Stubborn Mules: Colby Ends Camels' Run
from press release
WATERVILLE, Maine --- Whit McCarthy (Darien, Conn.) and
the magic of Bill Alfond Field helped the Colby College men's
lacrosse team pull of its biggest victory in nearly a decade with a
12-9 win over sixth-ranked and previously unbeaten Connecticut
College on Saturday.
McCarthy, who was honored before the game with Colby's other
seniors, scored six goals on 12 shots as the Mules moved to 9-5
overall and 4-4 in the New England Small College Athletic
Conference. The Camels fell to 13-1 overall and 7-1 in conference
play.
Colby continues to be a force on its home turf, improving to 12-1
at Bill Alfond Field over the past two years. The Mules' lone loss
was a final minute 10-9 setback to nationally-ranked Tufts
University.
"The seniors are the first thing that comes to mind when I think
about this win," Colby head coach Jon Thompson said. "They have
turned this program around and they earned this right to have a win
against the sixth-ranked team in the country."
McCarthy has 112 goals and 31 assists for 143 career points and
leads the Mules this year in scoring with 27 goals and eight
assists for 35 points. He was consistent in the win, scoring three
goals in each half.
"Whit is a zone buster, he has that range where he can score from
15 yards out," Thompson said. "We talked to him before the game and
told him he was ready for a breakout game."
The Mules took an early 4-1 lead on three goals by McCarthy. Colby
had the better of play during that period, winning most of the
groundballs and face-offs.
"This was the most competitive game I've ever been a part of,"
Thompson said. "Both teams were competing on such a high level.
(Conn College) has earned its record this year and to beat a team
that has won so many close games gives us a big boost of
confidence."
The Camels battled back in the first half and scored the final four
goals of the second quarter to take a 5-4 lead at intermission. The
Mules took their time on offense in the third quarter and the move
paid off as Colby had three of the four goals in the period to take
a 7-6 margin into the final 15 minutes of play.
The Camels fought back once again at the start of the fourth
quarter on back-to-back goals by Eric Doran (Pennington, N.J.) and
Mike Giambanco (Massapequa, N.Y.) to take an 8-7 lead with 9:21 to
play.
The Mules, though, scored three goals in a span of 1:04 to take the
lead for good. McCarthy tied the game with 6:09 to play, defensemen
Chris Healy (New Canaan, Conn.) tallied with 5:14 left, and then
McCarthy scored just nine seconds later when Craig Bunker
(Topsfield, Mass.) won a face-off and picked up the assist.
Bunker continued to win face-offs during that time and Mark
Squicciarino (Titusville, N.J.) scored with 4:06 to play for an
11-8 lead. With Conn College pulling its goalie out to help out on
defense, McCarthy got his final goal with 1:51 to play in an open
net for a 12-8 margin.
Greg McKillop (Washington, D.C.) had three assists on three
straight Colby goals in the first half when the Mules took the 4-1
lead. Ian Deveau (Portsmouth, R.I.) added one goal and one assist,
while Derrik Flahive (Littleton, Colo.), Patrick Briody (Hopewell,
N.J.), and Jonathan McIvor (Sudbury, Mass.) all had one goal.
Steve Dachille (Garden City, N.Y.) led the Cambels with three
goals. Doran finished with two scores.
Both goalies came up big in the game. Colby's Thomas Gianakos
(Simsbury, Conn.) had eight of his 12 saves in the second half and
Camel goaltender Rob Moccia (Malvern, Pa.) had nine of his 15 stops
in the opening half. James Brady (East Walpole, Mass.) had six
groundballs to lead Colby, while Mike O'Donnell (Winchester, Mass.)
had six for the Camels.
