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GETTYSBURG, PA -- In the shadow of Cemetery Ridge on the historic Gettysburg battlefield, Beau Smith (Sr., Baltimore, MD/Gilman) collected a game-high eight points and Bryan Nolan (Sr., Scottsdale, AZ/Western Reserve) scored five goals to lead #8 Franklin & Marshall College past #7 Gettysburg College 15-12 in Centennial Conference men's lacrosse action. Smith found the net four times and dished out four assists, helping the Diplomats (10-2, 5-2 CC) earn a spot in next weekend’s CC playoffs and snap a 15-game losing streak to the Bullets (9-4, 5-2 CC). F&M’s last victory in the series was an 18-8 decision in the teams’ 1990 season finale. In addition, the Diplomats recorded their first 10-win season since the 1995 team finished 12-3. Overall, F&M now has ten 10-victory seasons in 47 years of the sport at the College. Diplomat face-off specialist Matt Capone (So., Scarsdale, NY/Scarsdale) also keyed the victory by winning 21 of 31 draws and collecting 18 ground balls on the day. Goalie Mike Sartorius (So., Summit, NJ/Summit) made 17 saves while withstanding 45 Gettysburg shots. After an opening period in which both teams scored three goals, Franklin & Marshall exploded for eight goals in the second quarter to take control of the game. Nolan opened the barrage with a curling unassisted goal just 40 seconds into the period, putting the Diplomats ahead to stay. An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Gettysburg at 11:58 led to a non-releasable extra-man opportunity for F&M, and the visitors took full advantage. Bas Solleveld (Jr., Glenmoore, PA/Shipley) ripped home a shot 22 seconds into the penalty for a two-goal edge and Nolan finished a feed from Smith 19 seconds later for another extra-man goal to make it 6-3. Jon Singer (Sr., Reisterstown, MD/Boys' Latin) scored in transition at the 9:20 mark and J.B. Robichau (So., Edgartown, MA/Tabor) found the net after scooping up a loose ball at 7:32 for an 8-3 Diplomat lead, forcing a Bullet timeout. Evan Gallant, John O’Bannon and Kevin Smith answered for Gettysburg in a span of 3 minutes, 14 seconds to pull the Bullets within 8-6 with 2:44 left in the half. F&M, however, needed just over two minutes to restore the entire five-goal lead. Smith sandwiched a pair of markers around an unassisted tally by Steve Welsh (So., Lewes, DE/Cape Henelopen) to give the Diplomats an 11-6 lead at the break. Behind a pair of goals from Gallant, Gettysburg used a 4-1 run across the third quarter to pull within two, cutting the lead to 12-10 on Tripp Neville’s blast with 1:05 left in the third. Seconds later, Sartorius preserved the two-goal margin with big save on Sean McTernan. Smith dished out behind-the-net assists on goals by Nolan and Colin Hanley (So., Davidsonville, MD/DeMatha) in a span of 56 seconds to give the Diplomats a 14-10 cushion with 11:45 remaining. Gallant scored his fifth and sixth goals of the game off feeds from Stewart to pull the Bullets within two, but Nolan scooped in a loose ball with 3:16 left and the F&M defense clamped down in the final minutes to preserve the victory. Tim McGinnis finished with seven saves in goal for Gettysburg. The Bullets converted two-of-three extra-man opportunities on the afternoon while the Diplomats went 3-for-7 with the man-advantage. Franklin & Marshall will continue the season on April 21 on the road at Dickinson College. Game time is set for 4:00 p.m. SCORE BY PERIODS
Franklin & Marshall (10-2, 5-2 CC) 3-8-1-3-- 15
Gettysburg (9-4, 5-2 CC) 3-3-4-2-- 12 Goals:
F&M - Bryan Nolan (5), Beau Smith (4), Bas Solleveld (2), Jon Singer, J.B. Robichau, Steve Welsh, Colin Hanley
GC - Evan Gallant (6), Matt Twombly, Peter Politi, John O’Bannon, Jake Van Nostrand, Kevin Smith, Tripp Neville. Assists:
F&M - Beau Smith (4), Jon Singer (3), Colin Hanley (2), Steve Welsh, Bas Solleveld
GC - Chase Stewart (6), Jake Van Nostrand (3), Evan Gallant Goalie (Saves/Shots/Goals Allowed/Minutes)
F&M - Mike Sartorius (17/45/12/60:00)
GC - Tim McGinnis (7/30/15/60:00) Shots - F&M 30, GC 45
Ground Balls - F&M 40, GC 25
Face-Offs - F&M 25 of 31, GC 6 of 31
Extra man - F&M 3 for 7, GC 2 for 3
Clearing - F&M 16 of 20, GC 16 of 19
Penalties - F&M 3 for 3:00, GC 7 for 6:00
Attendance - 400
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