AMHERST ADVANCES TO NESCAC SEMIS AFTER DOWNING TUFTS, 10-7

MEN'S COLLEGE LACROSSE FINAL SCORE
2002 NESCAC Playoffs First Round
Amherst 10    Tufts 7

Goals: T- David Supple 2, Jack Palmer 2, Jon Zissi, Bryan Griffin, Matt Malatesta; A - Alex Casertano 2, Colby Griffith 2, Harlow Voorhees, Matt Margolis, Tucker Sowers, Josh Cherney, Andrew Meeks, Cushing Donelan.

Assists: T - Zissi, Griffin, Alex Kirwin; A, Casertano 2, Andrew Syfu 2, Voorhees, Margolis, Mike Allison, 

Saves: T - Kirk Lutwyler 5; A - Cushing Donelan 23, Jay Garvey 1.

AMHERST, MA - The fourth-seeded Amherst College men's lacrosse team advanced to the NESCAC Championship Tournament Semifinals after downing visiting fifth-seeded Tufts University, 10-7, Tuesday afternoon at Hitchcock Field. First-year attackman Alex Casertano (Millbrook, NY) paced the Jeffs, tallying a pair of goals and two assists. First-year goaltender Cushing Donelan (Norton, CT) was stellar in net, racking up 23 saves. He also chipped in offensively, notching his first career goal.

Amherst pierced the scoring column less than a minute into the contest, when junior middie Tucker Sowers (Ridgewood, NJ) took a feed from senior attackman Harlow Voorhees (Chevy Chase, MD) and rifled a shot into the top left corner of the net. Tufts senior midfielder David Supple (Rowayton, CT) countered moments later, bouncing a shot past Donelan. First-year middies Josh Cherney (Chappaqua, NY) and Colby Griffith (Lexington, MA) each tallied strikes to put Amherst ahead, 3-1, to end the opening quarter.

Tufts netted the first goal of the second stanza, but Griffith countered shortly thereafter, dodging right and going top shelf for his second goal of the afternoon. Junior middie Matt Margolis (Short Hills, NJ) ripped a right handed rocket into the top corner with 42 seconds left on the clock, giving the Jeffs a 6-3 advantage at halftime.

Supple scored again to open the second half, cutting the lead to 6-4. Amherst retaliated when Donelan advanced the ball up to midfield on the clear, but he didn't stop there. He proceeded to weave through a swarm of defenders, gaining entry into the visitor's zone and firing a shot through Jumbo senior goalie Kirk Lutwyler (Ridgewood, NJ) legs. Voorhees then tickled the twine, taking a feed in the crease from sophomore attackman Mike Allison (W. Nyack, NY), extending the lead to 8-4. The advantage went to 10-4 on Casertano's second goal of the game, when he snagged a rebound off a Margolis shot and found net. The visitors tallied three unanswered to goals in the final quarter to round the scoring out at 10-7.

With the victory, Amherst improves to 9-6 overall and 6-4 in conference play, while Tufts season ends at 8-6 and 5-5. The Jeffs return to action Saturday at noon for the final four, where they will battle top-ranked Middlebury College, the winner advancing to the NESCAC Championship game, against either second-seeded Bowdoin College or third-seeded Colby College on Sunday.

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