Box Score

GETTYSBURG, Pa. – Sophomore Tommy Heller (Livingston, N.J./Livingston) scored the game-winning goal with 1:33 left and the Gettysburg College men's lacrosse team held off a furious Dickinson second-half rally, downing the sixth-ranked Red Devils 11-10 in Centennial Conference (CC) men's lacrosse action Wednesday afternoon at Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium.
 
Senior Sean Fumai (Weston, Conn./Weston) scored all three of his goals in the first half for the Bullets (7-5, 3-2 CC), who raced out to a 9-3 halftime advantage. Gettysburg upped its lead to 10-3 early in the third quarter before the Red Devils (9-2, 3-1 CC) reeled off seven unanswered goals to pull even with 3:12 left. However, with the Bullets coming out of a timeout, Heller rolled off a screen and sent home a shot in front of the cage for his second game-winner of the season and the fourth of his career.
 
Dickinson won the ensuing face-off and fired off a pair of shots before taking a timeout with 28 seconds left. But junior goalie Tim Brady (Charlotte, N.C./Providence) clinched the victory for the Bullets when he made a save in the closing seconds before launching the ball downfield as time expired.
 
Heller and freshman Brian Kolen (Bridgewater, N.J./Bridgewater-Raritan) added two goals and one assist apiece for the Bullets, who posted their first win over a top-10 opponent since their 7-6 overtime victory at No. 7 York (Pa.) in the NCAA Division III quarterfinals last season. It was also the team's first victory over a team ranked as high as sixth since its 9-5 win over No. 3 Ohio Wesleyan in the 2015 NCAA quarterfinals.
 
Junior face-off specialist Geoff Fulgione (North Andover, Mass./Brooks School) set the tone for the Gettysburg offense in the first half, when he won 10-of-12 face-offs. He finished 14-of-21 with six ground balls at the X.
 
Brady registered 10 saves for the Bullets while Andrew Jones stopped eight shots for Dickinson. Dylan Maher paced Dickinson offensively with six goals and one assist.
 
Gettysburg never trailed after netting the game's first two goals. Sophomore Wil DeMartin (Summit, N.J./Saint Peter's Prep) scored on the first shot of the game 41 seconds into the contest before Fumai followed up with 13:19 showing.
 
Tucker Carney put Dickinson on the scoreboard with 12:16 left before Kolen answered for the Bullets three minutes later, making it 3-1 and kicking off a 6-0 run. Heller, Fumai, and Kolen all scored before the end of the period as Gettysburg led 7-1 heading into the second quarter.
 
Freshman Michael McCormick (Lorton, Va./Paul VI Catholic) kept things rolling for the Bullets when he scored during a stall warning with 10:03 on the second-quarter clock. Sophomore long-stick midfielder Chris Verdeur (Villanova, Pa./Shipley School) then struck for the Bullets 25 seconds later, taking a feed from Fulgione in transition before drilling in his first collegiate goal to make it an 8-1 game.
 
Maher stopped the bleeding for Dickinson when he converted back-to-back man-up tallies, the second coming with 1:52 left in the half. But Gettysburg reversed the momentum when Fumai buried his third and final goal with 11 ticks showing, handing the Bullets their six-goal lead at the intermission.
 
Gettysburg outshot the Red Devils 23-11 in the first half.
 
Sophomore Blake Gray (Reisterstown, Md./McDonogh School) scored with 9:48 left in the third quarter to make it a 10-3 game before Dickinson embarked on its comeback. Carney and Steve Ganelin scored 36 seconds apart to make it 10-5 with 3:34 left in the third quarter before Maher struck for three in a row. His first two came over the final 3:23 of the quarter and made it a 10-7 game heading into the final stanza.
 
Maher scored his third man-up goal of the day just over four minutes into the fourth quarter to cut the deficit to two. Ganelin cut it to one when he converted off a Maher feed with 7:09 left before Maher's final tally pulled the Devils even with 3:12 left.
 
Gettysburg won the ensuing face-off and though it was unable to capitalize on a Dickinson slashing penalty with 3:02 left, the Bullets maintained possession, setting up Heller's game-winner.
 
Dickinson held a 27-8 shot advantage in the second half and outshot the Bullets 38-31 for the game. Gettysburg finished with a 28-20 ground-ball advantage and won 15-of-23 face-offs for the game.
 
The Bullets continue their Centennial Conference schedule on Saturday, when they visit Haverford at 3 p.m.