Wheeling, W. Va. – The Wheeling University Men’s Lacrosse team (0-1, 0-0) opened the 2023 season on Saturday with their home opener at Bishop Schmitt Field. It was an offensive game, with the teams combining to score 30 points on the afternoon, but unfortunately the Cardinals would come out on the losing end of a 20-10 game. Three Cardinals had multi-goal games in the effort, but the Red Hawks offense just overpowered them in the end.
For as many goals as there were in the game, the first quarter was a mostly defensive effort on both sides of the field. The first goal wasn’t scored until the 5:25 mark of the first half as both teams were unable to find the net. Goalkeeper Alex Hall was making his Wheeling debut and was solid in net over those first 10 minutes of the game. He made three saves on three shots faced during that time and set Wheeling up for their first goal of the game. It would come courtesy of Ty Taylor with 5:25 to go in the first and Wheeling was staked to a 1-0 lead. However, Roberts Wesleyan’s Gunner MacMillian would come out swinging and notched three goals in a span of 1:10 that put Wheeling down 3-1. Taylor would find himself with the ball once again with 1:29 to go in the quarter and found Jacob Knippel to make it a one-point game at 3-2. Roberts Wesleyan would get on the board one more time before the quarter was done, and Wheeling found themselves down 4-2.
Things wouldn’t start out much better for the Cardinals in the second quarter as two more Roberts Wesleyan goals increased the Red Hawk’s lead to 6-2. With 9:44 to go before the half, the Cardinals were set up again on offense with Brenner Chase bringing the ball up the field. He was able to make his move up the field and find the back of the net for his first goal of the year. It got the Cardinals back to within three points and within striking distance before the half. However, the Red Hawks were back at it again adding back-to-back goals to make it 8-3. It would be more offense for the Red Hawks as the quarter went on and they extended their lead to as high as 11-3. The Cardinals would add one more goal before the half was out as Mike Andersson got on the board to make it 11-4 as the teams broke for the locker room.
After being held to just four first half points, the Cardinals were looking to get something going as they started the third quarter. Two more Red Hawk goals pushed the score to 13-4 before Zach Smiley found himself with the ball with 7:34 to play. He moved the ball up the field and found an open Taylor, who put it in the back of the net for his second goal of the night to make it 13-5. After that, the Cardinals hit a groove as Jacob Knippel put in his second goal of the game to bring the score to 13-6 with 5:53 left in the quarter. The Red Hawks wouldn’t break for long as they added on four goals in four minutes and moved the score to 17-6. Knippel would find Anderson for Andeeson’s second goal of the game with 1:45 in the third, but another Red Hawks goal brought the score to 18-7 heading into the final 15 minutes of play.
The fourth quarter began with another Roberts Wesleyan goal before the Cardinals got started again. Taylor set a new career-high with his third goal of the game with 10:12 to play as Andersson found him in front of the net to make it 19-8. Three minutes later, Andersson had the ball in his stick again and found the net on his own for his third goal of the game to make it 19-9. With 4:43 left in the fourth, Andersson would complete the trifecta for the quarter, taking a pass from Taylor in front of the net. He made the shot around the keeper and struck his fourth goal of the night. Roberts Wesleyan added one more before all was said and done as the Cardinals ended up dropping their opener 20-10.
It was a strong start to the season for Andersson as he led the way with four goals and one assist. He was efficient throughout the night, putting nine of his seven shots on net. Ty Taylor would finish right behind him with three goals, and led the way with two assists. Jacob Knippel was the final multi-score effort as he put up two goals and one assist while putting three of his four shots on net. The final goal of the night came from Brenner Chase as he picked up where he left off last season. Overall, the Cardinals were efficient throughout the night, putting 61.7% of their shots on net. They look to build off this effort as they continue through their non-conference schedule.
The Wheeling University Men’s Lacrosse team returns to action on Friday, February 17th when they host Quincy with the opening face-off at 4 PM.
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