STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Manhattan's offense was hot right from the jump and the Jaspers didn't look back en route to a 14-3 win over Wagner on Saturday afternoon. The Jaspers led 6-1 after the first quarter, and extended the lead to as many as 12 in the third quarter.
HOW IT HAPPENED
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Just over a minute in, sophomore attackman Tyler Mosca registered the first goal of the college lacrosse season by curling around the net and beating Angus Snow with his shot.
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With the Jaspers ahead 3-0 early, graduate student goalkeeper Connor Hapward recorded his first save of the season at 8:27.
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Manhattan increased the lead to 6-0 before ending the quarter with a 6-1 lead.
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Five different scorers got on the board in the first quarter.
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Sophomore attackman Connor Engel deposited his first career goal with a goal at the 13:07 mark of the first quarter.
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Senior attackman Scott O'Connor scored the third goal off an assist from senior midfielder Kelly DuPree at 11:22.
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Junior midfielder Liam Peabody, junior attackman Sean Shelko, and Mosca went 1-2-3 for the Jaspers' fourth, fifth and sixth goals of the quarter. None were assisted.
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DuPree got on the score tallies for the first time this season when he found the back of the net at 11:31 of the second quarter.
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Manhattan added four more scores before halftime to establish an 11-1 heading into the locker room.
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The onslaught continued in the second half with goals from DuPree at 9:42 and Connor White at 7:41 which effectively sealed the blowout victory.
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Wagner answered with two successful conversions at 1:43 of the third quarter and 6:49 of the fourth quarter off the sticks of Danny McMahon and Jake Mitchell, respectively.
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Senior midfielder Drew Hiner capped the scoring with a goal off an assist from Shelko at the 4:40 mark of the fourth quarter.
STATS AND NOTES
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The result was the largest margin of victory for the Jaspers since beating Wagner 16-5 on Feb. 22, 2020 in Staten Island. Brendan Krebs totaled 14 saves in net for the Jaspers.
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Manhattan has won its home openers in two of the last three seasons, including a 9-5 win over St. John's on Feb. 11, 2023.
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Five Jaspers recorded two goals in the rout. (DuPree, Peabody, Mosca, Kane and Shelko)
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Shelko posted a team-best four points, adding two assists to his name.
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Three Jaspers tallied their first career goal. (Engel, Kane, White)
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Kane added a second goal in the third quarter, just under four and a half minutes after his first goal, to extend the lead to 10-1.
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Hiner directed 3 of his 4 shots on net while Mosca and O'Connor both fired 3 of their 5 shots on net.
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Hapward picked right up where he left off last season by recording 12 saves in the winning effort.
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Manhattan and Wagner kicked off the 2025 College Lacrosse season as the first game played across the country.
QUOTES FROM MANHATTAN
Manhattan head coach Doug Sage on today's complete performance: "Our team was focused on starting today's game and our 2025 season off with a positive performance. We were able to execute at a high level on both ends of the field to put together a strong first half with the defense locking it down in the second half. The goal now is to learn from this win in order to build momentum going into next week."
UP NEXT
Manhattan will look to capitalize on the momentum when it visits Monmouth (0-0, 0-0 CAA) next Saturday, Feb. 8 at 11:30 AM. The game will be the Hawks' lid lifter for their 2025 season, and will be streamed on FloSports, a subscription-based service.
Follow Manhattan men's lacrosse on X (@Manhattan_WBB) and Instagram (@manhattanlax).
