NAPERVILLE, Ill. – Augustana men's lacrosse (8-3) battled their way to a narrow 7-6 victory on the road. The Vikings rode exceptional defense and survived a late charge by North Central (4-6) to take the win.
 
Elijah Graesser got the Vikings on the board first in the early stages of the first period. The Cardinals, however, outscored Augie in the opening period on a pair of Nick Rubino goals.
 
The Vikings recaptured the lead in the second when Sam Shaver was assisted by Bob Robertson and Mark Teschke was aided by Brady Holtz. Augie proceeded to shut out North Central in the second quarter and took a 3-2 lead into halftime.
 
After the break, Tom Eberhardt knotted the score after a Jack Moran assist. Sam Shaver then continued his remarkable day with two more scores to complete his hat trick.
 
Trailing 5-3 at the start of the final period, North Central went on the offensive. Jack Moran and Scott Allgood scored consecutive goals while assisting each other to tie the game again. The hosts could not take the next step, though, as Brenson Brown and Sam Shaver came through to put Augustana up again. Eberhardt tried to spark another NCC rally, but the Vikings held on for the 7-6 victory.
 
Shaver's four goals led all players in offensive production. Brady Holtz topped the Vikings with two assists.
 
Defensively, Mark Teschke and Matt Pierson each caused a game-high five turnovers. In goal, Cameron Duffy saw 49 total shots while saving 17 attempts, both of which were season-highs for the Augustana keeper.
 
Augustana will return to Thorson-Lucken Field for their penultimate home match of the season. The Vikings will host Illinois Wesleyan on Wednesday, Apr. 13 at 7:30 P.M.