GETTYSBURG, Pa. - Tommy Pearce (Chestertown, MD/Woodberry Forest Sch. [VA]) led all scorers with a pair of goals and assists as the top-seeded Gettysburg College men's lacrosse team downed fourth-seeded Franklin & Marshall 9-7 in the first semifinal match of the inaugural Centennial Conference (CC) postseason tournament on Friday.
The Bullets (13-1), who are currently ranked No. 1 in the latest Division III national poll, advance to the CC championship on Sunday, Apr. 29 where they will take on third-seeded Washington (Md.) (8-6, 4-2 CC). The Shoremen won their semifinal matchup with second-seeded Western Maryland 19-15. Game time is 1:00 p.m.
Other Gettysburg scoring threats on the day include Ric Bremer (Ridgefield, CT/John Jay [NY]), who scored a pair of goals and one assist, and Pete Milliman (Rochester, NY/Brighton), who also added a pair of goals.
Greg Ivry (Katonah, NY/John Jay) led the Franklin & Marshall offense with a pair of goals, while five other Diplomats found the net for single tallies. Franklin & Marshall, currently ranked 18th in the nation, finishes its 2001 campaign with a 9-6 overall record.
With the score locked at 4-4 in the second quarter, Gettysburg initiated a 4-0 run the Diplomats never recovered from. Pearce opened the run at 7:28 when he powered his way into the defense, lost his feet to a body-check and still managed a one-handed whip past keeper David Kahn (Bethesda, MD/Landon). Kahn finished the day with 15 saves.
The score stayed 5-4 in the Bullets favor until the 9:24 mark in the third quarter when Wes Cadman (Yorktown Heights, NY/Yorktown) found himself wide open in the middle and beat Kahn with a bounce shot. Two minutes later Rich Sharp (Acton, MA/Acton-Boxborough Regional) extended the home-team lead to three as he slid effortlessly through the defense and buried the ball in the net.
The Gettysburg run seemed to end when Jon Singer (Reisterstown, MD/Boys' Latin) found the net for the Diplomats at 3:10 in the third quarter, but the ball proved to be on the outside of the netting. The Bullets finished their run when Bremer rocketed home a pass from Charlie Hanchett (Annapolis, MD/Stony Brook Sch. [NY]) with 1:14 left in the quarter.
Gettysburg goalie Tim McGinnis (Ellicott City, MD/Loyola-Blakefield) recorded 12 saves on the day while facing 28 shots from Franklin & Marshall.
| Score by Quarter |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
- |
F |
| #18 Franklin & Marshall (9-6) |
3 |
1 |
0 |
3 |
- |
7 |
| #1 Gettysburg (13-1) |
3 |
2 |
3 |
1 |
- |
9 |
Goals:
Franklin & Marshall: Greg Ivry 2, Pete Burgess, Jon Singer, Kevin Milota, Bryan Graye, Bas Solleveld.
Gettysburg: Pete Milliman 2, Tommy Pearce 2, Ric Bremer 2, Jake Van Nostrand, Wes Cadman, Rich Sharp.
Assists:
Franklin & Marshall: Jason Miller, Beau Smith, Andrew Kuskowski.
Gettysburg: Pearce 2, Van Nostrand, Bremer, Charlie Hanchett.
Shots: F&M 28, Gettysburg 44.
Ground Balls: F&M 36, Gettysburg 42.
Extra-Man: F&M 0 of 0, Gettysburg 0 of 0.
Faceoffs: Franklin & Marshall 7, Gettysburg 13.
Goalies:
F&M (David Kahn -- 60 minutes, 15 saves, 9 GA),
Gettysburg (Tim McGinnis - 60 minutes, 12 saves, 7 GA).
Clearing: F&M 18 of 27, Gettysburg 23 -f 26.
Penalties: None.
