OWINGS MILLS, Md. - A third-quarter Stevenson rally proved too much to overcome as No. 4 York suffered an 11-8 defeat on the road Friday night to the No. 12 Mustangs.

Team Records

#4/4 York 10-1 (4-1 MACC)

#12/14 Stevenson 6-0 (4-0 MACC)

How it happened

The Spartans struck first as Eric Ranck settled into a crease on the right slot and finished on a feed from Jacob Wilhelm on the Spartans' fourth possession of the game. Ranck got involved again late in the first quarter as he threw a desperation pass into the middle which found the waiting stick of Brendan O'Sullivan. The MAC Commonwealth's leading goal scorer caught the pass, turned and shot behind his back all in one motion, leaving just one second to spare on the clock.

O'Sullivan and Dylan Wolf tallied a pair of goals 34 seconds apart late in the second quarter to give York a 4-1 lead heading into halftime. Coming off their fourth-straight first quarter shutout and owning a 26-13 shot margin with the lead after two quarters of play, the Spartans had the momentum heading into halftime.

Coming out of the halftime break, the game took a sudden turn in favor of the Mustangs as they ripped off five unanswered goals to take a 6-4 lead. It's the first time all season York has  been shutout in a quarter and the first time the Spartans have trailed past the first quarter. Stevenson put six of their 11 third-quarter shots on goal while holding the Spartans to just eight shots in the frame and forced four of York's six turnovers.

The Spartans looked as if they were back on track when Will Harnick scored in the opening minute of the fourth quarter. Unfortunately, the momentum would never totally shift back in York's favor as Stevenson answered each fourth-quarter goal put up by York, preventing the elusive run that the Spartans so desperately needed.

Up next

The Spartans have little time to dwell on the loss as they return to action Saturday at 1 p.m. against Albright at home in the regular season finale.  

Notes

The Spartans have lost two-straight to Stevenson as they fall to 4-15 all-time against the Mustangs … Friday's matchup marked the first-ever meeting between the two rivals as MAC Commonwealth foes and marks the first time since 2012 the two programs have met as members of the same conference … the Spartans saw their 17-game road winning streak come to an end and their run of 19-straight regular season conference wins (including CAC) come to a close … Stevenson is now 60-0 in regular conference games and 74-0 overall (including conference tournament games) against MAC Commonwealth opponents since joining the conference in 2013 … York kept its streak of first half dominance intact as they have now out-scored opponents 121-18 in the first half, including a margin of 60-5 in the first quarter.