After coming off its worst loss of the season, the Boston University men’s lacrosse team traveled to meet No. 11 Loyola University Maryland Saturday in search of the program’s first postseason berth and squandered its dominance by ultimately falling 13-12.
Despite the loss, BU (8-5, 3-4 Patriot League) head coach Ryan Polley said he was impressed with the way his team bounced back after losing 15-4 last weekend to No. 20 United States Military Academy.
“I thought the guys did great, and we played really hard,” Polley said. “We are so pleased with the way the guys responded. They came back and just did a wonderful job. The guys deserve all the credit, and they played a great game.”
While BU opened the game with a 3-1 lead, the Greyhounds (9-3, 6-1 Patriot League) improved from a sluggish start and adjusted as the contest wore on. By the end of the first half, the Greyhounds erased their first-quarter deficit and held a 5-4 lead.
A turn of events occurred in the third quarter, as BU dominated through five unanswered goals. The offensive explosion began when freshman attack James Burr found net and drew the score at five apiece. Soon after, sophomore attack Jack Wilson, junior attack Adam Schaal and junior midfielder Cal Dearth followed the freshman’s lead. BU’s offense showcased its skill, with seven different players firing past goalkeeper Jacob Stover.
“We just had a lot of contributions from a lot of guys,” Polley said. “A lot of guys stepped up and did a great job. We shared the ball really well in offense, and it was really fun to watch.”
On the other side of the field, junior goalkeeper Christian Carson-Banister made a strong comeback after being pulled from last week’s game against Army (8-4, 5-2 Patriot League). The Texan saved 15 shots against Loyola, many of which kept the game close throughout the first three quarters.
“[Carson-Banister] just had a great week of practice and got his confidence back,” Polley said. “He played like he has the majority of his time here, and we’re really proud that he was able to get over the Army game and play as well as he did.”
BU held a 10-7 lead heading into the fourth quarter, but the tables soon turned when junior Zack Sirico and senior Zach Herreweyers clawed Loyola back to a 12-12 tie.
BU had a chance to break the deadlock in that last minute of the fourth quarter, but Herreweyers scored the game-winner with nine seconds left in regulation.
“It was just kind of unfortunate how in the last five minutes, we fell apart a little bit in the fourth quarter, and [Loyola] scored 5 out of the 6 last goals,” BU’s third-year head coach said. “We got tired and unfortunately we didn’t clear the ball very well. We had some unfortunate turnovers that led to them having a lot of possessions in the fourth quarter.”
The Terriers will have one final chance to clinch a playoff spot when they travel Friday to College of the Holy Cross in Worcester. BU fell on its second-to-last game of its 2015 season to the Crusaders (3-10, 2-5 Patriot League), adding an additional plotline to the crucial matchup.
BU needs to win to qualify for its first Patriot League Tournament, and Polley is confident that his team will reverse its fortunes and come back with a point to prove.
“We will prepare one day at a time to be ready for Holy Cross,” Polley said. “We will have a game plan, and I know we will play great.”
