Box Score

ROCK ISLAND, Ill. – In a game dominated by defense Centre used a stretch where it scored three straight goals in the fourth period to put the contest away and defeat Augustana 8-6 in non-conference men's lacrosse action on Sunday, March 5 at Thorson-Lucken Field. It was a one-goal game with Centre leading 5-4 early in the fourth quarter when the Colonels scored the next three goals to put the game out of reach.
 
Augustana sophomore Lee Whorwell (York HS, Elmhurst, Ill.) scored an unassisted goal on a man-up situation early in the fourth quarter (14:04) to trim what had been a three goal deficit to just a single marker (5-4). From that point, however, Centre tallied the next three goals with Emerson Prager starting things off with an unassisted goal at 12:57 to make it 6-4. Leland Gray scored on a Bryant Portwood assist to make it 7-4 at 7:33 and Dominic Peluso hit the nets off an Austin Zehnder assist with 5:34 left to push the advantage to 8-4.
 
The Vikings battled back with sophomore Nick Gallo (Maine South HS, Park Ridge, Ill.) scoring man-up goals at 3:10 and 1:15 to trim the margin to 8-6 but the clock ran out before they could get any closer.
 
Centre struck first with a pair of first quarter goals to take a 2-0 lead after the first stanza. Dominic Nayan scored first off an Austin Zehnder assist at 7:49. With just :38 left in the quarter Peluso made it 2-0 with an unassisted goal.
 
Sophomore Sam Daly (Maine South HS, Park Ridge, Ill.) used an assist by senior Luke Burrow (Noblesville HS, Noblesville, Ind.) to get the Vikings on the board at 12:10. Sophomore Erick Krall (Oswego HS, Oswego, Ill.) tied the game at 7:22 in the second with an unassisted goal.
 
Peluso gave Centre a lead it wouldn't relinquish with a goal off a feed from Leland Gray just 3:15 before halftime and the score at intermission was 3-2 in favor of the Colonels.
 
Gray and Mason Paas scored less than two minutes apart (13:47 & 12:07) early in the third quarter to make it 5-2 for the visitors. Augie's Jason Van Dyck (Crystal Lake South HS, Crystal Lake, Ill.) scored unassisted with 5:02 left in the third to cut the deficit to 5-3.
 
The two teams combined for 38 turnovers in the game with Augustana having 20 and Centre 18. The Vikings were out-shot by the Colonels 26-20.
 
Sophomore goalkeeper Jeremiah Heredia (Warren HS, Gurnee, Ill.) recorded 12 saves for the home team and he also had five ground balls.
 
Gallo was the only player with more than one goal as he had two. Junior McKay Potter (Hudson HS, Hudson, Wis.) won seven of 13 face-offs and also had two ground balls. Sophomore Brian Hinsberger (Lake Zurich HS, Lake Zurich, Ill.) picked up four ground balls and sophomore Matt Balara (St. Charles North HS, Elburn, Ill.) caused three turnovers.
 
Augustana is now 1-4 on the season while Centre is 3-1. The Vikings will play again on Wednesday, March 8 at 7:00 p.m. at Thorson-Lucken Field against Benedictine.