The RPI men’s lacrosse team dropped its season opener on the road to the No. 11 Endicott College Gulls. Endicott, which is currently 3-0 on the season, netted three goals in both the first and fourth quarters en route to a 9-3 victory over the Red Hawks.
Junior midfielder Paul Cerone scored two goals for RPI, which had two goals in the second quarter and one goal in the final seconds of the fourth.
In the first quarter, the Gulls took the early lead after goals by seniors Joe Gugino and Dan Cain, as well as by junior Brad Lipkvich.
Nearly three minutes into the second frame, RPI placed on the board with Cerone’s first goal of the night. His shot from 25 yards beat junior Endicott goaltender Eric Hagarty for his first of the season. It didn’t take long for the Gulls to respond, as junior Jonathan Prentice netted another for Endicott with 4:39 remaining in the half. Cerone came back for his second of the day with 55 seconds left in the quarter on an assist from sophomore Nick Billy, before Gulls senior Brandon Dube added his first of the day to bring their lead to 5-1 with a single second left on the clock.
The third quarter saw only Dube finding the back of the net to bring the score to 6-2, Endicott. Cain, Dube, and senior Nick Cosco closed out scoring for the Gulls in the fourth quarter. The Red Hawks staged a last-second comeback, as sophomore Conor Chocheles scored with eight seconds left in the game. However, this wasn’t enough to cut the five-goal differential.
This Sunday, the men’s lacrosse team looks to redeem itself as it battles the Rochester Institute of Technology Tigers on the road, with the opening face-off at noon.
