RIVERDALE, N.Y. – Manhattan responded each time LIU made it a one-goal game to win 14-10 on Wednesday afternoon at Gaelic Park.
Head coach
John Odierna said postgame, "I thought our guys had an answer whenever they came at us. I liked our resilience. The fourth quarter, once again, proved to be a good quarter for us."
Manhattan (9-3, 6-1 MAAC) led wire-to-wire against LIU (5-7, 4-3) and kept pace with Mount St. Mary's atop the MAAC standings with 6-1 conference marks.
The Jaspers jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the first quarter before the Sharks made it a 6-5 with 2:15 to go in the second quarter.
Dan MacKinney restored the multi-goal lead with 1:16 to play before halftime.
LIU would cut the deficit to one three times in the second half, and the Jaspers responded with the game's next goal each time.
Scott O'Connor found the back of the net to make it 8-6 and 9-7 with 6:51 to play in the third. After the Sharks scored back-to-back goals around the end of the third, MacKinney scored his second to give the Jaspers an 11-9 lead.
Quinn Bowler and
Drew Hiner made it three straight goals for the Jaspers and built the advantage to 13-9 with 9:22 to play. MacKinney completed his hat trick when
Kyle Gucwa found him in front of a wide-open goal to make it 14-10 Manhattan.
Gucwa finished the game with two goals and five assists for seven points. The five assists tie a single-game best by a MAAC player this season and is a career-high for the senior. Gucwa started the scoring for the Jaspers at the 2:55 mark of the first quarter.
Odierna said when asked about his leading scorer, "We have been working with Kyle on many different things. It is great when your best player is the most coachable. Everything that we have been working on, he put into action today. It makes us look smart as coaches, but all the credit goes to Kyle."
MacKinney and O'Connor finished with hat tricks. Nine Jaspers found the scoresheet, including
Liam McDonough, who took a faceoff win straight down the field and scored in the first quarter.
Joseph Persico made 12 stops in goal for the Jaspers. Four of those 12 saves came in the fourth quarter.
Manhattan returns to action on Saturday, Apr. 15, against Siena at noon. The game will air on ESPN+. Saturday is also senior day for the men's lacrosse program.
We have to recover well. Siena is an excellent team and will be a good test for us," noted Odierna. "I can't wait to watch out guys compete again in another tight MAAC game on Saturday."
For the latest on the Manhattan College men's lacrosse program, follow the Jaspers on Twitter @ManhattanMLAX and Instagram @Manhattan_Lacrosse.
