The No. 19 Massachusetts men’s lacrosse team couldn’t figure out the defense of No. 11 Richmond on Saturday, scoring just five goals in a 14-5 defeat. After the tough showing against the Spiders (10-3, 4-0 Atlantic 10), the Minutemen (9-4, 2-2 A-10) now have an even record in conference play.
A 15-4 victory over St. Bonaventure in its last matchup put a ranking next to UMass’ name for the fourth week this season. A win against the top-ranked A-10 team in Richmond would have helped the Minutemen’s national tournament chances, but they struggled to find the back of the net in Virginia.
Coming into the game, the Spiders ranked fifth in the nation in defense, allowing just 8.17 goals per game. UMass failed to become the first A-10 team to surpass that average.
The Minutemen were outshot 22-41 and 13-26 in shots on goal. In the first quarter, they were held without a shot on goal completely, not getting an opportunity on net until Robbie Granara opened their scoring 46 seconds into the second quarter.
Trace Hogan was the most effective player for UMass on offense, finishing with three points via two goals and an assist. The senior had his first score just under six minutes into the third quarter, taking a Granara pass and firing the ball into the net for the team’s second goal of the day. The other goal came later in the fourth quarter, and with a John Krisch goal being scored just ten seconds later, Hogan’s second provided a brief jolt to the Minutemen offense.
In the early parts of the game, freshman goalie Owen Salanger kept UMass in striking distance, keeping its deficit at four goals or less until late in the first half. Through this season, Salanger’s averaged 11.83 saves per game, and a 10-save first half almost matched that average early on. As the game continued, though, Richmond’s offensive pressure became too much for the goalie to handle, which led to a second half where he made just two saves and conceded seven goals.
10 goals has been the magic number all season for the Minutemen, as the team has hit that mark in all of its wins and failed to hit it in all of its losses. On Saturday, even that would not have been enough against a Spiders offense that thrived, netting 14 times.
Most of the goals that Richmond scored can be organized into two categories: scores off of UMass turnovers and/or overhand shots from the left side of the field to the far side of the goal.
Turnovers plagued the Minutemen on this day. The team suffered 20 turnovers, and six of them led to Spider goal-scoring possessions. Turnovers and ground balls made a big impact on UMass’ upset loss to High Point earlier in the season, and through coughing the ball up and losing the ground ball battle 29-22, they played a major role here as well.
It seemed as if Richmond figured out Salanger’s kryptonite in this game, scoring a handful of goals in the same fashion. Spider players often found space on the left side of the field and, with an overhead shot, ripped the ball towards the opposite post, sneaking the ball past the large stick of the Minutemen goalie. Richmond scored five goals in that manner, as well as one fired in from the right side to the left side of the goal.
An area where UMass could have built some momentum was on the man-up. The Minutemen entered Saturday ranked fifth in the nation in extra man conversion percentage at 54.5 percent. They had two opportunities up a man in the game but couldn’t convert on either, even conceding a goal while a man up.
UMass plays its final regular season game on Friday, April 25 against A-10 opponent Hobart. A loss could see the Minutemen fail to make the A-10 tournament, ending their season. Faceoff is at 5:00 p.m. at Garber Field, and the game will be streamed on ESPN+.
Myles Donato can be reached at [email protected].
