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PONTIAC, Mich. (2/7/2015) -- Seven Titans scored goals and a fourth quarter run was just enough as the University of Detroit Mercy men's lacrosse team defeated Ohio State, 9-8, on Saturday in front of 1,363 fans at Ultimate Soccer Arenas. The game marked the head coaching debut for first-year head coach
Chris Kolon '09 (MBA).
The win was the first by the Titans over Ohio State in six career meetings as the Buckeyes - who were receiving votes in both the Inside Lacrosse Media Poll and the USILA Coaches Poll - came to the Great Lakes State for the first time. It was also a win for a program in just its seventh year and one that has just 16 upperclassmen on its' 47-man roster.
Freshman
Sean Birney led the balanced offensive attack with three points and two goals, his first collegiate markers. Seniors
Shayne Adams and
Mike Birney along with sophomore
Brad Harris, redshirt freshman
Alec Gilhooly and true freshman
Mark Anstead all had a goal and an assist.
Sophomore
Jason Weber – the reigning MAAC Defensive Player of the Year – finished with 14 saves and six ground balls and senior
Chris Shevins tallied a career-high three caused turnovers and two ground balls.
The game was tied at 6-6 with under seven minutes left when Detroit ran off three-straight goals. The spurt started when Anstead found Gilhooly and he fired it in for his first collegiate score. Just 30 seconds later, Harris found the younger Birney and he buried it between the pipes for his second of the game and an 8-6 lead with 6:09 remaining.
The charge continued as Weber came up with a big stop and on the other end, senior
Scott Drummond ripped one past the netminder for a 9-6 advantage with 4:26 left.
Ohio State was able to tally two goals in the next two minutes to pull within one, but UDM turned away four shot attempts by the Buckeyes in the last 2:05 to come up with the victory.
Ohio State outshot Detroit, 37-30. Both teams picked up 31 ground balls and OSU won 17-of-21 faceoffs. Detroit forced Ohio State into 18 turnovers - with 12 caused turnovers – and held OSU to just 1-of-5 on the extra-man attack.
Detroit started the game with a pair of goals led by the upperclassmen as Birney scored the first marker of 2015 nearly two minutes into the contest. Adams followed off a pass from
Sean Birney at the 9:18 mark.
Ohio State rebounded to win the second quarter, 4-1, netting three straight goals to take a 3-2 lead. Detroit would tie it up event though it was on a two-minute unreleasable penalty as
Mike Birney located senior
Brandon Beauregard on a fast break, and he beat the keeper with 46 seconds left in the period. OSU came right back on the man-up to take a 4-3 lead at the half.
The Titans then went on a 3-0 run in the third to jump out in front, 6-4. It was the younger Titans that got the red, white and blue going as Gilhooly fed
Sean Birney for his first collegiate goal with 10:33 showing. Anstead then had an unassisted goal with 5:56 on the clock and Harris took a pass from Birney and lit the lamp for his first collegiate marker and a 6-4 lead with 1:52 left in the quarter.
The Titans will continue their schedule against Big Ten opponents when they head to Ann Arbor to take on Michigan next Saturday, Feb. 14. Game time is set for 7:00 p.m., indoors at Oosterbaan Field.
Game Notes:Detroit is 1-5 now against Ohio State, but the first five meetings were in Columbus… Detroit has just 16 upperclassmen on its 47-man roster... Harris' brother, Scott, tallied the first goal in Titan history at Ohio State in 2009… Adams is now just five points away from tying
Alex Maini's school record of 146 points… Adams ran his point streak to 47-straight, an NCAA high for active players… Weber now has double-digit saves in all 12 career games he has seen action in… The man-down goal was the eighth in school history… UDM was 20th in the nation in man-down defense last year (67.3%)…