday before playing the host Mustangs on Saturday night. On playing back-to-back, Childs said: "It is a really hard thing for a coach, because you want to focus one game at a time. It is a challenge to do this, but playing a team we are not so familiar with, in Nazareth, and a team we are very familiar with (Stevenson), it allows us to focus on Friday, knowing that we have some familiarity with Stevenson."
Up next:
The Spartans will head to Stevenson for the Stevenson Mustang Classic, where they will open against Nazareth on Friday at 3 p.m. On Saturday, York will play the host Mustangs at 8 p.m.
