DETROIT (4/27/2024) -- A second-half push by Cleveland State was the difference as the University of Detroit Mercy men's lacrosse team was upended by the Vikings, 13-8, on Saturday, eliminating UDM from postseason play.
Prior to the game, the Titans honored five seniors in Harrison Albano, Kyle Loken, Luke Majick, Noah Martin and Masen Powless.
Majick tallied two goals and ended his career with 100 points - seven in school history - and 62 markers - eighth in the school record book.
Junior Nolan Graalman and sophomore Zach Snider each had two goals and freshman Sawyer Van Antwerp had a goal and an assist.
Junior Ryan Richters made 13 saves and ended the year with 190, the second most in school history, while junior Billy Hart won a career-best 17-of-24 faceoffs with a career-high nine ground balls.
The game was back and forth early on as sophomore Drew Kessenich found Snider on the man-up to tie it at 1-1. Graalman then gave the Titans (3-10, 3-6 ASUN) a 2-1 lead and Van Antwerp beat the keeper for a 3-2 advantage at the 8:13 mark. Graalman then picked up a rebound off a shot from Kessenich and fired it in to knot it at 4-4 with 3:51 left in the first.
Cleveland State (8-7, 5-4 ASUN) would jump in front, 6-4, in the second, but off a save from Richters, Van Antwerp fed freshman Sean Donahue and his marker had the red, white and blue within one, 6-5. CSU scored twice when Snider was able to find the back of the net to cut it to 8-6, but the Vikings led 9-6 at the break.
The Titans made it a two-score game at 9-7 as Majick beat the netminder, but the Vikings extended their lead to 11-7. Majick netted another with about a minute left in the third, but Cleveland State ended the contest with two markers.
Loken and junior Evan DeVito ended the game with a caused turnover and two ground balls. Martin and junior Kyle Grant finished with a takeaway and a ground ball and Graalman also had a career-high four GB's.
The game was also the last for head coach Chris Kolon '09 (MBA), who announced earlier this week he was stepping down after 16 years of service to the program, including the last 10 as head coach. He was part of the inaugural Titan team in 2009.
Game Notes:
- Cleveland State leads the all-time series, 4-2, but the Titans are 2-1 at home
- Majick scored a goal in 12 of the 13 games this season and 33 of his 43 career games as a Titan as he ended the year leading the team with 36 points and 23 goals and second with 13 assists
- Loken - just the fourth Titan to be named a team captain three times - saw action in 49 games as a defensive midfielder and recorded 25 caused turnovers and 78 ground balls to go with 10 goals and three assists
- Martin - a first-time captain - played in 44 career games, tallying 35 caused turnovers and 67 ground balls
- Kessenich finished the season second on the team with 30 points, led the squad with 15 assists - tied for the ninth most in school history - and was tied for fourth with 15 goals
- Donahue ended the season fifth with 17 points and tied for fourth with 15 goals
- Van Antwerp netted a goal in seven games this season
- Henige ended the year leading the team with 16 caused turnovers
- Hart won 55 of his 77 faceoffs in the last five games, where he was 55-of-104 after starting the season 22-of-74
- Hart'ss 17 wins beat his career high of 14-of-22 with seven ground balls against Lindenwood and was the most since Connor Baratta registered 23 against VMI in 2022
- Hart's 177 career wins are fourth in the Titan record book
- Richters tallied double-digit saves in all 13 games on the season as he came into the game leading the conference and third in the nation with 14.7 saves per game
