BIDDEFORD, Maine – Junior Nick Parent (Windham, N.H.) scored with 2:33 left in the second overtime period to lift the Wentworth Institute of Technology men's lacrosse team to an 11-10 win over the University of New England in a Commonwealth Coast Conference contest Wednesday afternoon.
Winners of two in a row the Leopards improve to 5-2 overall and even their CCC record at 1-1 while the Nor'Easters fall to 4-4 (0-1).
Junior Sam Cloutier (Lewiston, Maine) put the hosts on the bard with a marker with 10:46 remaining. Senior Michael Cushera (Waltham, Mass.) evened the score a little more than two minutes later, however UNE got first quarter goals from sophomores Andrew Curro (Niskayuna, N.Y.) and David Rubenstein (Somers, N.Y.) to take a 3-1 lead after one quarter.
The Leopards outscored the Nor'Easters by a 4-2 margin in the second quarter to make it a 5-all contest at the break. Junior Alec Paradis (Pelham, N.H.) scored a man-up goal 1:07 into the quarter and Cushera tacked on another 2:15 later to even the score at 3-all. After sophomore Dan Auger (Nashua, N.H.) put UNE on top 4-3, senior Ryan Coakley (Flemington, N.J.) evened the score. Just over a minute later Cloutier made it a 5-4 game before Coakley set up Cushera with 3:53 left.
Cushera's marker started a 5-0 run for the Black & Gold, who got another goal from Cushera 2:50 into the third quarter and three straight from Paradis to take a 9-5 lead. With 2:28 remaining in the quarter freshman Jake Ollila (Goffstown, N.H.) scored, giving the Leopards a 10-5 lead.
Auger's goal with 24 seconds left in the third made it a 10-6 game after three and started a 5-0 run for the hosts, who received two goals from Cloutier and single markers from Curro and Rubenstein to even the score at 10-all with 4:17 left in regulation.
With 14 seconds left, Auger fired a shot that went wide of the cage and the Leopards forced a turnover just as time expired, sending the game to overtime.
The first overtime session saw both teams turn the ball over two times and UNE had a man advantage with 1:29 left. The Nor'Easters took four shots during the man-up situation, with all four going wide.
UNE won the face-off to start the second overtime, however would turn the ball over. The Leopards gained possession and worked the ball into the offensive area where Parent would go in alone for the golden goal.
Cushera finished with four goals and an assist and Paradis, who has 21 points (15 goals, six assists) in his last four games, finished with four goals. Ryan Coakley had a goal and a pair of assists to round out Wentworth's multiple-point scorers. Junior Tim Parlato (Needham, Mass.) had six ground balls and caused four turnovers while sophomore Ty Trebbe (Wilbraham, Mass.) was 11-of-22 at the X.
Cloutier finished with four goals, Auger had two goals and two assists, and Curro had two goals and an assist in the loss. Senior Pat Reid (Southington, Conn.) had five ground balls and sophomore Connor Leggett (Sunderland, Vt.) was 6-of-9 at the X.
Freshman Adam Dufault (Lexington, Mass.) made 14 saves to pick up the win. His counterpart, sophomore David Pearson (Scarborough, Maine) made six saves over the final 35:27. Junior John Dusel (Wilbraham, Mass.) made nine saves in the first half.
Wentworth is at Curry on Saturday while that same day, UNE is at Western New England.
