WESTMINSTER, Md. – Behind a huge third quarter and a huge night from Elliott Shevitz, the Ursinus College men's lacrosse team topped McDaniel, 10-7, on Friday night for its first Centennial Conference victory.
Shevitz piled up a career-high 22 saves – the most by an Ursinus goalie since 2012 – and the Bears outscored the Green Terror by a 5-1 count in the third period to extend their winning streak in the series to six while simultaneously snapping a six-game overall skid.
McDaniel (4-7, 0-4) had erased a 4-1 deficit with three straight goals before freshman Hakan Atillasoy scored with 2:57 to go before halftime, putting the Bears ahead to stay. Atillasoy finished with a career-high four points on two goals and two assists.
Sophomore Evan Scott and senior Ian Desenberg scored within the first 88 seconds of the second half to put Ursinus (2-8, 1-3) up 7-4, and senior Peter DeSimone deposited a feed from Atillasoy to help double up the Green Terror with 8:10 remaining in the third quarter. Micah Brooks stopped the Bears' run with one of his three goals for McDaniel, but Atillasoy scored a mere four seconds later on an assist by sophomore Bobby McClure and then set up Desenberg to polish off a dominant frame.
The Green Terror scored both fourth-quarter goals, but Ursinus' lead was too great to overcome.
Shevitz was locked in from the start, making six saves in each of the first, second, and fourth periods. His 22 stops matched T.J. Magnani's total from a 2012 game against Plattsburgh State and match the highest single-game total for a Bears goalie since Tony Aquilino's 24 against Dickinson in 2009.
Balance was the theme of the night for Ursinus, which had five players record at least two points. McClure finished with two goals and an assist, DeSimone had a goal and two helpers, and Desenberg and classmate Lou Harrison posted two goals apiece.
Senior Tim Miller and sophomore Nolan Sachs recorded two caused turnovers each for a defense that squelched all six of McDaniel's man-up opportunities.
Freshman Aiden Baltz was a force in the faceoff circle, going 15-for-20 and racking up 13 ground balls, his third game with at least ten grounders.
Harrison scored both of his goals in the first quarter, wrapping them around an unassisted marker by McClure to help the Bears recover from an early 1-0 hole. Harrison's tally on an assist from DeSimone made it 3-1 with 1:29 left in the opening frame, and McClure staked Ursinus to a three-goal lead early in the second before the Green Terror made its run.
McDaniel held a 51-46 edge in shots and was perfect on clears, but the Bears' faceoff surplus and Shevitz' sensational performance kept the home side chasing throughout.
Ursinus hosts No. 10 Franklin & Marshall next Saturday, which will serve as Senior Day for the Bears' six fourth-year players.