Fairfield, Conn. (March 4, 2006)-The men's lacrosse season is only three games old and the Jaspers have already done enough to earn the moniker of "cardiac kids." For the second consecutive game, Manhattan erased a three-goal second-half deficit to notch a win, as the Jaspers worked overtime in defeating Sacred Heart, 6-5. With 1:21 remaining in the extra session, senior Greg Lewis put junior Brian Murray's pass into the back of the net to improve the Jaspers to 2-1 on the young season.
With his game-winning heroics, Lewis has now tallied a goal in all three of Manhattan's games this season. Murray is also emerging as one of the team's big guns on the offensive end, as he has put one past the keeper in the Jaspers' first three contests. Murray, who finished with four points on the day, had a hand in three of the squad's final four scores.
After Sacred Heart's Peter Greco extended the Pioneer lead to 5-2 less than two minutes into the fourth period, Murray sparked the Manhattan rally, as he netted his sixth score of the season to pull the Jaspers within two and 7:15 remaining on the clock.
Then, three minutes later with Manhattan playing up a man due to a Sacred Heart slashing penalty, Murray set up Christian Schaefers for his first goal of the season. Less than a minute after that score, Angelo Marrano netted the equalizer. Neither team could put the finishing touches on some scoring chances in the final 3:10 of the fourth quarter sending the contest in an extra frame.
Despite squandering the lead, Sacred Heart had a great chance to escape with an overtime victory when Manhattan was whistled for an infraction with 3:45 left in the extra session. The Manhattan defense, however, did not falter in the pressure situation. They allowed only one Sacred Heart shot during the span, which junior goalie Justin Henry turned aside. In all, Henry stopped 13 of the Pioneers' 18 shots on net. In all, the Pioneers managed 30 shots on the afternoon and the Jaspers fired 46.
Despite not recording a first quarter goal, Manhattan dominated the pace early on as the Jaspers outshot Sacred Heart by an 11-4 margin in the opening period. Manhattan was unable to convert on any of its three man-up advantages in the first stanza. Trailing 2-0, Jasper junior Kyle Serbay put Manhattan on the scoreboard as he converted off of a Murray pass almost four minutes into the second quarter.
Manhattan returns to Connecticut on Wednesday, March 4 to face Quinnipiac in Hamden at 3:00 p.m.