Men's Lacrosse Edged By No. 6 NYIT in ECC Semifinals, 9-7

5/3/2017 7:46:00 PM

Box Score

OLD WESTBURY, N.Y. (May 3, 2017) - On Wednesday, the fourth-seeded LIU Post men's lacrosse team lost by a 9-7 final to No. 6/9 and top-seeded New York Institute of Technology in an East Coast Conference Championship semifinal at President's Stadium.

Behind a three-goal first-half performance from freshman midfielder Austin Guerrina (Longwood, Fla.), the Pioneers (8-8) jumped out to a 4-2 lead and eventually took a 5-4 advantage into the break.

In the opening 30 minutes of play, the green and gold outshot their opposition by a 23-15 count and won 7-of-10 (70.0 percent) faceoffs.

However, the Bears (13-3) came out strong in the latter half, tallying four unanswered goals in the third quarter to pull in front at 8-5.

The visitors fought back though and got man-up goals from Guerrina and junior attackman Chris Trasacco (Cheshire, Conn.) in the fourth quarter to close the gap to a one-goal game (8-7).

Despite the comeback attempt, NYIT's Leroy Halftown cleaned up a rebound in the final minutes to seal the victory for the hosts.

Guerrina scored a game-high four goals in the contest. Trasacco tallied two goals and an assist for a three-point effort. Junior midfielder Dylan Harned (Selden, N.Y.) added a goal and an assist.

Senior midfielder Anthony Galeotafiore (Wantagh, N.Y.) won 7-of-11 faceoffs (63.6 percent) and six ground balls. Sophomore midfielder Connor Farrell (Holtsville, N.Y.) finished 4-for-8 (50.0 percent) on draws.

Between the pipes, senior goaltender Matthew Liantonio (Miller Place, N.Y.) made eight saves for LIU Post. He also scooped up three ground balls and caused one turnover.

Head Coach John Jez and the Pioneers have wrapped up the 2017 campaign. For more information on the LIU Post men's lacrosse team, please continue to visit LIUPostPioneers.com.