Kocis, Mirabito Propel Georgetown Past Rutgers
from press release
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Senior Scott Kocis
(Huntington, N.Y./Huntington) and redshirt junior Rickey Mirabito
(Binghamton, N.Y./Chenango Forks) scored four goals apiece as No.
15 Georgetown beat Rutgers, 14-9, in front of 1,834 fans at the
Multi-Sport Field on Senior Day.
Georgetown, ranked No. 15 in the Nike/Inside Lacrosse poll and No.
14 by the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association
(USILA), improves to 8-5 overall record and 4-1 in the BIG EAST.
Rutgers falls to 5-8 overall and 1-4 in league play.
Georgetown led 7-4 at halftime and opened up a 10-4 lead on an
unassisted goal from Kocis early in the third quarter, but the
Scarlet Knights scored twice in less than a minute and then pulled
to within 10-7 on a goal from Gerhard Buehning with 12:40 left to
play in the game.
Senior Brancaccio (Chevy Chase, Md./Georgetown Prep) responded
with an unassisted goal, taking an overhand bouncer to beat Rutgers
goalie Billy Olin and push the lead to 11-7.
A Hoya turnover gave the ball back to Rutgers, but senior goalie
Jack Davis (Glen Ridge, N.J./Glen Ridge) came up with a pair of
saves, one with his foot and another on a point-blank shot, to give
the ball back to GU. Mirabito scored his third goal of the game
with 5:32 left, giving the Hoyas a 12-7 lead.
Buehning scored again to make it 12-8, but junior Brian Tabb
(Potomac, Md./Georgetown Prep) won the next face-off and Mirabito
picked up his fourth goal with 2:07 left, making it 13-8. Kocis
scored on an open net with 1:04 left to close out the scoring for
the Hoyas.
Georgetown had jumped on top early in the game, scoring three
goals in the first five minutes of the game. Senior attack Craig
Dowd (East Northport, N.Y./Northport), who finished with a goal and
three assists, fed Kocis on the left side of the net and he bounced
one in at 14:05. Mirabito came from behind the net to score at
13:10 and then added another as Rutgers was unsettled on the
defensive end, pushing the lead to 3-0 at 10:06.
Rutgers would get a pair of goals from Kevin Hover, but two scores
from GU gave the hosts a 5-2 lead at the end of the quarter.
Freshman attack Travis Comeau (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada/The Hill
Academy) picked up a loose ball and fed a streaking Francis
McDonough (Garden City, N.Y./Garden City) for a score at 5:08 and
junior Max Seligmann (Ridgewood, N.J./Delbarton) added another with
33 seconds left in the quarter.
The teams traded turnovers to start the second quarter, but the
Hoyas pushed the lead to 6-2 when Brancaccio scored off a feed from
Dowd with 11:27 left before the half. A pair of goals from Rutgers,
including the third from Hover, made it 6-4, but Dowd backed in a
defender and scored on a close bounce shot from just off the crease
with seven seconds left to make it 7-4 at the break.
Comeau assisted on a pair of goals in the opening five minutes of
the third quarter, first on a score from Kocis with 12:58 to play
and then on one from sophomore middie Gerry Reilly (Cincinnati,
Ohio/Saint Xavier) with 10:50 to play. Kocis scored again with 9:03
to play in the quarter, giving Georgetown a 10-4 lead before
Rutgers narrowed the gap to 10-7.
Georgetown out-shot Rutgers, 45-26, and held a 35-27 advantage in
ground balls. The Hoyas won 16-of-25 face-off attempts, with Tabb
claiming 14-of-22 and freshman Patrick Murray (Denver, Colo./Kent
Denver) winning 2-of-3. Seven different players scored goals for
Georgetown and eight different players had at least one point.
Georgetown closes out the regular season next Saturday, May 8,
visiting No. 9 Villanova in a crucial BIG EAST matchup. Face-off is
slated for 7 p.m.
