No. 15 WNE Defeats No. 19 Nazareth, 18-12, in Showdown of Top-20 Programs

Recap, photo is courtesy of Western New England

Golden Bears notch third victory over nationally ranked opponent this season

HERKIMER, N.Y. (April 22, 2016) – The No. 15 nationally ranked Western New England University men's lacrosse team wrapped up its non-conference schedule this evening with another impressive victory, defeating No. 19 Nazareth College 18-12 at Wehrum Stadium on the campus of Herkimer County Community College in Herkimer, N.Y.

With the neutral site triumph, Western New England (12-3, 7-0 CCC) improves to 3-1 this season against opponents ranked in the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA)/Nike Division III Poll. The Golden Bears claimed a road win at No. 12 Stevenson back on March 5, before topping No. 4 Amherst in Florida ten days later.

Junior Justin Bard (Westfield, Mass.) and freshman Jared Ward (Littleton, Mass.) led the Western
New England offense, tallying six points each. Senior Jon Bota (Mahopac, N.Y.) and junior Keegan Dudeck (Longmeadow, Mass.) added five each, while senior Taylor Dubose (Altamont, N.Y.) chipped in with three.

Senior David Cedrone (Yantic, Conn.) went 19-for-32 (59%) at the faceoff X, and sophomore goalie Steven Kerr (Hopkinton, Mass.) made 12 saves in the cage.

Junior Hunter Burdick (Hopkinton, Mass.) paced the Golden Flyers with six points on three goals and three assists, while senior Matt O'Neill (Issaquah, Wash.) recorded a hat trick.

Leading 9-8 at halftime, Western New England took control of the contest in the third quarter. Bard found Ward early in the period to give the Golden Bears a 10-8 advantage, and Bard followed with his 43^rd goal of the season at the 9:51 mark to extend the lead to three.

Nazareth stayed within striking distance with goals by O'Neill and junior Luke Longo (Syracuse, N.Y.), but Western New England closed the quarter on a 3-0 run to open up a 15-10 lead heading into the fourth.

The Golden Flyers were unable to pull closer than four the rest of the way, as Dudeck, Ward and Bard all scored in the final quarter to put the contest out of reach.

Western New England put 30 shots on goal compared to Nazareth's 24, and the Golden Bears also held the edge in ground balls (35-24) and faceoffs (19-13), while going 4-for-6 with a man advantage.

With just one game remaining in the regular season, Western New England returns home to host Gordon for its senior day contest on Tuesday night at 7 p.m.